I Became The Crown Prince Of The Mexican Empire - Chapter 66



Only Noblemtl

Universities and Slavery (7)

Even as the university design progressed, talent scouting continued, and I welcomed them and placed them in the right positions.

Francis Electronics, founded by Francis Ronalds, is based in Morelia.

“You made this in 1816?”

Francis smiled awkwardly in response to my genuine admiration.

“Yes, Your Majesty. I will explain in detail.”

He brought along a device he had previously built. Although it was an early device, his device had the ability to send electrical signals over a distance of eight miles.

His invention certainly worked, but it left much room for improvement.

“It’s a method of transmitting messages by rotating a disk with letters written on it.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. The idea is to ground the wire at the moment the dial points to the desired letter, and the receiver will record the letter displayed on the dial at that moment.”

Although it was a creative approach, it was inefficient and prone to failure.

“I see.”

In addition, the method of enclosing the wires in glass tubes was also expensive.

‘If you change the approach using static electricity to electromagnetic induction, and change the sending and receiving of messages to Morse code, then it becomes the telegraph as I know it.’

The first battery, developed in 1799 by Italian physicist Alessandro Volta, made this possible.

“As I said in my letter, I have some ideas about the telegraph. Have you heard of the battery?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Isn’t it something that generates electrical energy through chemical reactions? You intend to use it throughout your body?”

“That’s right. Then we can send electrical signals in other ways.”

I explained to Francis the idea of ​​electromagnetic induction.

“Well, if you send electrical signals that way, how do you get the message across?”

“It’s simple. It’s a combination of long and short signals to represent the alphabet. For example, one short signal represents ‘A’ and one long signal represents ‘B.’ In this way, various characters, such as the Spanish alphabet and numbers, can be encoded.”

“So, you’re creating a unique combination of signals for each letter. That’s a very innovative idea, Your Majesty.”

“Thank you for saying so. Your job is to improve your invention and make my idea a reality. Can you do it?”

“Yes, the idea is so specific that I think all I have to do is make it.”

He looked as if he was itching to quickly create an improved version of the electric telegraph.

“I’ll get you the copper wire and batteries as quickly as possible, so first, complete the code system.”

Since I didn’t memorize Morse code in my past life, I have to create it again.

“Yes, Your Majesty. I will do my best. How about calling this code system the ‘Código Iturbide’? After all, it was actually created by Your Majesty.”

“Do so.”

The full-body system will be very useful in many fields.

Initially, it may not be possible to deploy it nationwide because it is expensive, but it will be able to significantly increase work efficiency in specific fields such as government agencies, the military, railroads, and finance.

***

I received a letter from Reginald Greenfield of England regarding the results of his scouting of important figures.

“Hmm, I’ll check it out with my own eyes and then decide···.”

“This is the first time something like this has happened.”

There was a person who said he would see for himself and decide whether the story I wrote in the letter was true.

The man was John Ericsson.

I got to know this person thanks to Joseph Locke. He was the one who told me about the engineer I asked if he knew of who could build a steam-powered ship.

“Joseph, are you close with him?”

“We weren’t best friends, but we talked quite a bit when I was in England. We talked a lot about steam-powered ships.”

“I see.”

Joseph Locke traveled across Mexico by rail to see old friends and help scout them.

“I think they’re coming in, Your Majesty.”

“I’m glad I didn’t have to wait long.”

John Eriksen, 31, was a tall man born in Sweden who moved to England.

He must have sensed our identities when he saw our clothes, because he walked towards us with brisk strides.

“Good morning, Your Majesty. It is an honor to meet you. My name is John Eriksen.”

“Nice to meet you. It must have been hard to come all this way. You know this place well, right?”

“Yes, I know very well.”

He answered me and said to Joseph Locke.

“I heard you left for the Mexican Empire, but I didn’t expect to see you here. I wondered how His Highness the Crown Prince of the Mexican Empire knew about me, but now I see it’s you.”

“Yes. I recommended you. I remember talking to you back when the Rainhill Trials were happening. Anyway, it’s nice to see you again.”

Eriksen and Locke greeted each other warmly.

The Rainhill Trial was a railway locomotive competition held in England between Liverpool and Manchester.

The event, which also featured the ‘Novelty’, a locomotive designed by John Eriksen, saw the ‘Rocket’, built by George Stephenson and Joseph Locke, take first place.

It seems that there was some interaction among the technicians who participated in this event.

“Okay, now that we’ve exchanged greetings, let’s go see the things you wanted to see.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I look forward to it.”

The plan I came up with to scout him was as follows:

First, we plan to mass-produce the ships.

Second, a large shipyard with a dedicated dock for steamships is being built.

Third, we plan to support the latest equipment such as steam cranes, steam hammers, rolling machines, lathes and drilling machines for shipbuilding.

