Guinea

The discovery of the gold mine in the early stage has already begun to operate, and the chaotic situation directly discourages Baron Fickney from continuing to search for gold mines.

There are too many competitors, and there are too many examples of black eating black for the sake of profit.

Guinea is a good place, completely under the control of the Austrian colonial government, and a basic order has been established.

As long as the gold mineral rights are registered and reported by the colonial government, even if the mine owner has an accident, it is the government to recover the property rights, and it is absolutely impossible for them to fall into the hands of others.

The forcible seizure of gold mines was severely suppressed by the colonial government, and those caught were sent to the gallows, which put an end to large-scale firefights.

Just because you can't seize the gold mine doesn't mean it's too peaceful. Gold must be mined and sold, and the most dangerous time is when it is transported.

In order to crack down on the gold thieves, the colonial garrison was dispatched several times, and even did not hesitate to carry out fishing law enforcement, but with little success.

There was no choice but to strengthen their precautions, increase the number of escorts, and do not hesitate to run a few more times to reduce the amount of gold transported each time, which curbed this situation.

……

"Your Excellency, the production of our gold mines has increased to eighteen hundred pounds per month, which is too slow at the current rate of one hundred pounds per shipment.

It is not safe for large quantities of gold to remain in the mines, and if the news leaks, we are in danger. Father Bhattigue warned

It would have been a joke to say that the gold mine was too high, but now he was really bothered by it.

His gold mine is more than 200 kilometers away from Newbrook, and the forest along the way is too easy for people to ambush.

Every time they transported gold, they did not dare to determine the route in advance, for fear of leaking the news.

There is no way, his colonial team is not large, and he has to stay in the gold mines, and he can dispatch no more than seventy escorts at a time.

Baron Fikney said with a painful face: "Wait a minute, I have already communicated with the colonial government of Newbrook, and they will send someone to collect the gold and send us logistical supplies." ”

For the sake of safety, Baron Fickney had to sell the gold at a low price to the colonial government, which sent troops out to collect the gold.

It's not that he hasn't thought about using mercenaries, but the commission of mercenary groups is not cheap, and the security is not so guaranteed.

Fr. Battigue was relieved: "This is the best, the money is not enough, and safety comes first."

However, there is one more problem you have to consider, and that is the insufficient number of gold miners. The workers we hired didn't last long, and they basically left after making a fortune. ”

Lack of workers is a common problem in all gold mines. It's not that Fickney didn't think about hiring local labor, but unfortunately these people are really not the material for the work.

Free and loose, ignoring the rules of the gold mine, and restless rules and regulations. Even if it's inefficient, the key is that accidents are still frequent.

After a month of perseverance, he despaired of these people. Obediently pay a high price and hire gold diggers in colonial strongholds.

Baron Fickney said uncertainly: "I have already written to a friend in China and asked him to help hire a group of workers to come over, our salary here is three times that of the local people, and we should be able to recruit people." ”

This is the African continent, and although the salary is higher than that of the mainland, the mortality rate is also high! One in ten of the people who went out with him had already fallen, and some had died of illness, war, and all kinds of accidents.

Those who dare to fight and dare to break through don't need to recruit themselves to run over. The rest of the ordinary people, as long as they are not in the homeland, they really can't survive, who wants to come and take risks?

And the workers that Baron Fickney needs are precisely ordinary people, and only ordinary people who are safe and secure can do this job for a long time.

When the gold diggers just had no money, they came to work, and after the money was earned, they ran out to find gold. It is better to find gold for yourself than to work for others.

These runners are different from them, and after finding the gold mine, they sell it directly to the colonial government to take the money and leave.

Father Bhattig nodded and said, "This is the best, and if possible, I hope to have the church built before the end of the year." ”

He worked for Baron Fikney, mainly for the sake of a church of his own, not for someone else's hands.

There have been Catholic churches in the New Brook area for a long time, which were built with funds from the colonial government, which is a European cultural tradition, and churches have become an inseparable part of people's lives.

Baron Fickney promised: "Don't worry, Father. You know my credibility, as long as the gold mine is in order, I will fund the construction of a church for you. However, have you decided on the location of the church? ”

After pondering for a while, Fr. Battig said: "Originally, I was going to build a church in Newbrook, but there is already a church in the area, and as a latecomer, it is not easy for me to develop believers in the area.

Now I'm confused and don't know where to build a church. Your Excellency, what do you recommend? ”

Baron Fickney analyzed: "Father, you have built a church mainly for missionary purposes, so it must be in a densely populated area.

The best option is Newbrook, of course, followed by the new colony stronghold, but there are churches in these areas.

Everyone is here to spread the gospel of the Lord, and there is no need to be next to each other. You might as well build the church near the gold mines, where there would be no less than 5,000 workers if all the workers were in place.

The surrounding terrain is flat, the land is fertile, and the water is abundant, making it ideal for agricultural production. I've applied to the colonial government to establish a small town, and when the gold mines are regularized, I'll be working on farms here.

And my people, I have communicated with them, and everyone is also interested in setting up a farm here, and then bringing their families over, so don't worry about the future development potential. ”

They can't move here without moving, they can't move the gold mines here, and they can't leave without digging up the gold. Who is willing to give up their own gold mine and leave?

Baron Fickney was a traditional aristocrat who was not interested in investing in industry and commerce, but had a penchant for building farms.

Not only him, but many Germans have a soft spot for farms, and most of the farmers in the United States in later generations were Germans, which can be explained.

Since we will be staying here for a long time to come, it is also a good choice to open up a farm and become self-sufficient in food.

It was not easy to get land at home, but it was not the same on the African continent, where the colonial government now encouraged people to develop farms and plantations. Whoever develops the land belongs to whomever it develops, and such an opportunity is rare.

