In Rock's vision, there is no part of Chinese descent.
It's not that Rock didn't consider the interests of the Chinese, but Rock hoped that before the Chinese had the ability to protect themselves, the British could attract as much firepower from the Boers as possible, leaving more time for the Chinese to work hard in the future.
If the British can't hold on, it won't be too late for the Chinese to take over.
So, looking back, Rock still led the miners to dredge the river to prepare for the upcoming rainy season or next year's drought.
Now it seems that drought is inevitable. Although it is the dry season, it does not mean that there is not a drop of rain in the dry season. It is just that compared with the rainy season, the precipitation in the dry season is less.
But this year, since May, not a drop of rain has fallen.
The mainstay of Johannesburg's economy is the gold mine, so the Johannesburg city government can ignore this situation.
Rock is now the largest landowner in Johannesburg. Therefore, Rock cannot rely on the city government. This problem will ultimately have to be solved by Rock himself.
"It's not difficult to dredge the river. It's even very simple. This is the Crocodile River. There are a lot of crocodiles in the river. We sold the crocodile skins to businessmen in Johannesburg and used the money to pay for the cost of dredging the river. We also got a little
With the balance left, if the progress of the project is insufficient, we can also hire Zulu people." Buck was very optimistic. Iron Hook led the security guards on shift to look for crocodiles all over the world. I heard that everyone made a lot of money.
Roque will not be greedy for this little money now, and he doesn't even care about the crocodile skin. If he wants the security guards who can take a rest to take the initiative to work, then he must give them enough benefits.
Crocodile skin is still very valuable. There are merchants in Johannesburg who specialize in this business. They buy crocodile skin from Johannesburg, then transport it to London and sell it to leather goods manufacturers in Paris at a high price.
These leather goods manufacturers are the famous luxury goods families in the future. Most of them are still small workshops and have nothing to do with luxury goods but they already have the prototype of a family brand.
In fact, if Rock is willing, Rock can now get involved in the luxury jewelry industry.
But there is no need for Rock. Rock now has a gold mine and a farm, which is enough for Rock. He has to leave something to eat for others. There is never enough money in this world.
So Rock doesn't care about those crocodile skins. What Rock cares about is what kind of profits the Crocodile River can bring to the farms around Johannesburg in the future.
To be honest, Roque was not very happy about the smooth progress of the project. Vaguely, Roque felt as if he had overlooked something.
"I was chatting with Professor Douglas yesterday. Professor Douglas said that if we want the Crocodile River to fully play its role in the surrounding farms, then we should build a reservoir, because every dry season, the Crocodile River will stop flowing and degrade into a river.
The small pond cannot provide enough water for the surrounding farms. If we build a reservoir, there will be no such problem." Buck muttered, and Rock suddenly realized.
Yes, it’s the reservoir!
The role of reservoirs in agriculture does not need to be emphasized, especially in areas like Johannesburg with obvious rainy and dry seasons. Building a reservoir can store water when the river floods in the rainy season, and then ensure that the farm has sufficient water supply during the dry season.
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Moreover, the reservoir can be upgraded into a hydropower station. Once the hydropower station is completed, it can provide stable power supply to Johannesburg and even Pretoria.
At that time, if anyone offends Roque, Roque will cut off the power supply. The power of the electric tiger is not an exaggeration.
This is a good idea!
Rock did what he said and went to find Douglas immediately.
"Yes, it is possible to build a reservoir in the upper reaches of the Crocodile River. As for hydropower stations, there are currently no hydropower stations in Europe. The Americans seem to have built a hydropower station, but the specifics are unclear." Douglas agreed to build the reservoir, but he did not know much about the hydropower station.
situation, so we will not make rash suggestions. This is a scientific and prudent attitude.
Douglas did not understand hydropower stations, but Rock did.
Although Rock doesn't understand the technology of hydropower stations, at least Rock knows the prospects of hydropower stations.
The U.S. hydropower station that Douglas mentioned should be the Niagara Hydropower Station built by Nikola Tesla. This is the world's first large-scale hydropower station and will supply a quarter of the total electricity demand in New York State in the United States and Ontario in Canada.
