Trailbeast - I stand amazed! I tried this and it worked! Couldn't get a perfect grip but was able to shove the cable hard enough to have it snap into place. Took the car around the block and it the speedometer works.
This means that my odometer now works and I can keep track of when I need to buy gas.
Guess I'll put out another post soon asking for ideas on getting my gas gauge working again. I replaced the sending unit (a few years ago) but the gauge never quite worked and has finally quit completely.