Wild North America 1846

Chapter 664 Disarmament by 150,000

Author: Portuguese toothless

Chapter 664 Disarmament by 150,000

Late 1884

The total number of the Royal Army of the Tang Empire is more than 430,000, the total number of the Royal Guards is 183,000, and the total land military strength is about 614,000, which ranks sixth in the world, second only to Russia, Qing, and France.

After Germany and Austria, ahead of Britain and the Ottoman Empire.

If the Royal Guards are excluded, the Royal Army will drop another three places, ranking 9th in the world after the United Kingdom, the Ottoman Empire and Italy.

If the British Royal Navy, which has a total strength of more than 410,000, is included, it would only rank 10th in the world.

On March 17, the Tang Imperial government announced that it would reduce its army by 150,000 people, which attracted considerable attention from the international community and attracted the attention of European powers.

According to the announcement information;

The Royal Army will lay off 112,000 people, and the Royal Guards will lay off 38,000 people, for a total of 150,000 officers and soldiers.

After the layoffs, the total number of the Royal Army is less than 320,000, and the total number of the Royal Guards is 147,000. The size of the force ranks in the middle and lower among the world's powers.

Can such a small force maintain the security of a huge empire covering an area of ​​19.62 million square kilometers?

The answer is yes.

More than 90% of the territory of the Tang Empire is in North America, Central America and South America. In the entire Americas, the Tang Empire is now in the United States, the Republic of Mississippi, the Republic of Florida, the Kingdom of Kentucky, the Kingdom of Oklahoma, Brazil, Argentina,

Paraguay, Uruguay, Peru, Bolivia and other countries all have troops stationed there, ranging from more than two hundred thousand to two to three thousand.

82% of the Royal Army of the Tang Empire are located in various countries in the Americas and in overseas provinces. The overseas provinces include Beihai Province, Alaska Province, Paradise Province, Luzon Province, Cebu Province, Mindanao Province, Yunzhong Province and

The total number of troops in Suez City reached more than 340,000.

some of

The number of troops stationed in the United States alone exceeds 200,000, and has remained between 210,000 and 220,000 in recent years. The army's downsizing mainly involves the elimination of troops under the General Headquarters in the United States, accounting for more than 90%, totaling about 100,000.

The officers and soldiers resigned from the army and demobilized on the spot.

The Tang Empire had no enemies of sufficient strength in the entire Americas, and it had the advantages of both oceans. It also had more than 7 million reserve soldiers and an unknown number of militiamen, which was enough to maintain the security of the empire.

Most people pay attention to the superficial disarmament news and fail to realize the deeper level.

After the disarmament, the empire gained 100,000 Chinese retired military families in three major cities including New York, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, which added up to 100,000 more votes and almost 6% more say.

At the end of 1884, the total population of the United States reached 30.65 million, of which the total population in the northern provinces such as New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Maine accounted for about two-thirds, or more than 21.7 million.

This area is an area where Chinese immigrants are concentrated. After eight years of large-scale concentrated immigration, the Chinese population has increased from more than 5.2 million to more than 8.9 million. Subtracting the black freedmen who do not have the right to vote, it is almost half of the total population of several northern states.

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According to U.S. election laws;

Voters must be adult men with a fixed income, a fixed residence, an annual tax payment of more than $45, and no criminal record or prison sentence.

Such regulations have eliminated almost 80% of the population. First of all, women do not have the right to vote, and then children and minor men, as well as homeless people and idlers in the neighborhood, people at the bottom who do not have a fixed residence and do not have enough income to pay the $45 tax, all have no right to vote.

.

That is to say

Among the total population of 21.71 million in the northern states, there are only about 4.3 million adult males with the right to vote, and even more are limited.

More than 100,000 retired officers and soldiers were concentrated in New York, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia in the north. This not only increased more than 100,000 votes, but also increased cohesion and organization, which is crucial to the possible secession and turbulence that the United States may face.

Due to their hard work and thrift, the proportion of Chinese Americans who have fixed jobs and independent houses is much higher than that of other ethnic groups.

Therefore, the number of adult Chinese men with the right to vote is much higher than the proportion of the population. Together with the 100,000 recently retired officers and soldiers, they account for about 56% of the above-mentioned northern states. This ensures that in this year’s election voting, the Liberal Party will win more states, cities and counties.

right.

All of this is to prepare for the social changes that may come.

From a set of figures, we can clearly see the changes in the demographic structure of the United States;

Late 1872

The proportion of white people in the total population has further increased, from 73.2% 10 years ago to 76.1%, and the proportion of Chinese Americans has increased from 15.4% to 19.3%. The two major ethnic groups account for more than 95%, and they are the mainstream ethnic groups in society.

three years later

At the end of 1875, the total population of the United States was close to 26 million. Whites increased steadily from 76.1% to 78.3%, and the proportion of Chinese increased steadily from 19.3% to 20.6%. These two ethnic groups accounted for more than 99%, and the proportion of blacks further dropped from 3%.

to 1%.