Nikola Tesla should be in bad luck now. His laboratory was destroyed by a bizarre fire. He himself was threatened by some unknown forces and had to give up the "alternating current patent".
This is a good thing for Rock, which means that Rock does not need to pay patent fees for alternating current.
The patent fees at this time were so expensive that no one could imagine. The patent fee for an alternating current was one dollar, so if Nikola Tesla did not give up the "alternating current patent", then only a few
By the end of the month, Nikola Tesla will become the richest man in the world.
Although Roark knew this was unethical, he still had to thank Edison for suppressing Nikola Tesla, which allowed Roark to invest in hydropower stations at minimal cost.
In fact, it is not just investment. The power of patent fees is that if Nikola Tesla does not give up the patent rights of alternating current, then within a certain period of time, as long as the hydropower station continues to operate, then Roark will continue to pay patent fees.
Until the patent protection period expires.
Well, it seems that the patent rights during this period can still be extended for a fee.
"Sir Locke, this is an infrastructure project and you can apply for government support." Douglas kindly reminded Locke.
"I will fight for it. You should contact the United States first." Roque will definitely not miss the opportunity to apply for financial support, but if the Johannesburg city government or the Government House does not support it, Roque will be fine.
It is true that hydropower stations are infrastructure projects, but in the case of Transvaal, no one stipulates that infrastructure projects must be undertaken by the government.
Not just the Transvaal, all the projects in this period were actually open to private investment. Basic transportation facilities such as railways, for example, were even entirely funded by private investment. The government also wanted to invest, but it had no money, so for economic development
, the government even has to provide additional conditions to attract private investment.
The purpose of capital is to make profits, so the pricing of privately invested basic transportation facilities does not rest with the government. It is capital that has the final say on how much people have to pay to use those privately invested basic transportation facilities.
Therefore, the richest people in the United States during this period were basically related to railroads and shipping.
The same is true for Johannesburg. Even if the governments of Johannesburg and Pretoria don't care, Roque will fund the construction of the hydropower station on his own. At most, it will be a matter of selling more gold.
But if the two levels of government don't care, then the two levels of government will have no power to price electricity. After the hydropower station is put into operation, the electricity supply will definitely not be free. The city government and the Governor's Palace don't need electricity. If they do, then
At one time no one could control how much Rock would charge.
The key is that hydropower stations are highly exclusive. If Rock builds a hydropower station in the upper reaches of the Crocodile River, there will be no room for a second hydropower station in the entire upper reaches of the Crocodile River. Even if it is built, it will be useless.
If the sluice gates are not opened upstream, the reservoir downstream will die of thirst.
So can Rock do such a thing?
The answer is yes!
Yes, Rock can do it, and he will go even further than this.
Therefore, because of the importance of the hydropower station, it is impossible for Rock to swallow this piece of fat in one go.
If you eat alone, you may be starved to death. If Rock builds a hydropower station solely, it will be fun to collect electricity bills in the future, but it will also make Rock a public enemy.
At that time, those who pay high electricity prices and enjoy the convenient services brought by electricity will not think about who built the hydropower station. They will only be envious and jealous, wishing that Rock would be like Nikola Tesla.
It would be better to have free power supply.
Therefore, Rock needs to find enough important people to take the blame together.
In Johannesburg, all the important people are in the Mining Union, so the first thing Rock thought of was the Mining Union.
"Reservoir? We are in the mining business and we don't need that thing. Moreover, building a reservoir seems to affect the groundwater level, so we have to be cautious on this issue." At the mining alliance meeting specially convened at the request of Rock, Rock just said
As soon as this proposal was made, some people immediately jumped out to oppose it.
The guy who jumped out on his own initiative is called Adam Stephen. It is said that he is the white glove of a certain local noble. The gold mine managed by Adam Stephen is larger than the Lock Gold Mine, but the output approved by the city government is higher than the Lock Gold Mine.
Lower, which seems to verify the authenticity of the "supposedly".
"Yes, the reservoir will affect the groundwater level."
"This will increase our mining costs."
