Chapter 203: "Rebirth from the Dirty Earth"
"Zzzzz…"
The phone line was very noisy, yet it was still advanced technology from the Berlin Electric Company.
To make such a long-distance call possible, they had installed no fewer than sixty-seven sound amplifiers. Ernst spent a great deal of money recruiting related experts throughout the German states and inviting top specialists in technology. Finally, with the help of the Siemens giant and the collective strength of Germany, they overcame the relevant difficulties in a few months.
Compared to Siemens, Ernst's Berlin Electric Company was hardly beyond the level of a grade-schooler. Its few important "inventions" were mostly achieved by quick fixes. At the same time, the Berlin Electric Company also served as half an assembly plant for Siemens, processing certain parts under Siemens's licensing.
Though the Berlin Electric Company was so unimpressive, it had grown into the second-largest electric firm in Germany. The first was Siemens. As Ernst once said, in the field of electricity, the only great inventors who could compare to Siemens were America's Tesla and Edison (excluding the top theoretical scientists).
When the telephone line was finally finished, the total cost was almost enough to purchase Alaska all over again. Yet such a transoceanic line had basically no commercial value for the Heixingen Consortium. Its entire function was to let Ernst and Constantin speak with each other. The only plus was that it added to the Berlin Electric Company's technical reserves.
Unlike the telephone line, the upgraded telegraph line could be partially freed up, no longer dedicated solely to the East African government, and was suitable for some civilian communications. Yet given the current circumstances of East African immigrants, they had little need for it.
After speaking for some time, Ernst and Constantin returned to discussing the army. Now East Africa faced a question: Should it reduce troop numbers or expand them? A force of nearly one hundred thousand soldiers might seem large, but spread over more than two million square kilometers, it didn't look like much—though neither did East Africa face very heavy defense pressure.
Even just the militia could easily crush the neighboring tribes. Against other colonizers, they might at least have a fifty-fifty chance, though relying mainly on numerical advantage. But if an enemy came by sea, the militia wouldn't be able to handle it. Anyone who could project power by sea wasn't weak, so even East Africa's so-called "regular army" might struggle to cope.
A good portion of the East African standing army actually served a police function, present in nearly every city and some towns as well. The officers' quality was hard to guarantee. Even students who graduated from the Heixingen Military Academy, bluntly speaking, were just soldiers with somewhat better military skills—trained on short notice, so their abilities might still be less than that of a German mercenary who'd spent years in the Prussian army. There just wasn't enough professional officer talent. That's why some suggested learning from Prussia at the military meeting.
Currently, the Heixingen Military Academy had only three graduates who received officer-level education in Prussia, each an exceptional talent. Back then, while still in Europe, Prince Constantin had used his connections to place them in Berlin's military academy. It was unclear how much they would learn, and there were too few of them. Furthermore, the first Heixingen student to study in Berlin still had two years left before graduation.
"Father, I believe we should shift some of the soldiers out of the army to form East Africa's police force. As for the army, we shouldn't expand it further. We should focus on improving the troops' professional skills and fighting strength. East Africa doesn't need that many soldiers now," Ernst said.
"Of course, the more soldiers, the better. Back then, no matter how strong Napoleon was, he couldn't stop the entire rest of Europe united against him. But I suppose East Africa's militia will suffice. Indeed, there's no need to expand the standing army," Prince Constantin agreed.
"Then let's settle it: with this military reform, we'll make sure the Heixingen royal family firmly takes control of East Africa's army, then move on to reforming East Africa's government," Ernst concluded.
In reality, the military power in East Africa had always been in Ernst's hands, but only by means of balancing competing groups. Now, however, Prince Constantin was in East Africa, effectively shifting the Heixingen royal family itself to the colony. Before, Ernst feared the central government and army might grow strong enough to escape his control, but now, with Prince Constantin reshaping East Africa's central authority, it was all resolved. That was also good news for the East African government, which could finally take over many tasks formerly handled by the Heixingen Consortium.
Before, the East African government had been like a puppet. It didn't even have the authority to collect statistics without going through the Heixingen Consortium's employees. Von der Leyen, the former top administrator, was himself a Consortium employee. The East African government felt more like a subsidiary of the Heixingen Consortium.
"Regarding government reform, you intend to let the government fully take charge of all East African affairs?" Constantin asked.
"Pretty much, but we still have to coordinate with the Heixingen Consortium, since the consortium still handles trade in East Africa," Ernst said.
"What should we pay attention to while carrying out this reform? What do you think?"
"Father, all current departments are important. Yes, we can learn from the Prussian government's structure in some ways, but East Africa's situation is different. For instance, the disease control department here is crucial. If we turn it into a Ministry of Health, we must give it enough importance. Being in the tropics, East Africa cannot ignore problems of disease and medical care.
"Most importantly is the army. We must establish a Ministry of Defense. We can let Yalman be the minister. His health isn't great, so we can trust him, and he's senior enough that the troops respect him.
"That police force we mentioned can be established under the new government. Besides that, we can form a Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but that's up to you. However, I do have someone to recommend: an official in Mbeya named Becker. You might want to try him out. He basically used his wits alone to get East Africa the Yeke Kingdom for only five hundred guns, which is pretty capable," Ernst explained.
Siweite had told Ernst about Becker, so Ernst remembered the name and mentioned it to his father. Still, Prince Constantin would decide. The Heixingen royal family had once been a real country, only merging with Prussia thirty years ago, so they still had some staff. Whether Constantin had brought them or not was unknown, since many had disbanded or died, or chosen not to come to East Africa.
"I'll keep all that in mind. Actually, we can create a Ministry of Culture as well, and I have some old friends who can fill positions there," Prince Constantin said.
Cultural development in East Africa was almost nonexistent if you didn't count the push for the German language. Prince Constantin wanted to promote cultural construction here, which suited Ernst too. The Heixingen royal family had always valued cultural growth, a tradition dating back to Ernst's grandfather. Even now, Frederick's reputation among writers in the Heixingen region was quite good.
Still, Ernst cautioned, "Father, boosting East African culture is fine, but don't involve complex ideologies. It's enough to organize some entertainment for the immigrants so they'll support the Heixingen royal family's rule. We don't want to shackle ourselves."
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing. I merely want to spread our German traditions here in East Africa. As for that liberalism nonsense, you think I won't guard against it?" Prince Constantin said grimly.
He firmly believed that the reason Heixingen merged with Prussia in the first place was Napoleon's attempts to impose French ideas on Germany—at least that was his perspective. To avoid the chaos of "the mob," Heixingen and Sigmaringen had felt compelled to invite Prussia's intervention. From that moment, Heixingen was a country in name only. But now, with the development of the East African colony, it was as though Heixingen had come back to life—like a rebirth from the dirty earth.
What's more, in terms of legitimacy, East Africa might be stronger than Heixingen's homeland. The territory of Heixingen in Germany was basically overshadowed by Prussia; the royal family had now relocated to East Africa, so the colony had become the main seat of the Heixingen state. Meanwhile, the old Heixingen territory was reduced to a mere outpost of East Africa in Germany and Prussia—Heixingen itself had once been Prussia's outpost in southern Germany. The situation had taken an interesting turn.
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