Chapter 117: Arms Procurement
At the end of April and the beginning of May, after a span of more than ten days, Arthur had nearly visited the entire North Island of New Zealand. He inspected most of the various constructions that New Zealand had previously established and used up a large portion of the funds he personally donated to the New Zealand government.
Although the colonial officials' looks were becoming more and more pained, the results achieved for New Zealand were positive.
Under Arthur's orders, not only were all the railways on the North Island of New Zealand under repair, but important roads, public facilities, and key constructions throughout New Zealand were also being repaired.
At the same time, the New Zealand colonial government also allocated £200,000 to support New Zealand's medical and educational sectors.
Some of these funds would be used to renovate the existing schools and hospitals in New Zealand, while the remaining funds would be split into two parts.
Half of the remaining funds would be used to attract talent from Europe in the fields of education and healthcare to join New Zealand, and the other half would be invested into favorable policies for education and healthcare, reducing financial pressure on New Zealanders.
These plans consumed over £1 million of the colonial government's funds, which was a significant portion of all available funds.
Although the results were not immediately visible, in one or two years, most of the constructions would be successfully completed, and the effects of these plans would become evident.
This timeline also aligned with the two-year development plan Arthur had set for the Unionist Party. In two years, after various constructions in New Zealand were completed, New Zealanders would more tangibly feel the benefits these plans brought.
At the same time, with the development of the Unionist Party, more and more New Zealanders would support the union or even the merger with Australia.
After arranging the affairs of the colonial government, Arthur had a final conversation with Mayor Grant Wilson, ensuring that after his departure, all of Arthur's plans and arrangements in New Zealand would continue smoothly.
To ensure that Mayor Grant Wilson could still maintain contact with Arthur after he returned to Australia, Joshua Brock, the head of the Royal Relief Committee in New Zealand, would act as a liaison between the two.
As the head of the Royal Relief Committee in New Zealand, Joshua Brock would inevitably shuttle between Australia and New Zealand, making him the perfect person to facilitate communication.
Joshua Brock was also eager to take on this challenging task and was more than happy to help Arthur in any way he could.
After giving all his instructions, Arthur's last stop in New Zealand was the headquarters of the New Zealand military on the South Island.
Although the New Zealand military had a total of 3,000 soldiers, it was only the size of a small regiment.
In reality, more than a thousand of these soldiers were stationed at the headquarters, with the rest spread across New Zealand to maintain order.
Especially in Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, where the commander of the New Zealand military, General Pierce Anthony, had a permanent residence, and over 500 soldiers were stationed.
After landing at the port of the South Island of New Zealand, Arthur traveled for several hours by carriage to reach the military headquarters in the mountains of the South Island.
Although the colonial military like the New Zealand garrison was under British Empire jurisdiction, most of its logistics were provided by the local colonial government.
Due to New Zealand's remoteness, the military did not receive much support, and although the equipment of the New Zealand garrison appeared orderly, its ammunition supply was insufficient, and the soldiers' training was lacking.
Arthur's first impression of the New Zealand garrison was good. If it weren't for their poor shooting performance, he would have thought this was a strong military force.
Although European countries generally do not require high shooting accuracy, and even in the upcoming brutal World War, the average number of bullets fired to kill a soldier was 10,000, this did not mean that the soldiers' regular target practice should be so poor. The New Zealand garrison couldn't even hit one target out of ten shots.
Arthur's concerns were quickly answered.
During a conversation with General Pierce, he mentioned a pressing issue with the New Zealand garrison: the lack of weapons and ammunition supply.
Transporting weapons and ammunition from the British Empire to New Zealand was impractical, as the transportation time and costs were higher than the value of the materials being shipped.
When New Zealand's factories were thriving, they were able to produce some weapons for the New Zealand military.
However, since New Zealand's economy had declined, most of the factories abandoned military production for civilian goods or drastically reduced their workforce.
This left the New Zealand garrison with few options for obtaining weapons and ammunition, other than purchasing from nearby Australia or even farther-off colonies like India and British Southeast Asia.
However, Australian military factories were already struggling to meet their own military needs, let alone exporting weapons and ammunition to New Zealand.
While India and British Southeast Asia could supply weapons and ammunition, the high costs due to the distance made it an unsustainable solution for New Zealand's garrison.
From General Pierce's perspective, Arthur's visit to New Zealand presented an opportunity—an opportunity to seek logistical support from Australia.
Although the Australian military was also expanding, with a much higher demand for weapons, Australia's factories were also expanding, and production would eventually ramp up.
For New Zealand, Australia was the best option for purchasing weapons and ammunition, as the shipping costs alone would allow New Zealand to purchase more than from farther regions.
Upon hearing General Pierce's request to purchase a batch of weapons and ammunition from Australia, Arthur nodded in agreement without hesitation.
At present, the New Zealand garrison's combat capability was inadequate, and it was not even as strong as the Australian garrison's.
New Zealand was inevitably going to be annexed, and when Australia annexed New Zealand, these soldiers would become part of the Australian military.
Rather than wait until that time to train these soldiers, Arthur thought it best to provide them with weapons and ammunition now so they could begin training in advance.
Since Australia had a batch of old equipment, it was a perfect fit for the New Zealand soldiers.
As for the Australian soldiers, they would naturally use the brand-new weapons produced by the military factories.
(End of Chapter)
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