“Let’s start by looking at the construction site of the dedicated dock for steamships.”

Eriksen was now taken to the construction site of a shipyard that was in good shape.

“The shipyard is quite large.”

“The overall scale is large, and each dock has ample space to accommodate various equipment. If you look closely, you can see that there is even a device built to secure a steam crane to the floor.”

There wasn’t much to show as it was still under construction.

I took him to the warehouse, where they stored the equipment that would go into the dock once the shipyard was completed.

“You explain from here on, Locke.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Eriksen, let me show you the steam crane first. You’ll be amazed.”

Since they were all made by Locke Precision Machinery, I had them introduced to the president.

Eriksen, who had operated a steam-powered crane, looked like he had experienced a new world from the start.

He checked out each and every one of the latest machines, including cranes, steam hammers, rolling machines, lathes (turning machines), and drilling machines.

“I was amazed,” said Eriksen, who spent hours tinkering with equipment in the warehouse without eating as soon as he arrived in Mexico.

“Wow, it’s amazing. Everything about it exceeds my expectations.”

From then on, things were smooth sailing.

At the dinner table, Eriksen had been asking Joseph Locke questions about life in the Mexican Empire, and by the end of the meal, he had made a decision.

“I would like to try my hand at building a steamship.”

He said with a serious face.

“Okay. I’ll make the company, but since it’s a public corporation, I don’t think I can name it after Locke. Is that okay?”

“Yes, it’s a little disappointing, but it’s okay.”

This shipyard was originally a government facility commissioned by the Navy. I can’t use such a facility as I please.

‘I originally didn’t know much about shipbuilding, so I didn’t want to get involved.’

I had hoped that they would take care of it since I had brought fifty first-class shipbuilders from Spain, but the Mexican Imperial Navy failed me.

Since the shipbuilding industry is not only related to the navy but also to trade, we cannot afford to leave it alone. That is why we proposed to the government that we create a public enterprise by scouting talent and investing funds.

“As written in the letter, I will give you a 2% stake and the position of president. However, the company’s major shareholder is the Mexican Empire, so if there are no results for too long, things could get difficult.”

“Don’t worry. There will be trial and error, but I have many designs that I have been thinking about for a long time. In addition, there are 50 first-class Spanish shipbuilding engineers, so I am confident.”

The name of the public enterprise was decided to be the simple yet meaningful ‘Astilleros Mexicanos’, and the government would own 70% of the shares, I would own 28%, and John Eriksen would own 2%.

Fifty shipbuilders brought from Spain also belonged to this company.

John Eriksen decided to return to England and prepare to emigrate to the Mexican Empire.

***

January 1835.

Construction began on the Imperial University of Mexico. Although it was midwinter, it was not so bad that construction could not proceed.

‘It’s not cold in winter and not hot in summer, so the weather is nice.’

Although it is January, the average perceived temperature is around 15 degrees, which is different from Seoul, where the average temperature drops below zero around this time of year.

“We will begin construction on the engineering building as scheduled, Your Majesty.”

“Yes. I really like the design, so let’s make sure it’s constructed properly.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Even comprehensive universities do not build all their buildings at once and then open their doors.

Rather, it is common to start with one or two buildings and build new ones as funds are raised, a method that many modern universities also use.

The project was well funded so raising money wasn’t a problem, but time was.

‘It would take at least a year to design and break ground on an entire university of such a scale.’

The layout and design style of the buildings and facilities were decided first, and the four buildings to be built first – the College of Engineering, dormitories, chapel, and library – were designed first.

Construction began under Damian’s direction.

Watching the construction site being built made me feel moved all over again.

Even though I came to the site, there wasn’t much I could do other than point out safety issues and make some improvements to the work flow.

“There was a time when we used to go to Sacramento and pick up saws and cut lumber ourselves, but now there are a lot of architects who even direct the work on site.”

“Hahaha, we were also embarrassed at that time. We never imagined that His Highness the Crown Prince would personally hold a saw and show us how to use it.”

Diego answered my question.

“Haha, I guess so.”

Choosing the College of Engineering as my first choice was a choice based on my needs.

I know that literature, philosophy, art, science, mathematics, economics, and many other disciplines are all important, and I plan to establish faculties one by one, but now is the age of the industrial revolution and invention.

‘We have no choice but to expand our national power immediately or we could end up in a dangerous situation.’

We need engineers in various fields such as machinery, civil engineering, shipbuilding, chemical, electrical, metal, and military engineering as a priority. Aren’t most of the people we are scouting right now engineers?

Now that we’re creating the university, we plan to scout talent from other fields as well, but that’s the priority.

I decided after observing the construction site.

‘I’ll leave this to Damian and I should start planning the next step.’

I have a strong desire to watch and participate more, but there are still important and urgent things to do, just like college.

“Diego, let’s go back to Mexico City.”