Chapter 344: Catastrophic Disaster
After having snacks, Jesla walked out of the room with a pistol and decided to put it into practice himself. Theory cannot be separated from practice, whether it is doing bad things or good things.
"The climate here is hot and humid. Will our workers be affected by some diseases? How are they doing it?" Jesla asked about the situation in Panama as he walked. Even if they came here with a mission, there was no need to be so anxious.
"That's right. Even if we have prepared for the local environment, it is still impossible to avoid the invasion of diseases, so the losses are not small. Fortunately, we rely on the management of black employees. Since the start of the project, nearly two thousand people have been troubled by yellow fever. Our countermeasure is to isolate them once they are found and release them after they recover. Under normal circumstances, our formal white employees will not take the initiative to do this to avoid contact."
This answer made Jesla very satisfied, and he said, "Isolation is a good idea. I have to say that this method invented by the Poles is really effective!"
Europe's quarantine measures for diseases originated from the period when the Black Death swept across Europe. The Polish king blocked the border and ordered cities and towns to quarantine their borders: cordons were set up next to the borders, and quarantine areas were divided. Only those who safely passed the observation period in the quarantine areas were allowed to enter. In addition, there was a very strict quarantine system in Poland: when the Black Death appeared in a village, the entire village was immediately quarantined.
These are all relatively normal isolation measures. In fact, once Poland found someone showing signs of the Black Death, they would burn the patient before he died of the disease. There were burning sites everywhere in the country. This cruel prevention effect was very significant, and Poland became a country that was not conquered by the Black Death.
So when the head of the branch said that the workers infected with yellow fever should be isolated and left to die, Jesla was not surprised at all. This was how it should be.
"I'm just here to take a look. I'm not here on behalf of the boss. I just have a few questions to ask. I'll be back in a few days. Don't let anyone know that I'm here. Those who already know about my arrival, keep your mouth shut." Jessla patted the pistol on his waist and hinted, "Our Black Gold Company's business is quite special. You know that we shouldn't ask questions."
"I understand!" Looking at the pistol on Jessla's waist, the person in charge's mind was clearer than ever.
"That's good!" Jesla said succinctly, "The construction workers are mainly black and Puerto Rican. Everyone knows whether they are easy to manage or not. I'm going to Panama City now, so you don't need to send me off."
Jesla was from Dixie, so he naturally knew what kind of people the southern states strictly suppressed. He was not surprised by anything that happened, but he did not expect that after learning the truth in Panama City, it would be so real.
Murder and arson are not commonplace, but they do exist. Harassment of local residents, beatings, and violations of women are even more commonplace. Although the crime rate is not very high compared to the large number of people, it has successfully made the workers of the United Company notorious in Panama. All of this is based on the premise that the Black Gold Company strictly manages the workers with whips and guns.
"If we don't treat them as slaves, we won't be able to manage them?" Jesla's face was full of indifference. He walked on the embankment of Lake Gatun. After a few days, he had memorized the nearby terrain by heart.
Standing on the river bank, the blue lake water reflected a group of straight figures. The rippled lake surface seemed so peaceful. I don’t know when, several figures disappeared.
Gatun Lake is very important to the Panama Canal project. This was a project plan that had been drawn up by the French Canal Company when it was under construction. Creating an artificial lake to store water would save a lot of work than actually cutting and chopping. In fact, due to Panama's topography, the Panama Canal project is destined to far exceed the Suez Canal.
More than ten kilometers away from the processing plant, in a valley, is the main camp of the United Company's workers, with a total of nearly 45,000 people. The valley has beautiful scenery and is surrounded by mountains on both sides. The nearby mountains are bare and the trees on them have been cut down to build dormitories, and the precious tree species have been transported back to the country.
That night, Sheffield in Chicago received the message through two transfer stations. The telegram from Panama was sent to Arlington, and Anne called Chicago. Sheffield took the phone and said, "Just reply yes, that's it, don't say a word more."
After hanging up the phone, Edith Rockefeller said with some jealousy, "Maybe Anne missed you and found an excuse to ask you when you will be back. Otherwise, you should go back. She is your fiancée. What am I? I am just a mistress. Even if I gave birth to two children for someone else, there is still no commitment."
