Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 871 New China's New Crisis ([-])

"The western part of Xinhuaxia is obviously different from other parts of the island with its unique natural conditions..." On July 1651, 7, in the only three-story stone building in Xinhuagang City, Pei Suo, who was already the head of the Health Bureau and the Agriculture Bureau Ning is using his professional geography knowledge to introduce to everyone.

It has been a week since Ma Wanpeng's emissary arrived at the port. Shi Qingjie, who had just returned from inspection on Guihua Island (St. Mary's Island), immediately decided to hold an emergency meeting as soon as he heard the news about Mianhe Port.The participants included middle-level and above officials from the New China Pioneering Team and Xinhua Port. The focus of the meeting was to discuss how to deal with the armed conflict with the Sakarava people and how to expand in the western part of the island in the future.

At the beginning of the meeting, Shi Qinjie instructed Pei Suoning, a former Finnish immigrant, a student of Menghu, and now a senior official of New China, to introduce the general situation of the western coast of the island.At this moment, I saw Pei Suoning holding a wooden stick, pointing to a rough hand-painted map of northern and western Xinhuaxia on the wall, and said: "The western coast of Xinhuaxia Island is a typical tropical savannah climate. It is the comparison of the strength of the northwest monsoon and the southeast trade wind. This is almost the hottest place on the island, but fortunately, the air is very dry, which is not conducive to the growth of germs, so the death rate of residents is not higher than that of Xinhua Port, which we have been operating for many years .”

"The hot climate and scarce precipitation make it necessary for any outsider who wants to establish a foothold here to rely heavily on river irrigation, unless you want to be nomadic or nomadic as the main way of life like those Sakarawa people. Sakarawa people do not They are good at agricultural work, they have a fierce temperament, they live by nomadism and plundering, and they have maintained a military advantage over the Melina people in the central highland area for a long time.

"But to be honest, this is actually the most suitable area for outsiders to settle and colonize in the entire Xinhua Island, rather than the northern forest area with a lot of rainfall, humidity and heat. In the western region, the wide coastal plains, mountain valleys and estuaries The impact plain is a very suitable place for outsiders to gain a foothold at the beginning. The sunlight here is strong, the environment is not as harsh as the tropical rainforest area, and the soil formed by the impact of the river is relatively fertile, not as barren as the brick red clay clay soil in the rainforest area. In short, it has agricultural All the elements of production, that is, light, soil and water. The Cotton River Port and its surrounding areas that we are currently operating vigorously are located in such a coastal basin from the Unirashi River in the south to the Mangoki River in the north. The conditions are unique, especially suitable for growing cotton, which is in great demand in China today."

"Of course, in addition to the cash crop of cotton, the entire basin is also very suitable for planting some other crops. For example, the Sakarava tribesmen on both sides of the Mangoki River in the north cultivate tobacco on the impacted land after the flood recedes—this It seems that this agricultural activity has not been around for a very long time, and most of the tobacco grown is purchased by Arab merchants; and in the coastal plain extending northward from the Mangoki River to the Murondava River, according to our collection According to the news, the local Sakaravatu people have also developed some dry farming, such as peanut planting in the Manza-Mandabe area. Farming, semi-extensive livestock farming, they don’t know how to grow legumes to maintain soil fertility, so they live a migratory life and their production efficiency is very low.”

"On this coastal plain (lower reaches of the Morondava River) called Mahab by the locals, it was once briefly ruled by the Melina people, a farming nation in the central highlands, where they built many reservoirs, dams, Irrigation canals and other agricultural facilities, so there are still some irrigated rice fields and orchards left in the local area (the people of Melina use rice as a staple food), which is very surprising. Of course, most of these facilities are now abandoned, and the people of Melina shrink back After returning to the Central Plateau to fight the civil war, the local Sakarawa natives could not properly manage this rare agricultural area, so most of the rice fields and orchards were degraded, and now they basically rely on dry farming such as cassava and peanuts. The orchard industry with some bananas, citrus, all in all, it’s in decline here—and in turn, that’s our opportunity.”

"Our enemy, that is, the Sakarawa Tribal Alliance, which claims to be called the Kingdom of Manab, has very primitive agricultural technology. Except for a few nomadic (that is, migratory agriculture) dry farming opened up by plundered slaves, most of them The population is nomadic, and these savages distinguish each other's status and wealth by the number of hump cattle. Their method of herding cattle is also very primitive. Most of the hump cattle live in the river valley and the few forests along the coast. It is worth noting that this tribe attaches great importance to trade with the outside world. The Portuguese, French, Dutch, and Arabs are all their trading partners. They import guns and ammunition, export leather and slaves, and constantly Accumulated wealth by launching foreign annexation wars, so its power expanded very fast. In just a hundred years, it developed from a tribal alliance in the Unirashi River Basin to the current one that spans hundreds of miles and has five troops. There are more than a thousand powerful kingdoms, this has to arouse our attention."

