Holy Roman Empire

Vienna Palace

Prime Minister Felix proposed: "Your Majesty, the number of our colonies is constantly increasing. It is necessary to establish a colonial department to manage colonial affairs."

After thinking about it, Franz suddenly realized that Austria had become a colonial power, at least in terms of the size of the colony.

From 1854 to the present, in more than a year, more than 30 colonial strongholds have been opened on the African continent, transporting more than 200,000 immigrants.

Among European countries, Austria is the most active in developing the African continent.At this time, if there is no special department to manage, it is easy to cause confusion.

After thinking about it, Franz asked: "Now we really need to set up a colonial ministry. Who does the prime minister think is qualified for this position?"

Prime Minister Felix suggested: "Your Majesty, how about Count Josip Jelacic as colonial minister?"

The Croatian Count Josip Jelacic, one of the three princes who historically saved the Austrian Empire, led the Croatian militia to suppress the Hungarian rebellion.

With the passage of time and the advancement of national integration, the Government of Vienna will inevitably use senior minority officials to show equality among all ethnic groups.

In this context, as a loyal supporter of the empire, Yosip Jelacic stood out.

Franz thought for a while and said: "Then the colonial minister was Yosip Yelacic. I remember in the 1848 war of rebellion, he also made contributions to the empire.

In recent years, he has also done a good job as a senior Croatian official.Both road construction and economic development have achieved considerable results."

The cabinet cannot always be controlled by the Germans, which is not conducive to national unity.In Franz's view, as long as the loyalty pass, ability, pass, no matter what origin, can be promoted and reused.

Josip Jelacic can exist as a model. Franz has only just taken the position a few years ago. It also needs the support of the German nobles, and it is inevitable to compromise with them.

Now that his status is stable, it is naturally not a problem to promote some people according to his own will.

But what surprised Franz was that he did not wait for his action, and Prime Minister Felix took the initiative to mention it.In this way, the Prime Minister will have to bear the pressure from the nobility of Vienna.

After thinking about it, Franz gave up this worry.Prime Minister Felix is ​​now a national hero in the eyes of the Germans, and is no longer the prime minister of the butcher.

With this aura, even if the conservative nobles were not satisfied, they could not shake his position.

The better the development of the New Holy Roman Empire, the more dazzling the aura on Felix's head, and a little opposition will dominate.

Grand Duke Louis stopped talking, and now the reformists are in power. As a leader of the conservatives, his sense of presence in the cabinet is getting lower and lower.

At this time, working against the emperor did not do him any good, and the political life ended early.

Prince Wendy Schgratz, the Secretary of the Army, hesitated and said: "Your Majesty, the Sinai Peninsula is a large desert, and nomadic tribes exist in only a few oasis on the island.

We can't get any gains here. We set up an administrative agency here. I'm afraid our tax revenue is not enough to pay tax officials.

The two infantry regiments we stationed on the island were too wasteful. The locals could not even provide food for themselves. The water source was a problem in the dry season."

This is a vexing problem. In this era, Franz could not have extravagantly used artificial fresh water for the garrison.

However, it is impossible without garrison to ensure the influence on the local area.The strength of the two infantry regiments has been reduced and then reduced.

There is no garrison now. Once the Suez Canal is excavated, it is not so easy to think about garrisoning again.

Franz asked: "The cost of the government has its own consideration. Food can be transported from the country. I never thought of being self-sufficient in the Sinai Peninsula. So the only problem is the water source?"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Prince Wendisch Gretz replied

The garrison of thousands of people consume a lot of water every day when eating and drinking Lhasa.The population above the Sinai Peninsula cannot grow, and the most critical issue is lack of water.

If this problem cannot be solved, even if you want to deploy heavy troops, there is no way to do it.

After looking at the map, Franz continued to ask: "Prime Minister, how many aborigines are there on the Sinai Peninsula?"

After thinking about it, Prime Minister Felix couldn't find an accurate number. He reluctantly replied: "Your Majesty, the Egyptians have not conducted a demographic survey of the nomadic tribes on the island. population."

Hearing this number, Franz smiled.

"The water problem is easy to handle. As far as I know, the local people live on the breeding of camels and sheep and rarely grow food.

These animals are large water-consuming households. If hundreds of thousands of animals on the island are gone, then the water source that everyone is worried about is not a problem."