"This kind of thing should be handled by the government"
Adam Stephen is still somewhat influential. As soon as he finished speaking, the conference room immediately started to buzz with discussions.
The mining union's office is temporarily located in Olinspo, and the official office is under intensive construction, right next to the city hall.
"De Beers Consolidated Mining Company has agreed to invest 100,000 pounds," Aiden suddenly said, clearly supporting Roark.
"Russell Gold Mine agreed to invest 10,000 pounds." Joe Russell also came forward in person this time.
"The Matilda Gold Mine agreed to invest fifty thousand pounds" Sam was unwilling to be left behind.
The situation suddenly reversed.
Adam Stephen's face was ashen.
You can hear a needle drop in the conference room.
The investment required for the hydropower station is huge. According to the news from the United States and the cost of the Niagara Hydropower Station, the construction cost of the Crocodile Bay Hydropower Station is about 1 million pounds. This is also the main reason for Adam Stephen's opposition. If this is 3,200 pounds,
Adam Stephen paid for it, and it was a transaction worth tens of thousands of pounds. Adam Stephen only had white gloves and couldn't make the decision.
"The initial investment in Rock Gold Mine is 100,000 pounds. If the funds raised in the end are insufficient, additional funds can be added at that time." Rock is confident. The money is actually paid in installments, and it can also be paid in gold, so Rock can afford it.
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"De Beers Unified Mining Company's 100,000 pounds is also the first installment. If there is insufficient funds, no matter how much, De Beers Unified Mining Company can directly make up for it." Aiden was so bullish. This was too much face. Luo
Grams will definitely have to thank Cecil Rhodes Jr. in person.
The atmosphere in the conference room became lively. Although most people did not understand what the hydropower station meant or even what changes it would bring to Johannesburg, it was definitely right to follow the big boss's footsteps. Is Roque a fool?
"The Wadsworth Gold Mine agreed to invest five thousand."
"Jim Clayton Gold Mine agrees to invest ten thousand"
The gold mine owners still had plenty of money. Someone took the lead, and soon the 1 million pounds of share capital was subscribed for 600,000 pounds by the mine owners.
There was still room, so Roque added another £100,000.
De Beers Unified Mining Company is really wealthy. Aiden wanted to wrap up the rest, but Rock refused. Rock only gave Aiden an additional credit of 100,000 pounds. Rock still had use for the rest.
In fact, just to build a hydropower station, 800,000 pounds is enough. The rest, Roque wants to use it to run relationships.
The hydropower station is located in Johannesburg. It is reasonable and reasonable to set aside a part for the city government so that after the hydropower station is completed in the future, the city government will not interfere with the price of electricity.
For the same reason, the Governor's Palace cannot be ignored. Twenty-four prayers have been prayed, and there is no shortage of this tremor. Regardless of whether Alfred Milner and Philip Matilda support it or not, the due filial piety cannot be ignored.
It cannot be less, otherwise, if someone gets stuck in your neck, don’t blame others.
Of course, there is no need for Rock to explain this part clearly at the meeting. Anyone who has a mine at home understands what is going on. Those who don't understand have no right to sit in this room.
No matter when the time comes, people who look too ugly usually have no big future. When running a small business, you must consider the interests of your employees. When running a big business, you must consider the interests of your allies. If you blindly eat more and occupy more, you will end up with nothing.
Being able to become a loner, such people often don't know how to reflect on themselves, and they only complain about their lack of opportunities, unfair society, and bad environment. Little do they know that the road they have to take is their own.
After the meeting of the Mining Union, Roque went out to find Philippe Matilda.
"Reservoir? Why build a reservoir? Johannesburg doesn't need a reservoir." The baron's first reaction was indeed opposition.
"Reservoirs and hydropower stations are connected. The gold mines in Johannesburg need power supply, and the surrounding farms need reservoirs. Building a reservoir will be beneficial to everyone." Rock is right. A large project like a hydropower station will actually be beneficial to everyone after it is launched.
Everyone benefits, including the city government.
To build a hydropower station, you need construction materials, related equipment, transportation, and a lot of labor. These laborers also have to eat, drink, and eat, which is all money.
