Chapter 348: The Most Valuable and The Least Valuable
In Central America, after three years of operations, Governor Hmmel had more or less dealt with the local power brokers.
Those willing to accept incorporation naturally remained in high positions, while those who resisted obstinately were naturally harmoniously dealt with. Austria had already accumulated rich experience in this regard.
Take Nicaragua as an example. The country has a total population of 300,000, with the majority being indigenous people. There are only tens of thousands of white immigrants and mestizos. What do they have to resist against Austria?
The other Central American countries are largely similar, not very large geographically, yet sparsely populated. If they tried to go to the mountains for guerrilla warfare, Austria wouldnt even need to act. The local Native American tribes would simply crush them.
The Habsburg monarchy used to be their co-rulers as well; their ancestors had even sworn allegiance to Charles V. Stretching the point a bit, they can just about claim some legitimacy, coupled with the iron fist that could suppress dissent, the remaining people simply supported Emperor Franzs rule.
Since the interests of the common people have not been harmed, there is naturally no resentment.
The main reason for the independence movement back then was because Spain was weakened by the French, and mine owners and capitalists didnt want to pay taxes to Spain. Bureaucrats wanted more power, so they went along with the independence movement.
Perhaps its not appropriate to use they; how could small countries have so many capitalists and mine owners? In reality, it was one or a few families who wanted independence. Otherwise, Central America wouldnt have split into so many countries.
It is all irrelevant now. With the influx of immigrants, even if some are discontent, they cannot make big waves.
Within the Governors Palace of San Jos, Central America, Foreign Affairs Officer John Radford of the Immigration Bureau reported: Governor, Colombia has rejected immigrants from entering the Panama region. They also require immigrants to be dispersed and not concentrated in one place.
Undoubtedly, ever since Mexico paid an intelligence tax to the Americans, everyone has learned their lesson and become cautious of incoming immigrants.
Colombia naturally lacks immigrants, and Panama has not yet become independent. Its current territory covers an area of 1,200,000 square kilometers, with a population of just over two million including around 100,000 people in Panama.
If there were no restrictions on immigrants, who knows when the Republic of Colombia might change hands?
This is also the reason why the various South American countries have not developed. Because the native population is simply too small, they dare not rashly accept large numbers of immigrants.
Taking the Republic of Colombia as an example, only 400,000 to 500,000 immigrants are needed to turn them into a German country.
In this context, its natural for everyone to be cautious. Rejecting German immigrants from entering Panama is a concern that one day Austria might turn this area into a colony.
Theres nothing to criticize about this; Governor Hmmel indeed has given attention to Panama. He cant expect them not to resist, right?
The Panama region is the most suitable for digging a canal in Central America. This is an essential part of Austrias strategy for America and must be kept in their grasp.
Governor Hmmel asked, Did the congressmen we bribed not help speak up?
In this era, corruption was common in all countries, especially the emerging republics like Colombia which were truly a confusing mess.
Immigration official John Radford explained, Our public relations activities have been met with interference from external forces. Its been preliminarily assessed that the British are behind this, and the French may also be involved.
Many pro-British congressmen openly opposed it, putting forth the Austrian threat theory, arguing that once we gain a foothold in Latin America, we will inevitably seek to expand, with Colombia being the first target.
Hmmel had nothing to say. He admitted to having an interest in Colombia. Although there were no definite plans yet, the voices for expansion into the Colombian region had already emerged.
There was no other reason than Colombias weakness. In this era of the strong preying on the weak, it was no surprise that they became everyones target.
Of course, directly attacking the Republic of Colombia was impossible. For Austria to send an expedition force all the way to South America and wage such a war, the exorbitant war costs alone would deter the Austrian government.
Austria is not Spain. If Franz were the King of Spain, then there would be no question that he would definitely try to reconquer South America.
In this era, the feudal remnants have not been completely eradicated yet. Pro-monarchy factions exist in various South American countries. With these people in place, as long as the enemy is defeated militarily, they can re-establish their rule.
So even if the war costs were a bit high, it would be worth it to gain greater development space.
But Austria should forget about it. Hispanics and Germans are completely different ethnicities. To gain their acceptance, it would require the same approach used in Central America.
First, cripple them by force, establish control forcibly, and then organize a large number of immigrants to dilute them into minority groups to manage them.
After hesitating for a moment, Governor Hmmel made a decision: Bribe local officials in Panama to create a fait accompli for immigration.
Forge immigrant identities. It can be from France, England, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, and so on. Send someone to arrange it. These immigrants must be settled.
If Panama cannot accommodate them, then settle them inland in Colombia. The government will fund the purchase of land for them.
If anyone tries to disrupt our plans, find a way to deal with them. This concerns our future national policy, and no one should be allowed to sabotage it.
This isnt Austrias first batch of immigrants sent to Colombia. However, previously it was a minor activity, with a few thousand sent each year. Due to the American Civil War, everyone treated it as normal immigration, and it didnt attract the attention of the Colombian government.
With time passing, the number of immigrants sharply increased, and this covert immigration activity was eventually exposed.
The number of Germans has sharply increased, occupying one-fifth of the white population. If not restricted, they will soon outnumber the rest.
Oh, dont be misled by the one-fifth figure; in reality, its just a few tens of thousands. With such a small population base, theres no other way around it.