Baron Fickney is well aware of the country's determination to develop Guinea, and the current chaos cannot last long. Once the situation stabilizes, investing in agriculture is also a good option.

Even if it is only to solve the problem of food for the gold miners, and not to procure from the base of more than 200 kilometers, the investment is worth it.

After hesitating for a while, Father Bartig said in disbelief: "Your Excellency, are you not going to exchange the domestic fiefdom here?" ”

Baron Fikney denied: "No, I will not give up the family business!" It's just that I have a little more children, and if I don't leave a little more inheritance, I won't have enough points. ”

According to the practice in Germany, the eldest son inherits the family business, and the second son can only get a small share of the property, which is still based on the fact that he is rich.

If the economic situation is not good, then the eldest son inherits the family business, and the second son can only go out alone.

It's not so easy to break through, unless you have made great achievements on the battlefield and can rise up in one day, you can only climb slowly in other industries, and you will slowly disappear.

That is, Austria started colonization, otherwise Baron Fickney himself would have to worry about economic problems, let alone his next generation? If he can, he is certainly willing to lay a better foundation for the next generation.

……

In order to resolve the international political crisis caused by the Gulf of Guinea, Metternich sent diplomatic notes to Britain, France, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, and the United States.

London

Frankly, Prime Minister Granville does not want an international political crisis to erupt at this time. The London government has been busy, and still is, very busy.

The war in the Near East failed to bring the Russians to their knees, and now the tsarist government is not at all restless, and has recently been supporting the Persian government in its affairs.

In the Far East, the British had just turned Burma into a colony and were still suppressing rebellions; Australia and New Zealand are also not peaceful, and the local indigenous people are still rebelling against their rule; Even the situation in India is beginning to be unstable.

Compared to these colonies, the interests of the Gulf of Guinea are not worth mentioning at all, and although gold mines have been discovered, they are not in their hands.

The interests of the seven countries converge and affect the whole body, and it is impossible for the London government to forcibly seize the interests of one country at this time.

Prime Minister Granville asked: "Is the situation in West Africa out of control?" ”

William, the colonial minister, replied solemnly: "Yes, Your Excellency Prime Minister.

The Gulf of Guinea is a traditional gold producing area, and we thought that after so many years of mining, the local gold has been mined, but we did not expect to find so many gold mines.

Let the new Holy Roman Empire pick up a bargain, and now more than eighty percent of the local gold mines are in their hands, and we have no way to compete with them. ”

Prime Minister Granville asked puzzledly: "Why did the Austrians, who had just begun colonization, establish an advantage in the area so quickly?" ”

As the world's number one naval power, they were in an advantageous position in most overseas colonial competitions, and now they have suddenly fallen into a disadvantage, and Prime Minister Granville is very puzzled.

"There were so many immigrants, not only from the new Holy Roman Empire, but also from the Federal Empire of Germany, the Kingdom of Prussia, and even some from Italy and Russia," William explained.

Now the new Holy Roman Empire has more than 200,000 immigrants in the Gulf of Guinea, while ours has less than 10,000 immigrants, and even with naval superiority, we still can't compete with them on land. ”

Chancellor of the Exchequer John Russell asked: "How can there be so many immigrants?" ”

"Nearly half of them were refugees from the Balkans, who had been dumped on the African continent by the Vienna government," Wilhelm explains.

The rest is the gold prospectors attracted by this gold mine, we have too many colonies, and there are too many places for domestic immigrants to go.

The Austrians only had a few colonies, and the people did not have many choices, and the temptation of gold mines naturally increased the number of people who went there. ”

John Russell explained, "No, Earl William. I'm not asking why there are so many immigrants from Austria, I mean why Italians, Russians, Germans all went to the Austrian colonies? ”

William, the Colonial Chancellor, explained: "Your Excellency, Russell, I think you misunderstood. The Italians went to the Austrian colonies, because they still occupied Lombardy and Venezia, and most of these immigrants came from their rule.

It is easier for Russian emigrants to run over, we have just fought with the Russians, and it is not surprising that they have chosen this way, given the national sentiment.

The Habsburgs were highly recognized by the population of Germany, and the Austrians were considered their own.

Of course, the Austrians had the largest number of colonial strongholds in the Gulf of Guinea, which was also an important factor, and many people entered their territory when they arrived.

These gold prospectors had been incorporated into the reserve by the Austrian colonial government, and in the event of war in the Gulf of Guinea, they could mobilize an army of 100,000. ”

The number of "100,000 troops" surprised everyone, and Chancellor Granville said solemnly: "It seems that we must limit the Austrians, otherwise no one will be able to compete with them in overseas colonization by virtue of the advantage of immigration." ”

William, the colonial minister, thought for a moment and said, "The question is actually very simple, just divide these immigrants. For example, the Federal Empire of Germany, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the regional states of Italy also participated in overseas colonization.

Of course, we can also be rough and send the navy directly to stop their colonization activities. ”

Prime Minister Granville glared at him and said, "Count William, all your ideas are bad ideas, and there is no feasibility at all.

This world is not unlimited, every time we add a competitor, we can get less benefits, you actually have to make a bunch of competitors out.

For no reason, warships were used to stop the Austrians' colonization? Such an idiotic idea, you dare to think that I would not dare to do it.

There are many ways to limit competitors, and war is the worst option, so can you use your brains? ”

Obviously, Prime Minister Granville is playing on the topic, and the dissatisfaction with the colonial minister William is not a day or two.

The reason is very simple, the colonies have not been peaceful recently, and many colonies are not peaceful, in his opinion, it is the incompetence of the colonial minister.

……

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