**Chapter 28**
**Railroad (1)**
March 1829.
Immigrants arrived in Veracruz after weeks of sailing.
Their hearts were filled with hope, rather than anxiety.
“The Crown Prince giving a speech to the immigrants… It’s rare.”
“Yes. We’ll have to see if his words are true, but at least he’s paying attention to us.”
“Hmm… We’ll have to see, but I don’t think he’s lying. It feels that way.”
Many people, like this couple, had a positive reaction.
The Crown Prince spoke in English, so some families didn’t understand, but there were people who knew several languages in each country.
They conveyed what the Crown Prince’s speech was about.
Veracruz Harbor.
The immigrants, after waiting for a day at the harbor, soon received basic agricultural tools, equipment, and food.
“Get in here.”
It’s cramped.
This stagecoach, with “Rios Express” written on it, should normally fit about 10 people.
The immigrants, regardless of age or gender, all had a bundle of luggage.
Two families, 8 to 12 people, crammed into each stagecoach.
“The horses are struggling a bit. I’ll have to switch them at the next relay station.”
The coachman, who was supposed to take this family to San Francisco, muttered that and set off.
“It’s a bit cramped, but bear with it. It would be really tiring and time-consuming to walk this long distance.”
The coachman shouted to the passengers.
“I didn’t know they would even give us a ride in a carriage. This is a blessing.”
Thus, one stagecoach left.
A man who introduced himself as an official shouted to the remaining immigrants.
“Those going to distant places are leaving first, so be patient and wait. …Well, I won’t stop you if you want to walk, but I wouldn’t recommend it.”
Naturally, no one walked.
The 100 families boarded the stagecoaches in stages over about seven days.
‘It would be easier to just send them all to one place, but they told me not to.’
The Crown Prince, who pushed through this immigration policy, emphasized the allocation of immigration areas by nationality.
He instructed them to send families related to each other to the same place, but to send immigrants of as many different nationalities as possible to the settlement.
If only people who spoke one language were in one village, it would lead to the side effect of them being able to live using only their native language without learning Spanish.
It was a measure to make them learn Spanish quickly and integrate into Mexican society.
The official, considering the families’ nationalities, sent them to various settlements in California and Texas.
‘Hmm… This family is going to a settlement that’s almost completely undeveloped, so I need to give them a little more land. Those going to Sacramento are already in a highly developed area, so the land is expensive and the farmland is good, so I’ll give them a little less… Ugh, my head is going to explode. Overtime again today.’
The administrative demand throughout the Mexican Empire was constantly increasing.
After independence, each government department constantly demanded manpower, and the vast local governments of the Mexican Empire were also absorbing administrative personnel.
There were even rumors that anyone who could read and write Spanish and do simple arithmetic was being hired as a government official, but the number of new government officials was slowly dwindling.
It was a time when a way to secure administrative personnel was urgently needed.
“From what I’ve heard, His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince seems to be quite open-minded… Would it be okay to suggest that we expedite the immigration of those who can read and write Spanish?”
Spain, after losing the war against the Mexican Empire, was once again caught in a whirlwind of endless political turmoil.
The conservatives were divided, and the liberals regained momentum.
The long period of turmoil seemed to be settling down, but the king, nicknamed the ‘King of Crime’, made a reckless gamble and ruined the country.
Political turmoil soon turned into suffering for the people, and the Spanish people were experiencing extreme hardship.
“No matter how I think about it, I think we can attract more immigrants from Spain now than from Ireland.”
Rodolfo Nunes, a young government official who had arrived at Veracruz Harbor along with the immigrants, went to see the Crown Prince.
He made the suggestion, half out of patriotism and half out of greed for administrative manpower.
“That’s a great idea! It seems we have a talent for managing our empire’s immigration right here!”
“…Yes?”
“I’ve been thinking about creating a lower-level department called the Immigration Office! You’re perfect for it! You’re already doing all the immigration work anyway!”
There were still few immigrants and a shortage of manpower, so he was handling all the related administrative work alone.
“Oh… Th, thank you?”
“Hahaha! Good work!”
Thump thump!
The Crown Prince, with his bulky physique, patted my shoulder with a force that was unclear whether it was meant to be encouragement or just a beating, and left.
A week later.