"Stop it, it's not the right time!" Sheffield scolded impatiently and took out his watch from his pocket. Whenever something big happened, he always checked the time. It had become a habit.
When Sheffield first took over the Panama Canal project, he decided to give it a try, regardless of whether it was Xia Bo who finally did it. Because most of the insurance industry in the United States was controlled by Morgan, and the rest was in the hands of several Boston families, he once wanted to insure tens of thousands of workers with Morgan's insurance company.
Later, he felt that the risk was too great. Although there are always unexpected events, if something really happened, it would involve the lives of tens of thousands of people. Using these people to defraud Morgan of insurance would probably not succeed. Morgan would definitely investigate the whole story of the incident, and Sheffield could not guarantee that he would get away with it.
But if it is put on the national level, the risk is much smaller. First of all, because Sheffield took the initiative to take over, the federal government of the United States did not actually gain much national benefit from the canal project. Many political interests were taken by the United Company. Sheffield, as a company, did not think that it could take all these interests and had been looking for an opportunity to cash out with the federal government.
Up to now, the slave owner still owes a lot of debts. Although he has enough money to pay off his debts, he doesn't want to pay it back. If the federal government can pay off the debt for him, it would be the best outcome.
Of course, if the federal government stands aside, then all losses will be borne by the United Company. According to previous estimates, the United Company's accounts this year will definitely not look good, but it will not face operational difficulties. In the worst case, the United Company will not go bankrupt, but if it succeeds, Sheffield will not only wipe out all its debts and let the federal government take over, but also have a huge amount of profits.
Now is the time to test whether President Theodore Roosevelt is truly patriotic and qualified to enter Mount Rushmore. If the president is truly patriotic, knows the importance of the Panama Canal, and is willing to take action, then everything will be fine. If President Roosevelt chooses to stand aside, the slave owners who are jumping up and down will definitely have to be honest for two years, but it is not without benefits. If citizens all over the country know that the United Company has suffered such a huge loss, it would be too inhumane to impose antitrust laws on it.
For Panama, which is located near the equator, seasons are a useless thing and they don't have to think about the upcoming heating problems like citizens in the northern United States.
Since the Panama Canal project was restarted, the people of Panama have been looking forward to the benefits that will come. But soon, many people's expectations were broken. Tens of thousands of black workers poured into the small country. These blacks and the Puerto Ricans who arrived later had a huge impact on the peaceful environment here. Many workers were not honest, stealing, robbing and raping, which made many Panamanians very disgusted.
The response of the Panamanian government was also very disappointing. The government colluded with the canal company and turned a blind eye to the voice of the people. The murder case that eventually occurred, the suspected canal worker was released with a swagger, and he also provoked the Panamanians who were besieging at the time, which became the fuse for the serious situation. That day, thousands of Panamanians took to the streets to protest, but were driven away by the military police and the armed forces of the United Company. After that, a large number of resistance forces emerged.
The leader of this rebel army is the former head of the Black Gold Company in Haiti. At this moment, he is giving his final encouragement, "We want to resist the control of American imperialism over Panama. People all over the world will stand on our side."
After hearing the leader's words, the dozen or so soldiers in front of them held their heads high and chests puffed out, with hatred in their eyes. It was obvious that they had been waiting for this day for a long time.
At the command, the armed forces disappeared into the dense forest. It was pitch dark in the night. The calm Gatun Lake was as calm as usual. The long fuse on the dam was also blurred. With a flash of fire, the fuse was ignited and headed straight for the dam of Gatun Lake. Almost at the same time, everyone fled quickly.
With a thunderous sound, the birds in the nearby woods were startled, and then the rushing water of Gatun Lake poured down along the gap, sweeping away everything along the way. The workers in the construction site dormitory who were already sleeping in the valley were unaware of the impending disaster. The explosion more than ten kilometers away was indeed a test for a person's hearing.
Gatun Lake, which has been storing water for a year, has enough power to vent the Panamanian people's anger against imperialism. This day will surely shock the world.
As the danger approached, the sleeping canal workers were finally awakened, but they did not know what kind of danger they were about to face. "Oh my God!" Finally, the flood, which was dozens of feet high, made all the awakened workers understand what kind of calamity it was. Unfortunately, it was too late, they could no longer escape.
(End of this chapter)
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