Solar Dreams: a history of solar energy (1878 - 2025)
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Part 19: A New Day
La Moneda, Santiago
February, 1890
Patrick Egan loathed his current ordeal. When he was offered a diplomatic post, he imagined that he would spend it on an important country. Instead, he was sent to the literal end of the world. His career would be stagnant here, or even forgotten. And so, he intended to do something against it. If he succeeded, then he would be welcomed as the hero that routed the British Empire and opened the nitrate riches to US interests. If he failed, then he could always blame the Navy. Either way, he'd benefit from either outcome.
He would be happier if not for the wretched weather of the Chilean capital. 97 °F was too much for any decent Irish, and the intolerable summers were part of the reason why he picked a grudge against the country and its people.
Which made it quite a surprise when the temperature dropped significantly once he entered La Moneda. Still hot, but at least 15 degrees colder. Almost tolerable. A woman in a mourning dress left from the Presidential office and greeted him before quickly departing, but Egan didn't recognize her and responded automatically. Whomever she was, she left satisfied and with a smile on her face.
He waited a few more minutes for the Presidential aide to invite him into the Presidential Office, and sat on one of the chairs before President Balmaceda told him to. The insult went unnoticed or ignored, as Balmaceda only reacted by offering some lemonade. Not his preferred drink, but he acquiesced. He was unprepared for the chilly drink, and something stabbed the inside of his skull. Balmaceda chuckled.
- It always happens the first time someone tries it. Quite remarkable, wouldn't you say Mr. Egan?
- Remarkable indeed. Did you get ice from the mountains for this occasion? - Egan asked.
- Oh, not at all. It was a gift by the Compañía Franco-Chilena de Energía Solar. A gift to the State, of course, properly documented as such. We're just merely the beneficiaries. The geniuses in Almonte figured a way to turn the icing from the temperature control systems into useable ice.
- Temperature control? - Egan asked, again.
- Yes. Someone in Almonte discovered a way to extract heat from a fluid, such as the air inside this building, and then release it into the environment. Which is why we're not melting from the heat right now.
- I'm sure Edison must be working on something similar as we speak. - Egan said, trying to set the mood for what was to come. - Speaking of more formal matters, it is my pleasure to inform you that four of our most modern ships will be making port in Valparaíso in three months. They're part of a Good Will tour across the Americas, to promote our independence.
Balmaceda looked in shock. Just as Egan intended.
- Four ships? Four ironclads? - The President asked, as if to confirm.
- Steelclad would be more accurate, but yes. The Atlanta, the Baltimore, the Chicago and the Dolphin. They'll stay for two weeks and will participate in good will missions in Chile... if the country so requests it, of course.
- Are you aware of the Buenos Aires Agreement between Chile and the British Empire? - Balmaceda asked.
- Of course I am. It is a treaty between two sovereing nations which doesn't involve us.
- That was not what I asked. Are you aware of the terms of agreement? In particular, article 12?
- "The Royal Navy will vet any ship coming in and out of Chilean ports, and act as its defender in case of an aggression by a third party for the duration of the Agreement." - Egan cited.
- "For the duration of the Probatory Period." - The President corrected. - But the point is understood. We have effectively lost sovereignty of our ports and it is up to the British to determine if your alphabet ships can enter Valparaíso.
- President Harrison doesn't see it that way. He sees it as a violation of the collective sovereignty of American nations.
- President Harrison's jurisdiction ends south of the Rio Grande.
- Be it that way, but the ships are still coming. President Harrison understands that Chile has sovereingty over their ports, and so has instructed the ships to obey any commands issued by the ships of the Chilean Navy. - Egan said, smirking. - If no issues are presented, then it will be understood that Chile has no issues to grant access to its ports.
- Chile has issues, and I explicitly forbid any access to Chilean ports to US warships.
- The terms have been presented, your Excellency. - venom in that last word. He used the opportunity to stand and leave.
Nothing else needed to be said.
It is often said that the 20th century started in the 1890s. Many of the events that would come to define the next century (such as the death of the Young Kaiser, the development of non-combustion energy sources, and the Agricultural Revolution) occured in the last decade of the previous one. Among them, perhaps none was as intimately related to our work's focus was the British-American split. Without the advantage provided to the Tarapacá Saltpeter Company by Mouchot's inventions, the massacre that led to British intervention in Chile wouldn't have happened. The counterfactual of the abscence of the TSC Massacre usually conclude that another event would've caused the split between the emerging power and the empire, but the fact is that that early implementation of solar energy led to the events that would later be used by an ambitious US diplomat and politician to raise the tensions across the Atlantic ocean.