The real change came in February 1877, when Zhang Zongliang, the first Chinese-American president, was elected and introduced an anti-Italian bill at the beginning of his term, which led to a cliff-like drop in the number of Italian immigrants to North America.

at the same time

The scale of Chinese immigrants to the United States has increased. This increase has decreased. Eight years have passed. The proportion of the Chinese population has increased sharply from 20.6% to 34.9%, while the white population has dropped from 76.1% to 64.4%.

Chinese immigrants are mostly concentrated in the north, which means that the Chinese population in the north accounts for nearly half of the total population, while the proportion in the southern states is only a dozen percent.

Los Angeles

In a low-key and luxurious manor

Emperor Richard, wearing a well-fitting plain clothes, was sitting at the top of the lobby, sipping tea leisurely, chatting with several of his ministers, but he was talking about national affairs.

"We are not in a hurry. The advantage of time is on our side. It will take another 5 to 10 years. As long as the anti-Italian bill is not overturned, our compatriots will have an increasing advantage in the population and will be more proactive.

What's urgent now is the British, they can't compete with us for population." Emperor Richard said calmly.

He picked up the tea cup and took a sip, then placed it on the table and continued, "I noticed that David Spencer, a professor at New York University, criticized the empire's disarmament policy in the Washington Post, saying

"This is a show, a North American Trojan horse show.

You see, Professor David Spencer sees how accurately and soberly he is. I think even the British can see this.

The issue is;

We can see it but there is nothing we can do about it, because we are playing within the rules.

According to the provisions of multiple treaties signed between the Tang Empire and North and South American countries, imperial subjects had the rights to move freely, settle, purchase property, naturalize, marry and do business, and their personal safety and property were protected by law.

Vice versa is not possible.

This is the privilege of the Tang Empire as the overlord of the Americas. You can have opinions and express dissatisfaction, but you must abide by the rules of the game.

It has been more than a month since the new President Grover Cleveland took office, how does the government evaluate him?"

The former Secretary of State for the Colonies and current Deputy Prime Minister, Earl Yao Guangyi, stood up first, raised his hands respectfully and replied;

“In reply to His Majesty’s words;

The government has been paying close attention to the words, deeds, and policies of the new U.S. President Grover Cleveland. From the current point of view, it is normal, but there are two aspects that deserve attention;

First, during his campaign, President Grover promised to protect the equal interests of Chinese voters, respect their contribution to the reconstruction of the United States, and will continue to pay attention to the demands of Chinese voters in employment, business and other fields, pay attention to them and solve them.

In fact, since taking office, the new President Grover has visited 17 neighborhoods and gathering places and met with people from all walks of life about 42 times. None of them were from the Chinese community, and no Chinese representatives participated.

Second, during his campaign, President Grover promised to do everything in his power to safeguard the integrity and unity of the country and safeguard the glory of the United States.

In more than a month after his election, he participated in a total of 9 high-society activities with the British ambassador and upper-class upper-class white British people, almost once every four days, with a high density.

In the Citizen Equal Employment Act first introduced by the parliament, it made quite detailed and rigid regulations on the ethnic ratio of employees recruited by factories, which was obviously aimed at many Chinese companies.

In many Chinese-American businesses operating in the United States, almost 90% of employees are Chinese-Americans. According to the provisions of the Equal Employment Equity Act proposed by the new president, this company is suspected of discriminating against other ethnic groups.

Based on the total proportion of white people in the population, at least one-third and less than two-thirds of the positions must be reserved for hiring white people. Otherwise, it is suspected of violating the law and will face a fine of up to $10,000.

If 1,000 companies violate the rules, the fine will be US$10 million.

The Chinese operate approximately 26,300 large and small enterprises and commercial banks in the United States, and even if only 1/10 of the enterprises violate this act, the fine alone will be an astronomical sum."

"Well, the angle chosen is very tricky, but it is indeed very effective. So, do you have any countermeasures?" Emperor Richard raised his eyebrows and said in a playful tone.

Deputy Prime Minister Yao Guangyi replied;

"You can only fight rules with rules. The Citizens' Equal Employment Act is expected to encounter great resistance in the lower house of parliament. The opposition, dominated by the Liberal Party, will inevitably insert a lot of its own things.

For example, there are restrictions on retroactive provisions, which means that the bill currently being introduced cannot retroactively trace past mistakes, nor can administrative fines be imposed accordingly.

