Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 446 Achievements in Foreign Colonization
Putting aside the worries of international political economy, the overall indicators of Chu's economic development were very impressive. At the end of 1882, with a population of 4685 million, it created a GDP of 31.5 billion silver dollars (note: one silver dollar was exchanged for one US dollar) in national economic income, an annual steel output of 121.68 million tons, and a total production capacity of more than 200 million tons, which was firmly at the level of an industrialized country.

From these hard indicators
It can also be seen that the British economy is strong, and its domestic GDP level is more than twice that of Chu.

Although the United States has a larger population than the Chu State, its GDP is more than three times higher, its industrialization level is higher and deeper, and its market is broader, which is indeed worthy of admiration.

The per capita GDP of Chu State is basically around 60% of that of Germany and France. There is still some gap from these European powers, but the gap is not large.

Again, this is the difference between an immigrant country and a non-immigrant country.

The "Report on the Overall Economic Development Level of the Chu State in 1882" lists various detailed data, including the progress in the field of colonial development, which are all eye-catching.

In the former Dutch-occupied provinces in southern Kalimantan, the total number of Chinese immigrants has reached 226.12 million, widely distributed in East Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan and South Kalimantan provinces, far exceeding the indigenous population many years ago.

The Aboriginal population was completely reduced to zero. Apart from the Aboriginal women who gave birth to children in Chinese families, the remaining Aboriginal population either died of natural causes from hard labor in the labor camps or continued to do hard labor in mines across the country. The overall number of Aboriginal people was not large.

On the island of Sumatra
The total number of Chinese immigrants has grown to 71.6. In the years after 1883, there is still a tendency to focus on immigration to Sumatra, which has led to a rapid increase in population and completely covered the indigenous people.

This is a necessary step to complete the "empty cage, replace bird" policy. Although it is a bit cruel, it fully demonstrates the law of the jungle where the strong prey on the weak. The major powers of various countries basically will not interfere in this matter.

Everyone has a mess, let alone the eldest brother.

The Chu State's foreign immigration process was relatively mild. It was not mainly based on killing, but on slavery and population diversion, and also on human trafficking.

For example, the situation is similar in the Congo River Company and the East Africa Company.

Since the establishment of these two major colonial companies in June 1875, the process of foreign colonization has gradually accelerated and the development momentum is promising. This is an indisputable fact.

some of

The East African Company's "empty cage, replace bird" policy has been largely completed. After seven years of attrition and slavery in labor camps, the black male population in the East African Company's jurisdiction has dropped to less than 7, and is still declining at a rate of more than 4.2 people per year.

Since the introduction of black population was prohibited in the local area, the reduced black slave population was mostly replaced by more advanced agricultural machinery, such as hand tractors and steam engines, which greatly improved agricultural production efficiency.

A walking tractor could do the work of 20 black slaves, but the initial investment was a bit larger, requiring about 2400 silver dollars to purchase one of the popular walking tractors today.

Fortunately, the diesel consumed is not valuable, so it is generally cost-effective.

The number of Chinese immigrant families in the East African company's territories has grown to more than 32, with a total population of over 70, forming five major towns: Asmara, Dinghai, Mingyuecheng, Jiawan Port and Djibouti, as well as more than surrounding villages and a dozen small and medium-sized towns.

About 6 to Chinese immigrants arrive every year, continuously replenishing human resources for East African companies. This place has become a hot spot for Chinese immigrants, and the prospects for colonial development are very promising.

Relatively speaking
The Congo River Company has a larger territory, so the process of population replacement is slower.

Throughout the Congo River Basin, there are hundreds of indigenous tribes and several indigenous kingdoms, with a total population of approximately 20 million.

these years
The Congo River Company, through the inducement of economic interests, facilitated the fighting among the black indigenous tribes in the region, resulting in a population reduction of as much as 300 million, with an astonishing effect.

Other than this
The Congo River Company actively purchased strong black slaves and sold them mainly to Brazil, Argentina, Suriname, Venezuela and other places across the Atlantic Ocean, as well as Morocco, Algeria and other places in North Africa. This area had a population of about 120 million.

The total amount is more than 420 million.

This has led to a significant reduction in the population of black tribes in the Congo River basin, especially a decrease in strong men, which will inevitably affect the population reproduction process.

In addition to the two major measures mentioned above, the number of Chinese immigrants in the Congo River Basin has now grown to more than 23 households. On average, each Chinese immigrant household owns more than a dozen black slaves, both male and female, which has reduced the working-age black population by more than 300 million.

