**Chapter 48**
**Harbor and Shipyard (4)**
The Mexican Empire possessed resources as abundant as its vast territory, but some resources were still scarce or nonexistent.
The rapid increase in steel production recently led to a coal supply problem.
‘We’re producing mechanical reapers, reinforced concrete, railroads, locomotives, and everything else explosively, so it’s inevitable.’
The Mexican Empire had enough iron ore, but its coal reserves weren’t abundant.
I needed to find a solution immediately.
“Colombia hasn’t started full-scale coal mining yet, but its abundant reserves are well-known. It would be good to cooperate with the Colombian government to develop mines.”
I instructed Diego.
“Yes, Your Majesty. I’ll convey that to ‘Mora Minas’.”
Diego said, taking notes.
Mora Minas was one of my companies, dealing with various resources. Until now, it had been responsible only for gold mining, which made the term “various resources” meaningless, but I was going to start expanding it now.
Gold mining alone was profitable enough to rival other companies, but it was important to procure the necessary resources appropriately to maintain economic growth.
‘Looking at the company’s cash reserves, it has enough capacity to invest.’
“Peru is still politically unstable, so tell them to appease the local power brokers and extract guano.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Guano is a natural fertilizer made from bird droppings, and the guano islands of Peru were famous worldwide for their abundant reserves. In the mid-19th century, it was especially exported in large quantities to Europe.
‘Its importance is already known to some extent, but large-scale mining and export didn’t start until the 1840s, so we can secure it now.’
There was enough to export to all of Europe for decades, so it was more than enough for Mexico to use.
Considering that synthetic fertilizers would be invented in the late 19th century, if Mexico monopolized guano until then, it could significantly increase agricultural production.
“Finally, we need to get saltpeter from Chile. They say the political situation is relatively stable, just like Colombia.”
“Your Majesty, I’ve heard of coal and guano, but this is the first time I’ve heard of saltpeter. Could you tell me more about it?”
“Saltpeter is the mineral form of potassium nitrate, one of the main ingredients in gunpowder. Make sure you bring an expert who can identify it.”
Gunpowder is used a lot in the military, but it’s also being used a lot in recent railroad construction.
It would be good to secure it in advance, considering the wars that will befall the Mexican Empire in the future.
“Ah, it’s one of the ingredients in gunpowder. I’ll write it down as you instructed.”
“Make sure you write down that we’ll pay a fair price so that no diplomatic problems arise. Also, be sure to emphasize that we’re brother nations who became independent from Spain together.”
“Yes, emphasizing that point will probably be helpful.”
Actually, it’s not so much help as it is slightly reducing their aversion.
The success of the deal will be decided by the silver we offer. But the fact that we became independent from the same country and speak the same language is definitely not a small factor.
“Your Majesty, to summarize, coal from Colombia, guano from Peru, and saltpeter from Chile?”
Diego asked, still writing the letter.
“Yes. They’re all essential for our Mexican Empire.”
If we can trade amicably with South America, we can obtain everything except for a very small number of resources, like diamonds, from this American continent.
‘If we can get it nearby, there’s no need to go far.’
So, this South American trade is very important for increasing the Mexican Empire’s size.
Ensuring that the supply of resources doesn’t run out.
That’s the key point.
***
We decided to start with the harbor.
The shipyard was an essential facility for our naval power, but it wasn’t urgent right now.
The harbor was quite urgent.
Trade and immigration were already being affected, and soon, we needed to bring in a lot of farmers from the countryside, and we needed to bring in a lot of construction materials.
‘We’re already at our limit. If we keep going like this, it’ll really explode.’
The shipyard could wait a bit. After all, the shipyard is just part of the harbor, so it’s right to draw the overall picture first.
The harbor is bustling.
It’s a good sign that the economy is growing, but it can also be seen as a sign that we need to solve these growing pains well. We need to increase the size of the harbors throughout the Mexican Empire, not just this Veracruz harbor.
‘This is a good opportunity to teach them properly.’
CEO Andres was no longer able to work with me on site. Ortega Construction had grown so large that its management and administrative work had also exploded.
He had to manage various projects and funds while handling the recruitment and deployment of architects and construction personnel from the headquarters. It would be difficult for him to work directly as an architect in the future. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the nature of being a CEO.
‘Even I don’t participate in projects I’ve shown them how to do once.’
I can’t keep participating unless there’s a major change or a significant challenge. I have too much to do.
It’s a shame that CEO Andres couldn’t join us, but I called in the most senior ‘chief architects’ from among the architects of Ortega Construction. Among them were 30 carpenters who had built settlements in Sacramento.
“It’s been a long time, everyone. It’s already been 10 years since we built wooden houses in Sacramento.”
“It’s an honor to see you again, Your Majesty. I still think about that time sometimes.”
“Me too. It was a good time, though it was physically demanding.”
“Hahaha, Your Majesty is still in your prime. You were tall back then, but you’ve grown even taller now.”
I had dinner with them and chatted. Other architects were also there.
After dinner, we started talking about the harbor design.
“First, our goal is to increase the capacity of this Veracruz harbor by at least five times. We need to design it with scalability in mind so that we can expand it further.”