February, 1890
Patrick Egan loathed his current ordeal. When he was offered a diplomatic post, he imagined that he would spend it on an important country. Instead, he was sent to the literal end of the world. His career would be stagnant here, or even forgotten. And so, he intended to do something against it. If he succeeded, then he would be welcomed as the hero that routed the British Empire and opened the nitrate riches to US interests. If he failed, then he could always blame the Navy. Either way, he'd benefit from either outcome.
He would be happier if not for the wretched weather of the Chilean capital. 97 °F was too much for any decent Irish, and the intolerable summers were part of the reason why he picked a grudge against the country and its people.
Which made it quite a surprise when the temperature dropped significantly once he entered La Moneda. Still hot, but at least 15 degrees colder. Almost tolerable. A woman in a mourning dress left from the Presidential office and greeted him before quickly departing, but Egan didn't recognize her and responded automatically. Whomever she was, she left satisfied and with a smile on her face.
He waited a few more minutes for the Presidential aide to invite him into the Presidential Office, and sat on one of the chairs before President Balmaceda told him to. The insult went unnoticed or ignored, as Balmaceda only reacted by offering some lemonade. Not his preferred drink, but he acquiesced. He was unprepared for the chilly drink, and something stabbed the inside of his skull. Balmaceda chuckled.
- It always happens the first time someone tries it. Quite remarkable, wouldn't you say Mr. Egan?
- Remarkable indeed. Did you get ice from the mountains for this occasion? - Egan asked.
- Oh, not at all. It was a gift by the Compañía Franco-Chilena de Energía Solar. A gift to the State, of course, properly documented as such. We're just merely the beneficiaries. The geniuses in Almonte figured a way to turn the icing from the temperature control systems into useable ice.
- Temperature control? - Egan asked, again.
- Yes. Someone in Almonte discovered a way to extract heat from a fluid, such as the air inside this building, and then release it into the environment. Which is why we're not melting from the heat right now.
- I'm sure Edison must be working on something similar as we speak. - Egan said, trying to set the mood for what was to come. - Speaking of more formal matters, it is my pleasure to inform you that four of our most modern ships will be making port in Valparaíso in three months. They're part of a Good Will tour across the Americas, to promote our independence.
Balmaceda looked in shock. Just as Egan intended.
- Four ships? Four ironclads? - The President asked, as if to confirm.
- Steelclad would be more accurate, but yes. The Atlanta, the Baltimore, the Chicago and the Dolphin. They'll stay for two weeks and will participate in good will missions in Chile... if the country so requests it, of course.
- Are you aware of the Buenos Aires Agreement between Chile and the British Empire? - Balmaceda asked.
- Of course I am. It is a treaty between two sovereing nations which doesn't involve us.
- That was not what I asked. Are you aware of the terms of agreement? In particular, article 12?
- "The Royal Navy will vet any ship coming in and out of Chilean ports, and act as its defender in case of an aggression by a third party for the duration of the Agreement." - Egan cited.
- "For the duration of the Probatory Period." - The President corrected. - But the point is understood. We have effectively lost sovereignty of our ports and it is up to the British to determine if your alphabet ships can enter Valparaíso.
- President Harrison doesn't see it that way. He sees it as a violation of the collective sovereignty of American nations.
- President Harrison's jurisdiction ends south of the Rio Grande.
- Be it that way, but the ships are still coming. President Harrison understands that Chile has sovereingty over their ports, and so has instructed the ships to obey any commands issued by the ships of the Chilean Navy. - Egan said, smirking. - If no issues are presented, then it will be understood that Chile has no issues to grant access to its ports.
- Chile has issues, and I explicitly forbid any access to Chilean ports to US warships.
- The terms have been presented, your Excellency. - venom in that last word. He used the opportunity to stand and leave.
Nothing else needed to be said.
It is often said that the 20th century started in the 1890s. Many of the events that would come to define the next century (such as the death of the Young Kaiser, the development of non-combustion energy sources, and the Agricultural Revolution) occured in the last decade of the previous one. Among them, perhaps none was as intimately related to our work's focus was the British-American split. Without the advantage provided to the Tarapacá Saltpeter Company by Mouchot's inventions, the massacre that led to British intervention in Chile wouldn't have happened. The counterfactual of the abscence of the TSC Massacre usually conclude that another event would've caused the split between the emerging power and the empire, but the fact is that that early implementation of solar energy led to the events that would later be used by an ambitious US diplomat and politician to raise the tensions across the Atlantic ocean.
