Chapter 608 The Key to the Future

Chapter 608 The Key to the Future

Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace.

Franz felt that Bordeaux liquid was in a very embarrassing situation at this time. Yes, it can prevent potato late blight to some extent.

But first of all, the best way to use Bordeaux mixture is to prevent it from being spilled in advance, rather than treating it after it occurs, which greatly increases the dosage and waste.

The second problem is that the output of anhydrous copper sulfate in the Austrian Empire is seriously insufficient. In fact, Austrians usually mine gall vitriol and use it to smelt copper or make anhydrous copper sulfate.

Franz knew that industrialization would definitely not be the same processing method as in this small workshop. At that time, the ancient method of calcination was mainly used for low efficiency and high losses.

Just when Franz was about to mobilize experts from the Royal Academy of Sciences to develop a new method, he learned that the original method for industrial production of anhydrous copper sulfate had been invented as early as 1838, but there was no previous demand for it from Austria. Introduction.

So Franz bought this technology from the Swedes for 2,000 pounds. This was not because the former was bargaining hard, but because this technology did not attract people's attention after it came out, and naturally it would not be too high. price.

The problem of preparing anhydrous copper sulfate was finally solved, but new problems soon arose. Although potato late blight has not yet appeared in the Austrian Empire at this time (it is possible that it has appeared but was not reported in time), but should we prevent it in advance?

If the use of Bordeaux mixture to prevent potato late blight was promoted throughout the Austrian Empire, the consumption would be staggering.

In addition, the biggest problem is how to deliver the raw materials of Bordeaux liquid to the island of Ireland. Due to the existence of the German Customs Union and the Apennine Customs Union, the trade links between Austria and the United Kingdom are not strong.

Coupled with the trade protection policies pursued by various countries at this time, goods from the Austrian Empire had to pay huge tariffs to enter the UK.

This problem has prevented Austria’s leading products such as sewing machines, rubber products, medicines, bicycles, etc. from occupying the British market.

At the same time, due to high patent fees and a lack of raw materials, British factories are unwilling to produce these things.

So these things that are "bad street" in Austria are still scarce in Great Britain.

Although the British hold the banner of free economy all day long and claim that they must not do anything to interfere with "freedom", in fact they have not slacked off at all when it comes to import tariffs.

Historically, Robert Peel advocated free trade and actually reduced British tariffs, but there was a premise at that time, that is, Great Britain's industry was invincible.

Was Robert Peel's purpose to let the people of the world enjoy the fruits of the British Industrial Revolution? Of course not, he wanted to use Britain's cheap industrial products to destroy the industrial buds of any potential competitors.

This is a very powerful conspiracy to attack Europe and the world openly with cheap industrial products, turning all competitors into its raw material suppliers.

In this way, the strong competitiveness of British industrial products can be maintained, and people in the future can use this advantage to fight a bloodless war.

This is why Robert Peel was called the "chief architect of the Victorian era" by later politicians, because this conspiracy was indeed inevitable.

But the present is different from history. The Austrian Empire's overtaking in some technological corners caught the British off guard, and the successive rises of the Apennine Customs Union, the German Customs Union, and the Franco-Spanish Customs Union made them feel sick.

Therefore, Robert Peel did not dare to promote free trade at this time, and could only increase tariffs on goods from the Austrian Empire.

This situation is usually not a big deal for Austria, and it is even a little refreshing, because it can use this excuse to increase tariffs on British goods, so that the former's position in the German Customs Union will be more stable.

But at this time, the situation was reversed. Franz ran into trouble when he wanted to deliver goods to Britain, even for the life-saving supplies for the "British".

In normal times, Franz could have bribed one or two customs officials to solve the problem, but due to the previous assassinations of British officials and celebrities by radicals, customs inspections had become unprecedentedly strict.

(The plot of Victoria’s visit to France in the previous book.)

In addition, in order to ensure that nothing happened on the island of Ireland, the British government issued martial law multiple times, requiring that leaks of secrets not cause adverse effects, and foreign forces that may have ill intentions must be expelled.