"It's not unusual for the kingdom of Manab to go northward to annex the small Sakarava tribe on the grassland. But they had the courage to move northwards to the mouth of the Mian River, and at the same time they were with us and the Dutch. The occurrence of an armed conflict is very strange. After analysis, we believe that it is very likely that external forces are involved, and their purpose is nothing more than trying to seize the only island in the southwest of the two islands, Tulare or Cotton River Port. The area suitable for building a large port may be supported by our old enemy, the French, because only they will be interested in a deep-water port with good conditions."

Pei Suoning paused at this point, and the others began to whisper.

The reason he pointed out is very good, because the French East India Company (called the Oriental Company before 1644) has initially established a foothold in the southeast of New China in recent years-speaking of which, the French actually have to thank the people on the east coast, because it is they The aggressive momentum made the French East India Company determined to increase investment, and moved the already seriously surplus population here, avoiding their bad luck of being driven away by the natives as in history-began to enrich the "slave resources" They have always wanted to obtain a port on the southwestern coast in order to establish a colonial stronghold, capture or buy slaves, and supply French ships to India for development.

The minds of the French are not a secret in the eyes of the "sophisticated" colonists, the Dutch and the East Coasters, but they are not in a hurry, because the best deep-water port in this area has already been shared by the two of them.There are many coral reefs near other coastlines, the currents are turbulent, the sea conditions are complex, and due to the influence of sedimentation, the water in many coastal areas is very shallow, making it difficult for large ships to dock.For example, the mouth of the Morondava River in the north can only be used as a port for mooring small boats-because ships generally can only berth in the river branches of the Murondava River, and the open sea is not suitable for a port (this small port in later generations is called Beibei The same is true for Mulumbe, which is a little southerly from here and located in the delta of the Mangoki River with more fertile land. Later generations here are only a small port for exporting beans (mainly peas), and large ships cannot approach them at all. , the value is very low.

Therefore, if the French want to extend their influence from the southeast to the southwest of New China, it is extremely important to obtain a port with good location and good conditions in the local area. In fact, it is the Dutch Tule who chooses to go. The port of Mianhe (both near the estuary of Mianhe) is the most suitable for you and the people on the east coast. However, they are both civilized countries and it is not during the war.They can only secretly instigate and instigate the natives to come to attack, and then they will see if there is a chance to intervene according to the situation, there is no other way.

"Let's not worry about the situation of the French, the Second Fleet of the Navy will take care of it. We don't need to worry about what others do. We rely on thousands of French Huguenot immigrants (oppressed, discriminated against) Protestants), we don't pay attention to it. I have thought a lot about this matter in the past two days, and now I finally understand it." Shi Qinjie, commander of China's security, said in an unhurried voice, "Since the natives have provoked the conflict, we will resolutely fight it, and we must subdue them no matter what the cost! I have already planned to write about South Africa. And the mainland, requesting to dispatch the South African infantry company (after the former 5th company of the Army was abolished by the Joint Staff Headquarters, the headquarters was reorganized into the South African infantry company on the spot), the South African cavalry company and the South African artillery company to assist in the battle at Mienhe Port. In addition, this time just Among the Polish and German prisoners of war transported from the Port of Suez, I will also draw some of my manpower and transfer them to the port of Mienhe together with the New China Infantry Company and the New China Artillery Company to participate in the conquest of the Kingdom of Manab. Conquer them once and for all! The natives are fearful of power but not virtuous, this time let them see the iron fist of a civilized country!"

"In addition, with such a big battle this time, naturally we can't just teach the natives a lesson!" Shi Qinjie said suddenly, "Near the mouth of the Murondava River and the delta of the Mangoki River, The soil is fertile, the sunlight is strong, the water source is not lacking, and it has very good agricultural conditions. Especially in the estuary of the Murondava River, the climate is not as severe as other areas, and the precipitation is slightly more. They are widely distributed and the soil is very suitable for planting sugarcane. The sugarcane we brought back from Tahiti has been successfully transplanted in the botanical garden of Guihua Island. The next step is to find a good planting place for them. I think the impact plain near the mouth of the Murondava River is good. This time, the army went forward and beat them down together, and then the immigrants took over! As for the manpower, I will write to the Executive Committee to request that more money be deducted from the immigrants. In addition, a batch of well-behaved Polish slaves will be selected for amnesty, and the land will be uniformly distributed for settlement, which will be cheaper for them!"

(End of this chapter)