Love to see this isn't dead. Just re-read it a little while ago cause the story was so fresh compared to a lot of other stories on this site.
I think you mean "looked over". "Overlooked" means the opposite of that.
"Looked over" is more commonly in the sense of reviewing papers, etc. For 'ensure, supervise, pay attention to' you could use idioms "she oversaw ...", "she saw to ...", "she looked out for..."
To "overlook" means to ignore, basically. To "look over" does mean what you said (usually). It's just that "overlook" means the exact opposite of what ScorchedLight means in that context. If I was ScorchedLight's editor, I would give the same advice you did. I would advise "she saw to".
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English is such a wonderfully weird (or irritating) language. "Overlook" and "oversee" are nearly opposites.
Just like any other language, idiosyncrasies abound.
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Great chapter and timeline in general. I am glad that the timeline is able to be resumed
P/s: Is chapter 4 and 5 not threaded?
Edit: Nevermind, I forgot that that particular woman probably likes to wear black, as shown in of the the previous chapters.
Is it around this time, IOTL at least, where the Congress and the President is not in good terms? One of member of Congress relatives perhaps? Or just the butterfly had flap enough that even effects the fashion of the people of Chile, at least the ones with air-conditioning.
P/s: Is chapter 4 and 5 not threaded?
Edit: Nevermind, I forgot that that particular woman probably likes to wear black, as shown in of the the previous chapters.
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Given that the woman in question has been in mourning for more than fifteen years, it is understandable.
That's Patrick Egan. An incompetent man who through nepotism and political connections almost got the US into a war with Chile, which at the time had a peer Navy and an experienced Army.
In OTL they were. Here, the aftermath of the Tarapaca Saltpeter Company massacre resulted in massive backlash against the Conservatives that would go on to form the core of the Revolutionary forces in the 1891 Chilean forces, along with the Navy. The Navy is currently gutted. Balmaceda doesn't have the nitrate resources to spend on his modernization program, so he shifted towards economic stabilization and alternatives to nitrate wealth.
In short: The conditions for the Chilean civil war have been butterflied.
Kinda sad the the events that lead to Chille having a better future also lead to America being a even bigger bully to their southern vassals. Because let's be honest, that's how the ambassador is acting right now.
"Be it that way, but the ships are still coming. President Harrison understands that Chile has sovereignty over their ports, and so has instructed the ships to obey any commands issued by the ships of the Chilean Navy. - Egan said, smirking. - If no issues are presented, then it will be understood that Chile has no issues to grant access to its ports."
So President Balmaceda just needs to get some Chilean Navy ships (broken or not) backed by some British armour to issue a 'bugger off' command and the Americans will leave?
Egan is risking a war with the British Empire here in his arrogance - one hopes he gets slapped down hard for this.
So President Balmaceda just needs to get some Chilean Navy ships (broken or not) backed by some British armour to issue a 'bugger off' command and the Americans will leave?
Egan is risking a war with the British Empire here in his arrogance - one hopes he gets slapped down hard for this.
They don't want the British there either though.
The Chileans might be able to play them off each other to give themselves room to breathe, but it's a dangerous game.
TBH, when I first read the last part of the thread, I though that this is a prelude to a Chilean civil war, in which the British and the American CREATE a side each to fight each other in a proxy war. While currently the factors that made IOTL Civil War happened are gone, I feel like the Chileans could potentially be the ones that will be played by the two superpowers.
Woo an update: And it looks like the rise of the Chilean economy on the world stage has set off some SERIOUS geopolitical butterflies Here's to hoping that Chile manages to resist American encroachment.
What is this "Agricultural Revolution"? Are we getting nitrogen fixation in the 1890s?
What is this "Agricultural Revolution"? Are we getting nitrogen fixation in the 1890s?
Patrick Egan was by all accounts a detested figure in both the US and Chile, and he in turn detested the British. OTL, he used the Baltimore Crisis as a way to advance his career. That he also dismisses the advances made by the Franco Chilena will also put the US at a relative disadvantage in the early stages of solar energy development.
One of the aspects in which this timeline diverges from OTL. It isn't nitrogen fixation, but it will result in drastic changes to food production, economic, and energy production patterns.