Prime Minister Felix reminded: "Your Majesty, these animals are the livelihood of the local people. If they are not allowed to raise animals, I am afraid the locals will find it hard to make a living."

Franz said with a sacred face: "This is a small problem, only for tens of thousands of people. Ask the Egyptian government if it is willing to accept it, and if they refuse to accept it, they will move to the settlement of the West African colonies.

The local people have left. Should the water used by these tens of thousands of people be enough for the soldiers of our two regiments?

The natural environment of the Sinai Peninsula has been ruined by the locals. In history, it used to be a fertile land with trees and sheep all over the place.

If we don't protect it and let them destroy it, it won't take long for the local natural ecology to be over, and the once beautiful Sinai Peninsula will also become a dead island.

Now that the above people have been transferred and resettled, agricultural production is prohibited, and livestock breeding is forbidden, and local precious water resources can be saved.

Our garrison can plant trees or plant grasses on the island in their free time outside of training to continuously expand the area of ​​oasis and contribute to the beautification of the earth."

At this moment, Franz seemed to become an environmentalist.It was definitely not to solve the water problem for the garrison, he had to emigrate!

Hundreds of thousands of animals are large water users and consume a lot of water every year.

If these precious freshwater resources are used for planting trees, a few dozen square kilometers of mountain forest can be easily added every year. If they are used for planting grass, it will increase even more.

Although it seems so trivial now, this is a virtuous circle!In theory, for hundreds of years of hard work, the desert oasis project on the Sinai Peninsula was completed.

Duke Louis, who saw the opportunity, patted a fart: "Your Majesty, it makes sense. For the natural environment of the Sinai Peninsula, we must take immediate action."

Of course, everyone will not object to Franz's proposal.Exploiting the African continent requires a large population, and moving the people on the Sinai peninsula to disperse and resettle them is all in one stone.

Of course, if the Egyptian government is willing to accept these people, then it is even better, and the Vienna government can save a sum of money.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Carle, said: "Your Majesty, the issue of immigration from the Sinai Peninsula will be put on hold for now!

None of the refugees accepted by us in Dalmatia have been shipped over. Now, if the immigration is increased blindly, the logistic pressure on the colony is really too great.

Last year, our colony's net loss was 588,000 Aegis. This year our colony's net loss is expected to exceed 1.2 million Aegis. It is imperative to turn losses into profits as soon as possible."

There is no way. Austria ’s colonial activities are in the stage of net investment. If you want to get a return, at least you have to wait for the colony to enter production.

In the current African colonial strongholds, apart from setting up local farms, they only have to go fishing and fish, or go hunting and make up for the lack of food.

The logging site is already under construction, but due to the attack from the local indigenous tribes, it is still being cleared and cannot be put into production in a short time.

As for the so-called cotton plantations, rubber plantations, coffee plantations ... all are in the plan, not the capitalists and nobles sent people to investigate.

In the short term, these industries will see no gains.If no minerals appear, it will be difficult to achieve a break-even within three to five years.

This is also the reason why countries are reluctant to invest in colonies. This investment return cycle is really too long. It is better to search for colonies with gold and silver minerals or to squeeze local indigenous people.

This is a difference in business philosophy. Franz developed the African continent, the main purpose of which is to solve the shortage of domestic resources and reduce the outflow of domestic migrants.

Despite the period of development of the African colonies, terrified by the advocacy of the Vienna government, more than 30,000 people joined the migrant army spontaneously in the country.

These talents are the main force to develop the African continent. Now they can be hired by the government as long as they sign up. They can be paid twice the salary of the local government. They can also serve as grassroots officials of the colonial government.

If you want to get rich, join the expansion team.All the loot paid by the indigenous tribes is owned by the individual, and they can also receive a bounty after completing the task.

Franz said confidently: "Don't worry, our colonies on the African continent are still in primitive state and have never been developed.

According to geologists, alluvial gold deposits are likely to occur along river banks.Trace gold is also present in the collected river sand, and there is a high probability of owning gold mines.

As long as a large gold mine is found, all our investment will be recovered, and there is a large area of ​​fertile land, how can it be a big profit.

Do n’t worry about immigration on the Sinai Peninsula. We only have time. After two or three years, we can act again, and the garrison can gradually increase."

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