Overall
The Congo River Company's population reduction policy is still very obvious. In this era, the average life expectancy of the black tribal population is only 33 years old. Having missed the healthy reproductive age, a sharp population reduction is almost inevitable.

But it will take a longer period of time, such as 20 years or more, to see results.

Fortunately, the black tribal population in the Congo River basin has dropped significantly to about 1500 million, which shows that such measures are effective and are indeed a good idea.

The Congo River Company now proposed a new plan, which was to launch a war during the grain harvest period, burn a large amount of grain that was about to be harvested, plunder the black tribal population, and implement a more severe population reduction policy.

Then it is a foregone conclusion that the population of black tribes will be drastically reduced under the attack of hunger.

The Congo River Company hoped to reduce the total population of black tribes to below 19 million by the end of the 500th century, and to increase the number of Chinese immigrants to one million, which would be one and a half times the current level.

As one thing grows, the other shrinks, and the control over the region will inevitably increase further.

Overall
The Congo River Company's overall colonial policy was relatively mild, and local black tribes found it difficult to feel the population changes. As more and more black tribes were eliminated, what came was the growth and strengthening of the tribe's population.

The black community is short-sighted and completely unaware of the dangers within.

This method of instigating black tribes to attack each other has been proven to be effective in the Congo River Basin, where there are many black indigenous tribes. It is simply too easy to use.

Dozens of barrels of wine could be exchanged for hundreds of black slaves, and to obtain hundreds of strong male slaves, these insufficient natives had to kill hundreds of people, and they themselves would also suffer certain losses.

This has nothing to do with the Congo River Company, it is just a matter of facilitating the transaction.

A large number of strong black slaves were trafficked to South America and North Africa through the Atlantic slave trade. Many white slave ships followed like beasts smelling blood and participated in the slave trade.

The Congo River Company had opened seven slave markets along the Atlantic coast, trading more than 7 black slaves annually. This was a big business with a transaction volume of tens of millions of silver dollars.

The black slaves left behind by white slave ships were resold or rented to local Chinese plantation owners at low prices, who used them for various daily labors and also made some profits.

British mine owners as far away as South Africa came to select black slaves to enrich the mine labor force. At least 3 to 4 black slaves were traded every year, making it a major customer.

The Chinese colonists of the Congo River Company were reluctant to do the work themselves if they could let the local black tribes do it for them. If they lost a few or even a dozen people, the cost would be too high and it would not be worth it no matter how you looked at it. Trading in slaves was faster, more convenient, and cheaper.

In the area under the jurisdiction of the Congo River Company, natural rubber plantations, coffee and tea plantations, as well as oil palm plantations are being vigorously developed. These are bulk commodities that are easily sold in the international market.

Over the years, a large export scale has been formed.

In addition to these, the Chinese mainly grow crops such as rice, wheat, corn, soybeans, alfalfa, and elephant grass, especially the latter two, which are mainly used as feed for large livestock such as cattle, horses, donkeys and mules.

These large livestock are also the main labor force for local agricultural production.

In the past two years
Some hand tractors and university agricultural tools have entered the Congo River Company and have gradually been promoted in Chinese estates. They have received rave reviews and their application is expanding.

The Chinese plantations and farms of the Congo River Company are generally medium to large farms covering more than a thousand acres. The larger the land, the more labor is needed, and the greater the demand for high-efficiency agricultural machinery.

Some Chinese families jointly owned farms that often occupied tens of thousands of acres of land, which was impossible to cultivate with only black slaves.

With a hand tractor, 30 to acres of land can be plowed in a day, which is more efficient than using black slaves. How could Chinese farmers not like it?

With seven or eight hand tractors, even tens of thousands of acres of land can be cultivated in more than a month, which greatly improves efficiency.

Moreover, these tractors are tireless and do not need to eat grass or rest. They can work in the fields day and night.

Therefore, in the field of agricultural machinery promotion, Congo River Company has gone further than East Africa Company and has a greater demand. The market can consume thousands of hand tractors and a large number of agricultural tools every year.

Because of this, the Congo River Company has established agricultural machinery factories in most important cities along the Atlantic Ocean, imported steel raw materials and produced some agricultural machinery products to meet the needs of the local market.

Every year now
The Congo River Company was able to export agricultural products worth more than 30 million silver dollars to the European market, mainly rubber, sugar, coffee, cocoa, tea, oil palm and grain, in exchange for stable profits and the import of large quantities of industrial products.

