African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 39: Chapter 35: Cattle and Horses

One month ago, April 22, 1866, Dar es Salaam Port.

Today, the immigrants from First Town and the colonial officers came to Dar es Salaam Port to receive goods. Unlike usual, more people were dispatched today.

”Old Qian, why did Master Kilman call us over today? Usually, it’s their own people who come to this place,” an immigrant asked.

”How would I know? Just do what the officers tell us to do, no need for so much chatter,” Old Qian replied.

”I’m just worried. It’s been hard enough to get a full meal in First Town. What if they send us back to the Qing Country?”

”Stop overthinking. Master Kilman needs us to grow crops for them. The land here is barren, and those natives are clumsy, not even knowing how to farm. Master Kilman can’t possibly farm the land himself, right? So what are you afraid of?”

As the two continued chatting, they saw a few large ships appear on the horizon.

”Judging by this, could they be new immigrants? Last time we were brought over by that big ship.”

Old Qian shook his head, ”Who knows, once the ship docks, we’ll find out.”

Before long, a Dutch merchant ship docked at the pier of Dar es Salaam Port. The Dutch opened the railings by the ship, laid down planks, and a cargo unloading path a few meters wide appeared.

The German officers began directing the immigrants to board the ship and unload. Led by the officers, the immigrants once again boarded the familiar ships, where they finally saw the cargo for this time.

”These are horses, these are cows!” The person who had spoken to Old Qian exclaimed in surprise.

”I thought so! Such good land should raise some livestock. The grass around First Town grows so well, but these natives neither know how to farm nor how to raise livestock.”

Old Qian scoffed, ”The more you talk, the more ridiculous you get. It’s livestock, not an animal.”

”All the same, it’s all the same. We just don’t know how to say nice things, being uneducated, right? Haha...” he laughed awkwardly.

”Stop laughing and give us a hand with the livestock!”

...

After a lot of hustle and bustle, they finally drove the cattle and horses off the ship, and the immigrants from First Town began herding them in the direction of First Town.

The German officer seemed well-prepared, finding saddles and bridles from somewhere and equipping a horse.

As an old European cavalryman, Del finally found the feeling of galloping across battlefields once more.

He rode this horse imported from Russia, tested his skills in an open field. The horse was relatively gentle-natured and carried Del as he ran two laps on flat ground.

Recently, because of Prussia’s war preparations, Prussia’s mules and horses were under control, and export was impossible.

Therefore, Ernst specifically imported several hundred horses from Russia. Horse farming was popular in Europe, and each country had plenty of horses. Russia’s Eastern European part was already a major producer of horses, with vast grasslands suitable for horse breeding in Central Asia and the Far East.

Ernst sent people to Russia to purchase horses, then departed from the Baltic Sea, transporting goods to the East African colonies via Dutch merchant ships, and even took a batch of cattle when passing through Holland.

Holland is a major livestock country where livestock farming is the primary agricultural sector, followed by flower cultivation.

Currently, Ernst has no way to improve the mechanization of the East African colonies. Europe is still using animal power, and though steam agricultural machinery has some market, it is expensive, bulky, and not highly efficient.

So, Ernst thought of developing some livestock farming in the colonies to provide some animal power for the future. There were no domesticated large mammals in Africa, and African animals were very wild. The natives lived by hunting, relying on the abundant animals as food sources. Although dangerous, the rich resources meant these tribes lacked the initiative to improve productivity.

...

The immigrants herded the cattle and horses back to First Town, drawing the attention of the townspeople with so many livestock.

The security officer started ordering the immigrants to build stables and cowsheds, while also finding some experienced immigrants to be in charge of breeding.

The breeding farm was located five or six miles from the town, situated between First Town and Third Town.

There, a piece of grassland existed. Immigrants set up a camp there and used wooden fences to corral in the cattle and horses.

”These are excellent cattle! Back home, only the landlord’s cattle back in the old place were this sturdy.”

”This horse isn’t bad either. I’ve only seen officials ride such horses in my life; a fat official sitting on top, with subordinates running alongside.”

”Are you talking about when the court was fighting the longhairs?”

