CHAPTER 25
DAWN OF THE INDUSTRIAL AGE
"We are becoming like gods. We harness the power of the lightning bolts, we invent horseless leviathans that traverse mountains and plains, we build massive factories with smokestacks stretching to the heavens, and we steam and sail to the far corners of the world, bringing white civilization and religion to those less favored than us. Truly, a golden age has come, an Age of Industry."
-Union inventor Carl Ferguson
The name "Industrial Age" (commonly called the "The Industrial Renaissance" in Europe) was coined by Carl Ferguson, an American inventor who invented very little. However, his magazine
Knowledge for All was widely read throughout North America, so his expression (printed in Issue 228) became very well known. It is not an easy thing to pinpoint just when the Industrial Age began, and there is still dispute as to if it should be considered part of the so-called Pax Napoleonica
, or rather if it was simply the second phase of the Pax Napoleonica.
EUROPE IN THE INDUSTRIAL AGE:
France (or rather, the greater Southern European Catholic monarchic meritocracy it had become) was on a technological spree, beginning at the ill-fated Paris World Congress of 1838. Prussia, with Friedrich Wilhelm III in horrible health but still on the throne, was right behind or tied with them. Prussian railroads were expanding rapidly and, despite numerous horrific train accidents, were wildly successful and popular. Prussia's economy exploded, worrying its rival France even further.
But another feature of the Industrial Age was that the major powers did not wage war. As long as they were preoccupied with building colonies and industrializing, empires like France and Prussia had little desire to go spelunking into neighboring countries close to home. The current alliance system had engulfed the entire civilized world and any war would almost certainly result in decades of violence. Besides, there wasn't much to fight over. Any attempt to remove the Bonapartes from power now would be laughable. Besides, so many had lived with them on the throne that the days of their illegitimacy seemed long over. No, any war would involve most of the planet, and with only gunpowder technology to fight it, it could go on indefinitely or even "forever." This was the last thing anyone wanted.
Still, not all was well in Europe. The Kingdom of England, still under Edward VII "the Puppet", was slowly picking up its economy and moving into the modern world, but increasing French control was growing irksome for the prideful Englishmen. French troops occupied most cities side-by-side with the Redcoats, and French overseers made sure that England's military elite didn't show any signs of a coup against Edward the Puppet. The most frightening thing about England's situation was a growing presence of Russian spies and infiltrators. Apparently, Alexander II still had the hots for Princess Victoria, and was growing increasingly bold in his desire to marry the future queen. Edward expressed no opinion. When told by Napoleon II to discourage her, he did as instructed. Neither Victoria nor Alexander backed down. Since the days of the fall of Great Britain, the threat of revolution had been high. When Napoleon I had first sent in the Imperial Guard to protect Edward from his own people in 1832, the protest became riots. By the late 1830s, the nation was on the verge of civil war.
Then, in 1840, Alexander (age 22) finally requested marriage to Victoria (age 21). Napoleon II panicked and considered demanding Edward skip Victoria in the line of the succession, but realized it would incite civil war in Britain. Plus, Victoria was an only child, and passing the position of heir to another relative would look terrible. Frustrated and defeated, Napoleon II agreed to back out of the affair. Alexander married Victoria on December 21st, 1840, in St. Petersburg. Victoria became Viktoriya Alexandrovna, future Queen of England and Empress Consort of the Russian Empire. Ten months later, on October 29th, 1841, Crown Prince Nicholas was born. His parents announced they would train him to speak both Russian and English. They would have several more children, with Viktor being the youngest, born in 1860, when Victoria was 41 years old. They stated Viktor was a "surprise," but nonetheless "A blessing from God."
Crown Prince Alexander II and his wife Victoria of England
A seven year-old Crown Prince Nicholas
Despite the huge Anglo-Russian powder-keg being primed to blow, the Industrial Age remained peaceful in Europe.
AMERICA IN THE INDUSTRIAL AGE:
After the Green Mountain War and the Mexican War, an eerie truce had settled from Quebec to Yucatan. Despite control of the Mississippi River being a ticking time bomb, there were no true wars. However, civil unrest was widespread, which would, in the Union, lead to the formation of one of the most infamous organizations of all time. Also, the Council of Jehovah would elect a new Reverend-Colonel for the first time.