Today, the Chu government and royal family no longer need to continue investing in the Congo River Company, which has the ability to produce and sell its own products and develop itself, and can provide certain financial feedback to the kingdom.

in this regard
The Chu government basically returned the profits and taxes paid by the Congo River Company and the East African Company to local construction in the colony, building bridges and roads, railways, docks, ports and cities, so that it could catch up with the average level of other colonies.

Precisely because of this Kangkai policy, the Chu-controlled West African and Chu-controlled East African colonies developed rapidly and were second only to French Algeria and British South Africa in the entire African region.

The French North African colonies were mainly in Algeria. The French invested billions of francs in this territory, building towns and various transportation infrastructure, and extensively constructing irrigation canals and other facilities, spending a lot of francs.

To do so, the French North African colonies were built to the same standards as mainland France, no matter how much money was invested, and a large number of immigrants were sent to French Algeria, with the number reaching millions.

After several generations, these white descendants of France who immigrated to Algeria basically had no kinship with mainland France and were called "Black Feet".

This is an insulting name referring to sailors on steamships traveling across the Atlantic, who often work barefoot and whose feet are covered with coal dust. They are called "black feet" and are used to refer to the descendants of white French people in Algeria.

With such a huge investment in North Africa, Chu State was certainly far behind.

The other is British South Africa. After diamond mines were discovered in South Africa, the local economy expanded like air, and the construction of Pretoria and Johannesburg developed rapidly. Who could be richer than the mine owners?
Around 1883
The British had not yet discovered the world's largest Rand gold mine in South Africa, nor had they discovered gold veins stretching for hundreds of kilometers, but they had already made a fortune from the diamond mines alone.

Sometime next year, when a giant gold mine is discovered in South Africa, all of London will go crazy, and that will be when things get really exciting.

Compared with these two places, the cities under the Congo River Company still have many shortcomings and need to be gradually improved through long-term development.

However, through the "Overall Development Report of the National Economy of Chu State in 1882", it can be seen that the economy in the areas under the jurisdiction of the Congo River Company and the East African Company has developed tremendously.

Of course, a large part of this is the development benefits gained at the expense of the local indigenous black tribal population.

This point has been intentionally or unintentionally ignored: weak races have no human rights.

in the 19s
Europeans generally did not recognize black people as being of the same human race as themselves, and regarded them as inferior creatures, exhibiting them in city circuses. The slave trade was rampant, and their status was only slightly better than that of livestock.

Europeans eat mummies and like enemas, but at least they don't eat black people. They just enslave black people, and they don't have any moral burden in their hearts.

There was no pressure on the Congo River Company and the East African Company to do what they did. They were just conducting normal trade, which was already very merciful.

King Leopold II of Belgium, through a treaty signed with Britain, sent Belgian troops and expeditions into Mozambique without delay, enclosing and colonizing the local area on a large scale, squeezing out and suppressing the traditional Portuguese forces.

Compared with the traditional mild Portuguese white colonists, the Belgians were much more brutal. They often cut off the hands and feet of black slaves as punishment, and even cruelly skinned and pulled out their tendons, using all kinds of brutal tortures.

After the Belgians entered Mozambique, dark times arrived for the black tribes in the region.

The Portuguese knew that it would be difficult for them to compete with the Belgians, so they chose to be tolerant and retreat, trying their best to cooperate and jointly colonize the Mozambique region. However, some conflicts and confrontations were inevitable between them.

Whenever these times came, the British would accuse the Portuguese of crossing the line, and their biased attitude was very obvious.

Because of this, the Belgians' actions in Mozambique became more and more excessive, and their methods became more and more cruel and bloody. They were like a dark cloud hanging over the heads of the black tribes in Mozambique, and they could not be driven away.

In the eyes of old colonizers such as Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Britain and France, the Belgians' behavior was typical of greenhorns. As soon as they entered the colony, they vented their cruelty without any moral bottom line, and their methods were appalling.

Out of consideration for my British cousin's reputation, no one mentioned it.

In the end, it only brought suffering to the local black tribes in Mozambique, who were tortured to the point of wanting to die, and invisibly allowed the black tribes in the Congo River basin to escape.

Compared with the brutal colonial methods of the Belgians, the Chinese colonists of the Congo River Company were much more gentle, and the population reduction measures they adopted were more covert.

At least they won't go into battle directly, shouting for fighting and killing. That's really too low.

(End of this chapter)