For example, in terms of exemption clauses, according to the provisions of the "Preferential Treatment of Veterans and Military Families Act" introduced by the previous president, military personnel should enjoy preferential treatment in employment, regardless of race, industry, or color. Therefore, enterprises and commercial banks that employ retired military personnel and their families are not included in this provision.

.

For example, exclusion clauses;

Exclude family-run shops, small handicraft workshops and small trading firms with less than 10 employees. The purpose of small business establishments here is to provide their own employment and should not be hindered or disturbed.

To exclude key enterprises, the "Preferential Act for the Introduction of Key Enterprises" introduced by the former president clearly lists taxation, labor recruitment and various industrial and commercial preferential treatment. It allows enterprises to have autonomy in recruiting workers. It is the right of key enterprises to recruit workers, and it is also a preferential treatment given by the United States government.

Treatment should not be changed overnight.

besides

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Colonies will organize a legal aid team with famous lawyers to select several typical cases to provide powerful legal aid, try to win the lawsuit or drag it out, and strive for a favorable situation for the relevant enterprises.

In addition to the above-mentioned measures, the states governed by the Liberal Party will introduce relevant state bills to suspend or restrict the implementation of the "Equal Employment Act". A variety of measures will be taken to turn this fire into sparks and not reach much heights.

.

It is expected that the bill will be passed by the lower house of Congress in July or August this year. After being signed by the president, it should be implemented in the United States in September.

What the situation will be then requires further observation and response.”

"Well, the measures are very organized, not bad." Emperor Richard praised him. Deputy Prime Minister Yao Guangyi felt that his body was several ounces lighter, and he saluted with joy and replied, "This is the result of the collective wisdom of all the cabinet ministers.

I'm ashamed to accept it."

Emperor Richard ignored it, but continued talking to himself, saying;

"Look, old colonialists like the United Kingdom are good at using rules and taking advantage of inadvertent places to leverage the situation. Now you have seen how powerful it is, right?

I dare to say

President Grover Cleveland definitely doesn't have such a brain to come up with such a cunning and ruthless trick. There must be a British guy behind his back to give him advice.

When Americans engage in politics, they cannot learn even 1% of the essence of the British, and they will still be like this in 100 years. This is called looking at old age at the age of three, and there is no hope."

His Majesty the Emperor's words caused a burst of laughter from all the ministers.

In the nearly 40 years since the rise of the Tang Empire in North America, I have dealt with these American people too much, and I know very well how many pounds they have.

Some policies are not written by Americans at first glance, and they do not have the brains to come up with such tricky bills. The target is directed at the large number of ethnic employees in Chinese-American companies, and is intended to attack the dominant Chinese business owners and businessmen.

.

It’s obvious where the new president, Grover Cleveland, is sitting on his bald head.

But the Tang Empire was good at taking precautions before they happened, and made plans eight years in advance.

Nowadays, most of the northern states in the United States are under the control of governors from the Liberal Party, and more Chinese Americans are in power in counties and cities.

Because they knew they could not win this presidential election, the Chinese-dominated Liberal Party gave up running in several southern states and concentrated all its energy on reelections in several northern states.

He has successively won the governorships of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Maine, as well as several important county and mayor elections, which can be regarded as some gains.

With the retirement of 100,000 military personnel, there will be an additional 100,000 Chinese-American votes in the three important cities of Philadelphia, New York, and Pittsburgh, further consolidating the Liberal Party's leading position in the region.

No matter what kind of turmoil occurs, it has always been in an invincible position.

After the disarmament of the Tang Empire, France had already foreseen the storm coming from North America. The recent frequent communication with high-level officials of the imperial government showed the high level of anxiety in the French people's hearts.

Don't be anxious. Seeing that the United States is not in the limelight, the French still hold a large amount of debt from the "International Committee of Creditors' Rights". The person responsible for repaying it is the government of the United States of America, and the "Customs Trusteeship Committee" headed by the Tang Empire is the guarantee.

Seeing that there are still two years left to expire, once the Customs Trusteeship Committee is disbanded, the Tang Empire will withdraw its troops again...

If the United States collapses and splits, who can we ask for this debt?

The debts still held by the Tang Empire were only about 155 million Tang Yuan, so there was no need to worry about the creditors running away.

Because the government of the United States of America is saddled with huge debts, the customs and high-quality assets can be sold and mortgaged, but there is basically no collateral left.

Therefore, subsequent short-term and medium-term bonds issued are mostly issued in the name of cities or states, such as New York State 5-year short-term bonds, Pittsburgh City 8-year bonds, Maine Port 5-year construction bonds, etc., held by Datang Empire

The 155 million Tang Yuan debt basically falls into this category, which is completely different from the situation in France.

(End of chapter)