In just the Panama region, there are now twenty thousand Germans, prompting the Colombian government to intervene.
You see, the total population of the Panama region is only a hundred thousand, and Germans make up nearly one-fifth. This represents one-fifth of the total population, not just one-fifth of the white immigrant population, but surpassing the sum of other white immigrants.
In theory, local power will fall into German hands within a decade. This is a characteristic of democratic countries; the ethnic group with the most votes naturally has the advantage.
John Radford replied: Understood, Governor. The immigration bureau will go all out to complete this mission.
Governor Hmmel nodded and sighed. If it werent for the fact that the American Civil War was nearing its end, he wouldnt have wanted to make such a big move.
Immigration was easy to arrange but difficult to settle. Land in the Americas wasnt valuable, but it wasnt just a matter of dividing a piece of land; it was also necessary to ensure the normal lives of the immigrants.
In less than four years, 380,000 immigrants were settled in Central America, with over 60,000 more sent to Colombia. This was a remarkable achievement.
Now it was the last wave of immigration. Once the Civil War ended, with various industries in the United States ready to flourish, opportunities would arise, and the desire to leave would undoubtedly decrease significantly.
Forced by circumstances, Hmmel had to make a big move. But just as it started, it was discovered by the Colombian government.
Nevertheless, the immigration strategy was successful. Austria established its rule in Central America, and the settled population became the foundation of its governance.
After the final wave of immigration ends, the local German population will exceed half a million. This figure already surpasses 20% of the total population and is 1.5 times the number of other white immigrant populations.
If the Austrian government was willing, they could immediately establish a Central American kingdom.
Of course, Franz would definitely not do such a thing. Even if he were to support a kingdom, it would be a matter for the future.
Having just experienced a civil war, its enough to make the American people reflect for twenty years. During this period, they should remain quite subdued.
Governor Hmmel asked, Mr. Klaus, how much is our fiscal revenue this year, and how much will the fiscal deficit increase?
Strategically successful yet economically a heavy loss. Even though the colonial government was very hardworking and Central America was quite prosperous, the bottomless pit of immigration meant government annual revenues were simply inadequate.
Finance Minister Klaus calculated and replied, This years revenue is approximately 7 million guilders, which is a 21% increase compared to last year. The main sources of revenue are still minerals and tariffs, with transaction taxes also showing rapid growth.
As for this years deficit, it depends on the number of immigrants going forward. Essentially, all immigrants have applied for interest-free terms, and although they repay the principal, we still bear the interest.
Preliminary estimates suggest that this years fiscal deficit will be between 6 to 7 million guilders. If we are to launch an attack on the indigenous tribes, there will be an additional military expenditure of 700,000 guilders.
With a fiscal deficit as high as a hundred percent, there are probably not many countries willing to take on such a colony. Unfortunately, this is the cost of mass immigration.
An interest-free loan of 200 guilders per person, would be 20 million guilders for 100,000 immigrants. Even if the banks cut the government some slack with a three-year interest calculation, thats still 600,000 guilders in interest expenses per year.
Without considering other expenses, the interest costs alone are astronomical. Fortunately, its only for two years. If it were any longer, the colonial government would certainly not be able to bear it.
Hmmel calculated and said, Large-scale immigration will only last for this final year, and the loan interest expense will be at most two years.
Starting next year, there will be no more expenses for immigration and settlement. Mr. Klaus, please calculate when we can break even and how long it will take to recoup our investment.
Hmmel could not help but be concerned. For the sake of the Central American colony, the Austrian government had invested tens of millions of guilders and was still investing more.
It could be considered Austrias most expensive colony established, yet the returns were not so optimistic.
Apart from being able to extract a few tons of gold and about a hundred tons of silver each year, the only other viable option is to sell timber and export some agricultural products.
Resources like copper, iron, lead, zinc, aluminum, and others dont hold much value in extraction currently, as raw ore is difficult to sell at a good price on the international market.
As for refining industrial products, its better to forget about it. It would require substantial capital investment, something the colonial government cannot afford.
The correct path for the colonial economy lies in cultivating cash crops, extracting precious metals, and selling industrial raw materials.
Klaus thought for a moment and said, After the immigration work is completed, it will take another five years to achieve a preliminary balance between income and expenditure.
However, to recover the cost of investment, it will take quite a long time. It may require twenty years, or even longer.
This is a major dilemma facing the colonial government. The high investment in the Central American colonies has sparked a lot of opposition domestically.
Unlike developing African colonies where there were many domestic beneficiaries and losses were not so severe, in the Central American colonies, only a minority of immigrants came from Austria, with most coming from the United States. These immigrants are the ones benefiting.
Many within the government were criticizing the Central American strategy, demanding that forces invested in Central America be withdrawn and redirected to the African continent instead.
However, under Franzs insistence, these voices were suppressed. But attacks on the Central American colonial government never ceased. Hmmel urgently needed to produce results to prove to everyone the correctness of establishing the Central American colonies.
This is extremely difficult to achieve. Firstly, the strategic value is not yet evident in the short term; otherwise, there wouldnt be so many dissenting voices.
Economically, its still unfortunately a net loss situation. Even after calculating the implicit benefits, the colonial government is still in a deficit.
It could not even provide industrial raw materials to Austria, as the industrial raw materials produced in these regions were not lacking in Austria itself.
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