Rodolfo, a government official who had been in Mexico City and was assigned to the field in Veracruz because he was the youngest, experienced a dramatic promotion.
Along with a dramatic workload.
***
“Emilio, as I mentioned before, I’m going to separate the part of Estrada Steel that makes agricultural equipment, mining equipment, and mechanical reapers and create a new company. Are you upset about it?”
I had mentioned it when we created the joint-stock company, but he might be upset about splitting the company. I asked Emilio’s opinion.
“Not at all, Your Majesty! I’ve been overwhelmed with work anyway. I’m already very busy with iron mine development, mining, and steelmaking. I’ve been waiting for the separation.”
“That’s good. The demand for iron will continue to increase, so the company will continue to grow in size just with steelmaking. I’ll count on you.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Oh, by the way, is coal mining going well?”
I knew the location of the largest iron mine in Mexico, so I pointed it out.
Over the past four years, I had been developing it consistently, and now it was producing a high amount of ore.
I didn’t know the location of the coal mines, so I had to leave it to Emilio.
“Yes, we’ve been searching continuously, and we’ve currently found five coal mines throughout the Mexican Empire.”
“That’s good.”
The Mexican Empire wasn’t rich in coal, but it wasn’t a country that didn’t have any at all.
We were currently using what we had in the Mexican Empire, and we were planning to import from South American countries soon.
As I was talking to Emilio, James Neilson and Joseph Locke approached.
They were both British, in the same situation, so they had become quite close on the ship, despite the age difference.
I gestured to them.
I introduced James to Emilio first.
“Ah, this is perfect. Emilio, this is James Neilson, a technician with expertise in steelmaking. I brought him over from England. He’ll be working at the same company. James, this is Emilio Estrada, the CEO of the steel company you’ll be working for.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Emilio Estrada, leading Estrada Steel. We’ll be working together. I’ll count on you.”
“Nice to meet you, CEO. I hope we can build a steel empire together.”
“A steel empire. You’ve got big ambitions. Alright, let’s build a steel empire.”
Joseph Locke, who had been watching them shake hands from the side, was also introduced.
“This is Joseph Locke, a technician with expertise in locomotives. He’ll be in charge of the company ‘Locke Precision Machinery’.”
“Nice to meet you. I’ll count on you.”
“Nice to meet you too.”
After introducing Joseph and James to Emilio, I sent them off and went to find Ramon in Mexico City.
His company, ‘Ramon’, owns a factory on the outskirts of Mexico City.
“Ramon, are your jeans selling well?”
“Your Majesty, they’re selling out. Production can’t keep up. The domestic cotton production is too low. At this rate, we may have to increase the proportion of British cotton to over 80%.”
“Hmm. That’s the situation, isn’t it? That’s why I brought people to solve that problem. They’re loom and spinning machine technicians.”
“Yes? Is that true? I was actually inquiring with England about getting machinery, but the British were obviously trying to sell us outdated stuff at exorbitant prices, so I was worried.”
“Yes. You can reinvest all the profits, so let’s build up our Mexican Empire’s cotton industry and clothing industry to surpass England.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty!”
The jeans and tent business had become a huge success, like Levi’s in the original history.
Since the profits were considerable, if I assigned technicians to them, they could expand from cotton farms to cotton mills and clothing factories.
I assigned the technicians I brought to each company.
***
I brought technicians, but it doesn’t mean we can just start building a railroad network.
There are a few problems that need to be solved before that, but the first thing we need to do is persuade the government.
‘I need to explain what a railroad is.’
“…So, this track is like the rails in a mine, and the locomotive is like a carriage that runs on the rails? Is that right?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. That’s correct. But the carriage has a steam engine attached to it, so it can move on its own.”
“How fast does it move?”
“It’ll be able to reach a speed of about 29 miles per hour (47 km/h).”
“Hmm… It’s good that it’s fast, but at that speed, it could easily lead to a major accident. Is it safe?”
“I’ll make it safe. I’ve already seen it in operation in England.”
As Agustín I and I were talking, the Minister of Finance, who had been listening quietly, chimed in.
“Do you know how much the railroad and the locomotive cost?”
“The railroad will cost about 10,000 pesos per mile. But the government only needs to lay the tracks, and each company will pay for the locomotives. And we can also make each company pay a portion of the railroad construction cost in exchange for a monopoly on the railroad.”