Then the Austrian missionaries became the primary target. Although these magicians were best at Tai Chi, there was nothing they could do if they didn't practice martial arts.

Southern island of Ireland.

A black carriage was parked outside the church in Queen Village. The carriage was carved from fine wood. The exquisite horse lanterns, carefully polished metal, and the two horses without mottled hair were all incompatible with this remote and remote village.

This quickly attracted onlookers in the village. Some people even naively thought that the British government was going to distribute relief food to them. However, the old people's faces were solemn, and they knew that things were not that simple.

"Dear Father Hans, Father Lockevin. Your journey to Britain has come to an end, and I have been ordered to inform you to leave.

Our British priests will take over the church in a month, by which time we hope you will have returned safely to Austria. "

A British gentleman wearing a black trench coat and a fedora hat said. He always had a smile on his face and gave people a feminine feeling, but some of the words in the sentences were very strong.

"Sir, I don't understand what you are talking about."

Pretending to be stupid is the specialty of these magicians, and Hans and Lockevan are no exception.

The gentleman still kept his smile, then repeated what he had just said and added.

"Father, I am here on behalf of the British government, and you are Austrians yourself. I hope you will not make things difficult for me."

"Sir, I think you should understand that the church is the dwelling place of God, and we are just servants serving God. Nationality is not important to us."

"But it's important to us."

The young gentleman interrupted the two priests' nonsense. His mission was to expel the Austrians and Italians.

Although the British government is still not sure what the Austrians are planning, the latter's previous series of actions have put the former into an unprecedented passive situation internationally.

"We might as well be British if our identity bothers you."

Father Cloven said and handed the other party two twenty-pound notes, which made Father Hans next to him extremely disdainful.

First, the clergy actually bribed public officials, and second, they actually withheld the "residence fee" issued by their superiors.

In fact, Franz had already considered the possibility of this happening, so he prepared a "residency allowance" of fifty pounds for some well-run clergy. This was definitely not a small amount at the time, but it could not be said to be very large. .

Fifty pounds was a figure worth fighting for, but not worth fighting for.

Father Hans never expected that his "brother" would actually do this, but what surprised him even more was that the British, who were always greedy, actually refused the bribe.

(Catholic clergy are often referred to by title or "brother.")

This is not because the bribe is less, on the contrary, forty pounds is very attractive to such a fledgling affairs officer.

But at this time, Britain had clear regulations on accepting foreign populations.

1. Have lived in the UK for at least 5 years. The calculation of length of residence starts from the date of first settling in the UK. If you were born in the UK, you can start counting immediately. (It is considered a protocol used for counterintelligence.)

2. Demonstrate good moral character and ethics. When applying for naturalization, you need to provide a clean criminal record during your residence and other similar documents to prove that you are a citizen of good moral character. (Actually, just find a guarantor)

3. Prove that you have a stable residence in the UK. Proof of housing in the UK is required, such as a tenancy agreement or proof of property ownership. (It actually proves that you have the ability to live in the UK.)

This was a complete dimensionality reduction blow to the Austrian Empire's intelligence department. At the same time, Franz, who had been in Austria for a long time, also thought that at this time, as long as he said what country he was from, he was from that country.

At this time, people in Austria, Germany, and most areas of Italy did not have a strict concept of a country, and even nobles and officials could be mobile.

Especially at this time, the Austrian Empire had a large number of exiled nobles and foreign officials, and even many generals who led the army came from the German region.

In fact, it is very difficult to make statistics even for the Austrian Empire, because there are countries in all directions and there are many ethnic groups in the country. As long as the stowaways know any language in the Austrian Empire, they can successfully smuggle them.

Therefore, the Austrian navy and frontier army always check goods but not people. The difficulty of pretending to be an Austrian is infinitely close to 0, as long as you are not a black man.