“At least five times? The scale is different.”
Even with the current situation, we need to increase it by 2-3 times to have some leeway. The growth of our Mexican Empire won’t stop here, so we need to increase it by five times if we want to use it for a few more years.
“This project isn’t about building a harbor from scratch, but expanding it while continuing to use existing facilities, so it’s important to harmonize the existing structures.”
“So, we’re leaving the existing structures as they are?”
“No, that’s not the case. Once the expansion construction is finished, we’re going to tear down the existing harbor area, so we need to design it with that in mind.”
“I see. Thank you for the answer, Your Majesty.”
“Designing a harbor is a task that requires a lot of consideration. Basically, we need to consider everything included in city planning as a basic, and on top of that, we need to consider facilities related to the sea and ships.”
Designing a harbor means designing the city where the people who will work at the harbor will live.
“Those facilities include piers, logistics facilities, warehouses, shipyards, lighthouses, management and administrative buildings, and breakwaters. The key is the flow between all these facilities. A harbor is a space where much more cargo and people come in than a normal city, so it’s important to design this flow.”
I told them the basics and then took out a sheet of paper to draw on.
Whoosh-
A design drawing of the current Veracruz harbor. It was drawn by hand by the architects, one stitch at a time. It can’t be wasted carelessly.
I placed wooden models on the paper and started to show them the detailed design process, simulating how to arrange the facilities and combining them.
The architects were listening to my lecture, taking notes in their notebooks.
‘I feel like a professor.’
Since I’m at it, I should write a textbook before I forget everything.
***
Most of the docks and piers of this era are built of wood. Concrete is the material that replaces it. I’m planning to build the new harbor with concrete, of course, because I plan to use it for a long time.
The cement factory I built when I started building the dam was expanding as demand increased. Many people had adopted concrete for construction after seeing Ortega Construction use it actively.
‘I need to introduce steam cranes too.’
Cranes, essential even in modern harbors, existed even now. They were simple machines made of wood, and they required a lot of manpower to operate. I’m also planning to replace them with iron and steam engines.
‘Cement, stone, iron, bricks.’
Unlike the harbors of this era, which are mostly made of wood, the harbor I’m building will use various materials.
“The construction material procurement plan is good enough. How about the labor procurement?”
“The ship left for Sisal Harbor about two weeks ago, so it’ll arrive soon.”
“Alright. We can start construction soon.”
Veracruz Harbor and Sisal Harbor on the Yucatan Peninsula are a 3-4 day journey by ship, but we also need time to move the Escalante family’s farm laborers to the harbor.
While designing, I naturally paid attention to the expansion of the harbor’s capacity and the flow of movement, but I also paid close attention to defense.
‘In the original history, the Pastry War (Pastry War) took place five years later, in 1838.’
The incident that triggered this war was quite peculiar. It started when a French pastry chef filed a complaint with France, claiming that his shop had been looted by Mexican officers. That’s why it’s called the Pastry War.
France demanded 600,000 pesos (3 million francs) in compensation, claiming that not only the baker but also other Frenchmen in Mexico had suffered property damage.
Mexico’s situation at the time was chaotic, so it’s true that security was poor, but considering that the daily wage of a Mexican worker at the time was only 1 peso, it was an unreasonable amount of compensation.
Isn’t that the equivalent of 1,650 years’ worth of daily wages?
It was obviously not a reasonable amount, and it was a serious act of tyranny on the part of France, who had simply found a reason to extort money legally.
“Thinking about it, it would be good to deploy a small fort and battery here.”
“…Your Majesty, I’m worried that there are too many batteries, even though you must have a reason.”
“Hmm… Is that so? I need to adjust it a little.”
France won the war quite easily. They simply brought in a fleet, blockaded Veracruz Harbor, and bombarded it.
Mexico in the original history, which was already poor, couldn’t handle this attack. After a few months of blockade, Mexico surrendered, unable to shave even a single peso off the 600,000 pesos.
‘Mexico’s security is stable in this world, but you never know.’
France isn’t Mexico’s only enemy, is it? The strategy France used is something any country with a fleet can use.
Our empire’s harbors need to be strong and have their own defenses. I increased the defense capabilities of the design, without going overboard.
A few days later, the manpower started to arrive. Ortega Construction’s employees began to manage the arriving workforce.
“No way, you’re hiring us right here?”
“Yes, that’s right. You can unpack your luggage at the temporary accommodation today, and you can start working tomorrow.”
“Well, good. I’m sure you’ll pay us our wages, right?”
“Don’t worry. It’s His Imperial Highness’ company. We don’t do things like stealing money.”
There were no buildings for thousands of people to stay in, so they had to stay in a tent village, but they were paid their wages and meals regularly.
“I’m sure you can handle the warehouses and administrative buildings without my interference, right?”
I asked the chief architect.
“Yes, Your Majesty. We’ve built countless buildings over the past 10 years, don’t worry.”
“Good. Then let’s start with the harbor foundation before we build the pier.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
We need to hurry up with the harbor expansion, if only to make the South American trade I ordered a while ago go smoothly.
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