Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 660 Across the Ocean ([-])

The four-masted steam engine sailing ship "Discovery" is docked at the pier of the Zhenhai Harbor Naval Base, and the stevedores are loading the last batch of supplies on board.Among them are bacon, flour, salted fish, wine and other food, in addition to some weapons and ammunition and spare parts-the quantities are all configured beyond the conventional, in order to be able to last as long as possible at sea.

After checking the various facilities on board the ship, the second lieutenant Ji Wen, the acting captain, walked up to Zhang Jinhua, who was the commander in chief of the operation, and began to report in a low voice the cargo and personnel carried by the ship.

Zhang Jinhua has just turned 35 years old this year. He was a high school student before time travel. After more than ten years of experience, he is now at the peak of physical strength, energy, and intelligence.And he has many years of experience in shipyards and ocean-going merchant fleets. Now it is very suitable for him to lead the team to the East for expeditions.

The "Discovery" has a full load displacement of 1250 tons, twin shafts and double propellers with 170 horsepower propulsion, a design speed of 10 knots, and a maximum speed of 14 knots.Jointly funded and sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Ministry of Communications, it has 24 crew members, 32 gunners, and 36 expedition members, totaling 92 people.

This ship is another expedition ship produced by the east coast after a few years. She will carry the members of the expedition team to Australia via South Africa, and then go north from the east coast of Australia and then turn east, looking for the legendary of Tahiti (Tahiti).This island has the sugarcane variety with the highest yield and highest sugar content in the world at this time. Almost all sugarcane in the world in later generations has the ancestry of Tahitian species.

However, this island is not easy to find. In the deep ocean, even if the people on the east coast have accurate charts, as well as navigation tools such as sextants and mechanical watches, and professional climate knowledge, finding this island still requires a lot of meticulous care. The preparation work, and a little bit of Heavenly Venerable's favor.And you have to pick a good time - summer and autumn in the southern hemisphere to be precise, so that you don't encounter headwinds or bad weather.

Of course, the "Discovery" expedition ship has advanced equipment, capable personnel, and sufficient supplies. It set off across the Atlantic Ocean and entered the Indian Ocean, and then even entered the Pacific Ocean. The voyage was long and the sea conditions were complicated.If it took so much effort just to find some high-yield sugarcane seeds with high sugar content, it would be too nonsense.Therefore, the "Discovery" expedition ship is actually still shouldering the important task of exploring the feasibility of sailing along the edge of the westerly belt to the Chilean coastline of the Americas from Jinshan Port in Australia to the east. This is related to a major national strategy and must be implemented as soon as possible. action.

After the last few boxes of medicine were loaded on board—this was to be shipped to Baleen Whale Harbour—the two boilers of the expedition ship Discovery began to slowly fire and pressurize, and the sailors began to raise and lower the canvas and adjust the yard.It is more reliable and easier to use steam power when entering and leaving the port, but after sailing to the ocean, it mainly relies on sail power. After all, the coal in the coal bunker of the ship is limited.

At ten o'clock in the morning, the last batch of materials was shipped. After Zhang Jinhua verified the cargo again, he signed the handover with the officials of the wharf and port authority, and then boarded the ship and entered the captain's room. , geographic ocean current information, and aboriginal customs and other highly confidential information, and started his own research.

After Zhang Jinhua, who served as the commander-in-chief, entered the captain's room, Lieutenant Ji Wen, the acting captain, also stood by the fence on the second deck of the stern building, and began to direct the sailors to operate the ship and leave the port.Accompanied by them was a steam-modified large clipper cargo ship, which was fully loaded with 450 tons of standard Tacheng clean coal and a large number of weapons and ammunition—all of which were transported to Baleen Whale Port, which was specially used by the Navy’s Pacific Temporary used by the fleet.

In this way, the two ships arrived at the Port of Baleen Whale on January 1 after stopping at the Port of Blanca for a day.The summer baleen whale port has not yet entered the golden season of whaling, so there are more than ten whaling ships from various countries moored in the harbor - most of them are Dutch.The sailors of these whalers got so drunk in the tavern area of ​​the docks that they went to the houses of some Guaraní women who traded half-closed doors, where they paid four riyals for a night's sleep .

Of course, there are also some sailors and captains who did not spend their days and nights in Baleen Whale Harbor. They slightly modified their ships and then went out to sea to chase the squid fishing season, or went north to track cod and squid.All the seafood caught will be sold to people on the east coast on the spot. An east coast supply ship follows these fishing boats from the Netherlands and England far behind, and sells them various supplies while buying catches—just like Like those "pocket boats" that sell sundries in the Newfoundland fishing grounds.

Matthias, the mayor of Baleen Whale Port, was inspecting the construction of the livestock pens near the pier. After seeing two large ships coming from outside, he immediately rushed over cheerfully, and said while running: "God bless, Have the ships heading for the Pacific returned?"