The Prophet Aaron Burr II, Reverend-Colonel of the AFC Church
On June 2, 1839, the Prophet Burr passed away of a massive stroke. A period of national mourning began that was unparalleled in American history up to that point. Every place of business that wasn't a necessity was shut down for a full week, flags across the country were flown at half-staff for a month, and all AFC churches draped black banners from their entrances that read "All Hail the Prophet Burr, may he rest till Judgement Day." These words would become one of the mantras of the Church in years to come. The Council of Jehovah met to elect a new Reverend-Colonel for the first time and many thought Theodore Burr, Aaron Burr's son, to be the likely choice. However, unbeknownst to the public, the Council of Jehovah had actually long despised Theodore as nothing more than a party animal and philanderer and considered him a degenerate. They knew, however, that publicly shaming Theodore Burr would make the Council look like it was taking over power from the Prophet's family in a sick move to exploit Aaron's death. They knew that they had to deal with Theodore somehow, but delicately and without ruining the Prophet's last name.
This resulted in the "Crow Conspiracy" of which the public would never find out. Jesse Appleton, known as Grand Master Crow to his cohorts and to the public as the smiling evangelist father-in-law of Colonel Franklin Pierce, formulated a plot to get rid of the annoying playboy Theodore once and for all. They decided they would actually murder him in a discreet way to make room for Edward Everett to become Reverend-Colonel. On August 3, 1839, Theodore Burr went out on the beautiful Lake Wallenpaupack, in northeastern Pennsylvania, for an afternoon of fishing... and mostly drinking, his favorite pastime. In one of the most bizarre assassinations of all time, while Burr was docking his boat after he was done fishing agents of the Council released a massive 500 pound black bear on the edge of the pier. The highly distraught and intoxicated Burr froze for an instant and then began screaming for all it was worth. The already starved and irritated bear had enough and charged the son of the Prophet, mauling him and ripping his throat out. It should be noted that this seemingly insane plot was only one of several dozen ways they could have killed Burr. Others were more discreet, such as poisoning his food, but this ridiculous one was honestly the least likely to look suspicious. It was just a freak accident to the general public. Years later, a certain American despot would discover the Crow Conspiracy and it inspired his penchant of feeding enemies to bears. Because he could.
This left the charismatic and staunchly devout Edward Everett to helm the Church. In September, 1839, he was elected by the Council as the next Reverend-Colonel. As the Union expanded outwards thanks to the Louisiana Purchase and the acquisition of Oregon, the Church needed a firm guiding hand to expand. Under Everett, it would see its power stretch to new heights and its missionaries would know reach the Pacific. Reverend-Colonel Everett would only be surpassed in power and popularity by one other Reverend-Colonel in the history of the Church, when William Graham would be anointed in the 20th century.
In other affairs in the Union, clusters of immigrants deemed inferior by the "Betters of Society" oftentimes formed huge gangs in their ghettos to protect themselves and to fight other groups of poor immigrants. Boston, one of the main arrival points for immigrant workers ("New Slaves" as discussed before in earlier chapters), was swarmed with crime. The Boston Police simply could not contain the horde of angry and hungry Irish and Slavs. On some days, over twenty people were murdered daily. The neighborhood Protestants did the only thing they could think of: they formed their own gangs. Mobs of armed men would occasionally make incursions into the ghettos and randomly assault immigrants. The immigrants fought back and in turn joined the gangs; thus starting an endless cycle. Finally, in 1841, under First and Second Chief Consuls Aaron Burr Payton and Zachary Gibbs, the Union government sent in special military units to put an end to all of the gangs, regardless of ethnicity or faith. It was stunningly successful, and the same thing was done in all major cities. Suddenly, a new branch of government had been created: the Republican Union Military Police (or RUMP as it would later be commonly nicknamed). General William J. Worth was appointed the first head of the MPs.
William J. Worth, Chief of the Military Police
Worth was a slimy graduate of the New York City School of Corruption, and though he held the position of Chief from 1842 until his death in 1866, he lacked people skills and suffered from alcoholism. One of his closest friends was none other than Charles Goodyear, who Worth credited with "guiding him to Jesus" by recommending listening to famed preacher Edward Everett. Worth, by all reports, while a cold-blooded alcoholic, was exceedingly dedicated to his line of work. Many of the most famous core principles of the Military Police were penned by Worth. While an avowed racists and staunch Scientific-Marxist, Worth saw the white protestant gangs as criminals all the same.
