Before a company was formed he addressed a letter to Lord Clarendon, then Foreign Secretary, and the answer to it was a request for a personal interview. Professor Morse was in London, and he went with Mr. Field to the Foreign Office, where they remained for over an hour. Lord Clarendon seemed to be at once interested, and among the questions asked was, "But suppose you do not succeed, that you make the attempt and fail, your cable lost at the bottom of the ocean, then what will you do?" "Charge it to profit and loss and go to work to lay another," was the answer. Lord Clarendon on parting desired that the requests made should be put in writing, and spoke words of encouragement. The Atlantic Telegraph Company was organized December 9, 1856. It was decided that for this work $1,750,000 must be raised. Mr. Field put his name down for $500,000 (100 shares). He counted upon aid from America, and did not intend to hold this large amount of stock individually. As more money was subscribed than had been called for, but eighty-eight shares were allotted to him. This was fortunate, for on his return to New York he was able to dispose of but twenty-one shares. Mr. George Saward wrote to _The Electrician_ on the 28th of March, 1862: "Mr. Field in starting the Atlantic Telegraph Company took upon his own account eighty-eight shares of £1000 each. Upon all of these he paid into the coffers of the company in cash the first deposit of £17,600, and upon sixty-seven of them he paid the entire amount of calls, amounting to £67,000. This I am in a position to verify. A great number of these have been sold at a loss; but Mr. Field is still the largest holder of shares in the company paid up in cash." Among the original subscribers in England were Lady Byron and Thackeray, and in America Archbishop Hughes. Mr. Field sailed for America on December 10th, and arrived in New York on Christmas Day.