”Yes, that’s what the soldiers said. When they left, they even took a few of Landlord Wang’s cattle from our village, saying it was requisitioned by the court, worse than bandits. The armed guards of Landlord Wang could keep the place safe normally. We had a local bandit named King Erma Ziwang nearby, but he didn’t dare come to Master Wang’s place. Yet when the court’s soldiers came, not a peep from his armed men, usually only bullying us common people.”

”Pah, none of them are any good, a pack of dogs tearing at each other. Why doesn’t heaven rid us of such scum? Truly heaven has no eyes!”

”Sigh, luckily, the foreign masters came to recruit workers two years ago. Having no way to survive, I thought of seeking a living by boarding the ship. The life now isn’t something we could have imagined before!”

”Who wouldn’t agree! My family was hit by disaster. Two of my brothers starved to death, but I was lucky enough to be saved when Master Kilman came, surviving without those dog officials and rascal landlords, making life a bit better. Master Kilman keeps his word and truly feeds us!”

”I say, the Great Qing is bound to fall. Long ago, the scholar in the village said the court couldn’t beat the foreigners, losing territory and payments every year. These bastards don’t see us as human; someone is bound to sort them out.”

”Sigh, it’s hard to say. When those foreigners, what was it... England and France, arrived on our land, weren’t officials still living lavishly on reparations taken from us? I hear every defeat in the south led to several tax raises, called war repayments. Stuff like that, harming people!”

”At least we’re not in the Qing Country looking for a meal now, and we have no insidious officials above us. Everyone says foreigners are scary, but Master Kilman might be tough, but he’s cleaner than those treacherous Qing officials.”

”Sigh, talking about Africa, everything sounds good: good food, good clothes, but too few women. Those native women are too dark, how do you expect so many bachelors here to ever get a wife?”

”You only know how to daydream. In the Qing Country, you couldn’t even feed yourself. Which woman would want to follow you into a life of misery?”

”Can’t I think about life’s major decisions? What’s wrong with dreaming? In a few years when we’re better off, we might return to the Qing Country and get a wife. Then, come back and the whole family can have a nest of kids here.”

”That’s unlikely! Would Master Kilman let us go back?”

”You don’t understand. There’s an officer from Kilman in the town, he’s Chinese too, and has a foreign name, something like Piers Lee. He can speak to people.”

”He claims to be a graduate of the Heixinggen Military Academy. The land here belongs to Principal Heixinggen, who’s quite something, like a relative of the emperor in the Qing Country.”

”I heard about that. Officer Piers Lee was noticed by Master Kilman at a young age and went to Kilman to study, which is why he can be an officer here.”

”It was Officer Piers Lee who said we are employees of the Heixinggen Company, basically long-term workers. After twenty years, we can choose our future. Whether to stay in Africa or return to Qing Country is up to us, and Officer Piers Lee also mentioned that the few pieces of paper we receive each month shouldn’t be lost, as they are Kilman silver coins given to us, which can be exchanged for money at the banks in Qing Country.”

”Those pieces of paper can be exchanged for money?”

”You just don’t get it, huh? This is the currency the foreign masters use, and it can be exchanged for silver in Qing Country. If Qing Country didn’t acknowledge it, the foreign masters would certainly deal with those officials. A few years ago, the soldiers from England and France reportedly entered the Forbidden City, sat on the Dragon Throne, and even burned down the emperor’s garden, what was it... the Yuanming Garden, and in the end, the empress dowager and emperor had to compensate the foreign masters.”

”If that’s the case, I’d better keep those pieces of paper safe. Master Kilman gave them to me; the papers even have the portrait of a foreigner on them. I thought it was something important, didn’t dare to lose it, didn’t expect it was money. Better keep it safe, use it to get a wife later.”

”You’re forty and still thinking about getting a wife? What are you going to be like in twenty years when you’re old enough?”

”Hah, what’s wrong with getting a wife? I’ve been single my whole life, never tasted what it’s like! When I’m old, I can just find an old wife to live with. I deserve to be happy at least once!”

”That’s right...”

”””