But an officer on duty knows no one—to be partial is to dishonor both himself and the object of his ill-advised favor. What will be thought of him who exacts of his friends that which disgraces him? Look at him who winks at and overlooks offenses in one, which he causes to be punished in another, and contrast him with the inflexible officer who does his duty faithfully, notwithstanding personal feelings. The conduct of one will be venerated and emulated, the other detested as a satire upon the title officer and its honor."
-William J. Worth, Chief of the Military Police
Over the years, the Military Police worked hand-in-hand with Goodyear's army of "Company Men" to eliminate threats to the growing de-centralized police state the R.U. was becoming. Using an ordinary census as a cover, RUMP began collecting information on the whereabouts of every single immigrant. This laid the foundation for later intense government surveillance of all immigrants. Even when immigration from Ireland and Eastern Europe began to slow, third-generation Irish- and Slavic-Americans were still classified as "immigrants." The word was said with hatred by almost all. Meanwhile, welcomed arrivals, like Germans and English, were called "new citizens." But in the end, RUMP mostly only existed in the large cities with huge immigrant populations and crime. This lack of firm control out west would later end with the creation of the brutal Custer's Company.
Military Policemen of the 1840s-1860s; RUMP officers were long famous for sporting spiked pith helmets
Meanwhile, the new technology being unveiled by Goodyear and his North American rivals was indeed making life easier and more exciting for those not being persecuted. A crude "telephone" was invented in Atlanta, Republic of Georgia, in 1845, by a group of electricians (a new occupation, or at this point, hobby). It consisted of a 2 foot by 4 foot wooden box, with long cords that went from one house into another. They could only work with the two cords (in other words, they could not be equipped so three or four people could talk to each other). The sound received was very feint. The idea was abandoned by 1850, but it was picked up again in the 1870s. The light bulb was greatly expanded upon by Samuel Morse (Colonel Goodyear Enterprises' Vice President). He was so successful in his experiments that he said all homes would be equipped with light bulbs by 1880. He was very close in this prediction.
The crowning glory of American Invention during the Industrial Age was the product of Newport News, the slowly rebuilt former trade-hub of Virginia, by local inventor Henry Wilson. For years, he had been obsessed with electromagnetic communication, a study that was all the rage in Europe. After ten years of failure, Wilson erected a series of poles in his neighborhood, all linked with wire. Then, he tested his new machine. The Telegraph, an invention that had long been toyed with all across North America, had just been perfected. In no time, the inventor and his nephew Jed Wilson developed a code system. The system became known as Wilson Code and it was used when Newport News made the first complete wired transmission between cities in history, on January 5th, 1845. The message to Richmond: "What Hath God Wrought?" The world would never be the same.
Almost overnight, thanks to a loan from the Bank of Savannah (Georgia's biggest bank) telegraph lines shot up all over the South, connecting city after city. The Yankees quickly stole the technology and the Yankee Doodle Telegraph Company, founded by up-and-coming robber-baron Miles Hendricks, began erecting poles and running wires all across the Union. While Yankee Doodle Telegraph was the favored service of the eastern cities, the Old Kinderhook Telegraph Corporation ran lines to the western territories, connecting to the Pacific in 1849. Old Kinderhook, named after Van Buren's nickname which in turn derived from his birthplace in Kinderhook, New York, was owned by playboy millionaire Martin van Buren, known as "one of the most debauched and narcissistic men who was ever born." Van Buren had long been rich off of his lucrative shipping company, also named Old Kinderhook, operating since the opening of the Erie Canal and that had since expanded to the Mississippi River. Now, he sought to develop a monopoly out in the western territories on telegraph and shipping. This led to the creation of the Old Kinderhook Express, which consisted of thousands of riders carrying mail and freight by horse or wagon out all the way to the Pacific coast. Van Buren would later employ the services of Custer's Company to defend his lines and riders from hostile native tribes. The stopping of an Old Kinderhook Shipping cargo ship by the Georgian Navy would later lead to the greatest North American crisis of the 19th century.
They don't fear death and they will give their all for the Church and Prophet.