"No, the ship to the Pacific Ocean is about to leave!" Second Lieutenant Ji Wen stepped on the pedal and quickly came to the pier. The turbulence caused by the turbulent waves in the harbor didn't seem to affect his mind at all. action.

"That's really a pity. I thought the number of livestock in Baleen Whale Harbor would increase again." Mayor Mathias, who is already in his 40s, walked over wearing a black tunic suit and rain boots.Behind him were three dirty children, according to reports, they were his three sons and daughters. They seemed to have gone to take care of the sheep in the sheep pen, and their bodies were filled with a fishy smell.

"Since last month, there have been ships coming from the Pacific Ocean for three consecutive months." Captain Mathias said, "Every ship is full of livestock, gold and silver coins, artworks and other materials. Gold and silver coins are useless to us, and they also need to be handed over to the state, but we can keep most of the livestock. It's a pity that these livestock are obviously leftovers, skinny, small, and healthy adult livestock have been The Magellan intelligence station has been exhausted."

For the residents of Baleen Whale Port, the existence of the Magellan Intelligence Station is no secret. Almost everyone knows this place, but the exact location is not very clear. After all, the ships transporting supplies there need to be in Baleen Whale Port. Stop for supplies, and even a lot of supplies are temporarily stored in the warehouse here, waiting to be taken at any time.

A while ago, the Navy's Pacific Task Force fought continuously in Chile and Peru, and seized a large amount of supplies and livestock.Among them, those useful materials such as copper, cocoa, sugar, tobacco, leather, fluff, etc. were naturally stored in the warehouse of Baleen Whale Port, waiting for the opportunity to be shipped back to the mainland.As for the thousands of cattle and sheep seized, they were distributed to the Magellan Intelligence Station and Baleen Whale Harbor on the spot under the instructions of the Government Affairs Council. Of course, a small part was given to the Araucans who accompanied the people on the east coast to fight.

Since the climate and geographical environment near the Magellan intelligence station are not suitable for large-scale planting of crops—there are only a small number of reclaimed oats, rye, and potato fields in the area, and the yield is extremely low—therefore, in order to maintain this population size, there are more and more people. Therefore, the Government Council licensed this place to intercept a large number of cattle and sheep seized by the Navy from Chile and Peru, and use the endless grassland here for grazing to expand the population as soon as possible.

Similar to Magellan Station, Falklands Baleen Whale Harbor was also chartered to intercept remaining livestock—mainly sheep.The weather near Baleen Whale Harbor is cold and humid. At present, local residents make a living by growing potatoes, a cold-resistant crop.Of course, potatoes are only to provide part of the starch for everyone, and the grains in this area need to be imported from the local area.In addition, the supplement of protein can only rely on fish, and the fat is from the livestock raised by oneself.

The environment of Baleen Whale Port is still very suitable for grazing. At present, this important transit port city for ships on the east coast to the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean already has more than 5 livestock, with an average of [-] livestock per capita.Among them, more than two-thirds of the livestock are sheep, which graze around the city.There are not many wild animals on the island that can threaten the flock of sheep. There are only a few wild foxes or Antarctic wolves. Basically, the flock of sheep can grow rapidly.

Isn't the main export of this archipelago in later generations wool and mutton? Hundreds of thousands of sheep have brought huge benefits to the few residents of the island.The income of more than 1200 residents (30% Guarani, 30% Chaluja, 20% European, and 20% Ming people) on the East Coast Space-Time Island is not bad, with a general annual income of 75 yuan. Above, nearly 30% higher than the local.It's just that money is not very useful in this desolate and lonely place. The commerce here is still quite primitive, and many residents are still used to bartering.The business of Baleen Whale Harbor has developed, that is, after the population of Hong Kong has increased in the past two years, and a large number of foreign whaling ships and fishing ships have poured in here.

Zhang Jinhua and others did not plan to stay in this cold place for long. After they spent a day unloading the cargo (weapons and ammunition, medicine and some food), they loaded a large amount of spiced whale meat on board—— It's standard fare on long-distance ships—along with copious amounts of seal oil.

Because there are a large number of seals, sea lions, sea otters and other animals on the Falkland Islands, the fur of these animals can not only be made into high-quality leather, but also high-grade industrial lubricants can be boiled from their fat and internal organs. Urgently needed supplies for two expedition ships.At present, the population of these animals on the island is large. According to the policy of the central government, the local residents can kill a certain number of seals and sea lions every year during the non-whaling season, and then make leather and lubricating oil locally to supply things to and from this port. shore boats—and this is also one of the important sources of income for local residents at this stage.

On February 2, the two ships led by the "Discovery" left Baleen Whale Harbour, first sailed due east, and then sailed northeastward along the ocean current and westerly wind, heading straight for the port in the South African River.

(End of this chapter)