Historically, the Austrian Empire did not begin to establish a household registration system until 1886. By the time this system was completed, it was almost entering the twentieth century.

The British household registration system can be traced back to the era of Magna Carta. It can only be said that a single ethnic group and a single language have advantages. On the other hand, Austria, a country that does not even have a dominant ethnic group, seems a bit miserable.

Spies from all over the world can walk unscrupulously on the streets of Vienna, and even members of anti-Austrian organizations like Adjani could appear at high-society balls.

Closer to home, Hans and Lockevan ultimately failed to convince each other and had to leave on their own within a month.

The two priests told the villagers everything, which made the latter angry, because the Irish had no country, no home, no money, and were so poor that they had only faith.

But now the British actually want to drive away all the priests from the church, which makes the villagers feel surprisingly angry.

"Damn Brits! We fought them!"

"Yes! My potatoes are all rotten anyway! I can't survive this winter! I might as well fight with them!"

"Go grab their food! We grow the wheat in the British warehouses!"

"Take back what's ours!"

Seeing the excited villagers picking up shovels, pickaxes and sickles in their hands, the two priests were deeply moved and wanted to work with the villagers to drive away the British.

But the reality is that this kind of motley team cannot even defeat the nursing home of a big landowner, let alone the British regular army that is well-equipped and capable of fighting.

Moreover, they themselves shoulder the mission of the church. Although they have always had doubts about the prophecy and Franz's identity, they can be sure that they did not help others, at least they did not make money by selling holy water or indulgences.

"God is merciful and does not want to see you bleeding like a river. We have hidden something under the church cellar. If you can't survive, go inside and get it."

So the two handed a brass key to the villagers, and at the same time took out the copper, ironware and grain stored in the church.

After the last mass, the church door was locked tightly with heavy chains.

"May God bless you and no more diseases and curses will spread in the world. Although the Austrian Empire is not a paradise on earth, life will be easier than in Ireland."

The departure of the priest and the closing of the church made the villagers feel even heavier, and what the former said before leaving is also intriguing.

So some people wanted to open the cellar to see what was buried under the church, but this was obviously contrary to the prerequisite of not being able to survive, and many people opposed it.

But the old village chief knew that this was not going to work. Sooner or later, the villagers would be unable to help themselves and go find out. If there was something really hidden inside, big problems would arise.

So the village chief and several elders in the village decided to let some people go down to see what was inside, but no one was allowed to tell anyone, let alone use it privately.

The team soon gathered together, but the expressions of this group of people came back with different expressions. Some were excited, some were crazy, some were depressed, and some felt that a disaster was coming.

The sentence "Although the Austrian Empire is not a paradise on earth, life will be easier than in Ireland" is also thought-provoking. The villagers feel that this is a hint that they can go to Austria to live, but who can send them there?

With the exception of Queen's Village, most of the visible presence of the Austrian Church on the island of Ireland was uprooted.

To be honest, Franz was quite surprised. He thought the British would not do such a trick.

Archbishop Rauscher was even more angry at the British approach. He thought this was a good opportunity to show the power of the church, but he did not expect that he was suddenly sentenced to death when the situation was good in the early stage.

"Damn Brits, apostles of Satan, why do they stop us from saving the suffering lamb?"

"Archbishop, you don't have to be angry and blame yourself. The church has done a good job this time, but this situation is not something we can stop.

For the people on the island of Ireland, we have done our best and leave the rest to the power of the Lord. "

Franz rarely uttered such resigned words, which shocked Archbishop Rauscher, but not with sadness, but with a heartfelt joy.

Because in the eyes of the latter, the former finally began to comply with destiny and listen to God's will.

But in fact, Franz had other things he had to do, and he really couldn't care about a group of foreigners on the island of Ireland right now.

The first is that Montenegro joined the Austrian Empire without the consent of Hungary, so Kossuth made another big move.

Next Denmark plans to sell Tranquiba, an Indian colony on the Bay of Bengal. Historically it was sold to the British, but at this time Franz was interested.