10,000 pesos per mile (1.6 km) is just my estimate.
In England, it cost 10,000 pounds per mile. That means they spent a huge amount of money, 50,000 pesos per mile. But that was England.
It was a combination of various factors, including expensive land already filled with buildings, expensive labor, and difficult terrain.
‘In the 1830s and 1840s, the US built it for about $10,000 per mile. So, I can definitely do it.’
The US dollar, derived from the Spanish thaler, has the same value as our empire’s peso.
Mexico, except for Mexico City, has cheap land, at most the price of farmland. It’s different from England, which has already undergone significant urbanization.
The labor force is cheaper than in the US, and immigrants will soon be pouring in. Plus, there’s the railroad, which will be mass-produced using new methods in the future.
Mexico’s terrain is more difficult than the US, but with my civil engineering skills, I can meet the price. No, I have to.
“Hmm… It’s not a small amount of money. Our Mexican Empire is vast.”
The Minister of Finance had a slightly negative reaction. I explained the advantages to persuade him.
“It’s definitely not a small amount of money. But why don’t we consider whether it’s worth spending this money? First, the railroad will have a positive impact on economic growth. Imagine agricultural products and minerals moving at least six times faster than by stagecoach. Plus, the amount that can be transported at once is dozens of times greater. Think about how fast and cheap logistics will become. Even agricultural products grown at the farthest end of the empire will reach Mexico City before they rot. And at incredibly cheap transportation costs.”
This was an essential factor in the actual agricultural boom on the American Great Plains.
“Hmm. It will definitely have a positive impact on the economy.”
When I mentioned the economic impact the railroad would bring, the Minister of Finance’s expression improved.
“That’s not all. The railroad will accelerate the expansion and integration of our Mexican Empire. Our government officials and army will be able to move between the center and the provinces at incredible speed. It will also speed up the transportation of those who go out to develop or return for business. And if there’s a war, it will be good for rapid troop movement and supply.”
When I talked about the advantages in expansion, local integration, and war, Agustín I also had a thoughtful expression.
“…So, where will we connect it if we build it?”
“Las Truchas.”
“Las Truchas? Not Veracruz?”
“Our Mexican Empire will build a railroad of incredible length in the future. To build it as cheaply as possible, we need to save as much on logistics as possible. Las Truchas has the largest iron mine and steel mill in the Mexican Empire. Starting from here will ultimately be the choice that drastically reduces the total construction cost.”
I don’t plan to use any imported iron at all.
In other words, we need to get the iron from Las Truchas, where the largest iron ore deposit in the Mexican Empire and the only large-scale steel mill are located.
We need to build a railroad, but we’re going to transport all that iron by stagecoach to Mexico City and then start construction? The construction cost will double immediately.
“I think it would be good to build a railroad. What do you think, Minister of Finance?”
“I think the railroad will be necessary in the long run. We do have some budget leeway. But…”
We had paid off a quarter of the total debt at once due to the war with Spain. Plus, we confiscated huge farms in Cuba.
The Minister of Finance said that there was budget leeway, but he trailed off.
Agustín I understood immediately.
“You’re saying the members of parliament will oppose it.”
The Minister of Finance and most of the ministers of the various government departments were close to the conservatives.
The Prime Minister submits their appointments to the emperor, but the emperor doesn’t allow republicans.
The best the Prime Minister and the republican members of parliament could do was to find the most moderate people among the conservatives and submit their names.
“Yes, Your Majesty. There will likely be strong opposition to the execution of a budget of millions of pesos without consulting parliament. And there’s also the issue of land ownership in the area where the railroad will be built.”
“Hmm. Let’s start it anyway. I’ll issue an executive order. You handle the aftermath, Herónimo.”
A radical decision to bulldoze all complaints and push through.
This is only possible in a monarchy or dictatorship with strong royal power.
“…Yes, thank you, Your Majesty.”
‘I got this big project through by using a loophole, so I have to pay the price.’
The Mexican Empire’s first railroad construction permit was granted.
It’s an infrastructure construction project worth millions of pesos.
The beginning of countless infrastructure construction projects to come.
Late at night, I returned to my office and began drawing up plans.
The future of national development rests in my hands.
────────────────────────────────────