Chapter 118: Return to Australia
On May 11, 1902, after finalizing all arrangements in New Zealand, Arthur boarded a warship and began his journey back to Australia.
This trip to New Zealand took a month and a half, consuming considerable manpower and resources.
Of course, it was all worthwhile. If all the plans in New Zealand could be successfully completed, not only would Australia have a good chance of annexing New Zealand, but Arthur would also acquire a substantial territory.
New Zealand currently had three forces: the military, the colonial government, and the parliamentary council, each of which balanced the others, making New Zealand more stable. Additionally, Arthur had set up eyes on the ground, namely Joshua Brock, the head of the Royal Relief Committee in New Zealand.
With these safeguards, it was ensured that New Zealand's development would not surpass Arthur's control.
Three days later, on May 14, Arthur successfully arrived at the port of Sydney, Australia.
Every time Arthur returned from a trip, Sydney's port would be filled with crowds ready to welcome him.
This time was no exception. In addition to the welcoming team arranged by the government, Sydney's port was also crowded with people who came voluntarily.
However, there was no speech this time because Arthur's reputation in Australia had already reached its peak, and there was no need to rely on frequent speeches to maintain it.
Once back in Australia, Arthur's first stop was the gold mining area located at the New South Wales border.
This gold mining area had been discovered three months ago, and in that time, the Ministry of Industry had thoroughly surveyed and divided the area. The boundaries of the mining area had been sealed off, with no unauthorized personnel allowed.
The surveying alone took about a month, and the preparations for the excavation and the mobilization of indigenous laborers took nearly another month.
Now, after more than a month of mining, tens of thousands of tons of gold ore had been extracted, and the refining process was already underway.
Australia was not short on gold mines, and as a result, there were plenty of refineries for extracting gold.
Although many were private workshops run by gold miners, there were also large official factories under Australia's control.
The closest refinery to the new gold mining area was located in the southern part of New South Wales and was Australia's second-largest gold refinery.
The largest gold refinery was located in Victoria, the only state capable of economically competing with New South Wales.
After arriving at the gold mining area, Arthur first met with the military stationed there.
Originally, the First Division should have been stationed here, but because the First Division had just been restructured and was still in concentrated training, the task of protecting the gold mine was assigned to the Guard Corps.
Currently, the First Infantry Battalion of the Guard Division was stationed near the mining area.
The military stationed at the gold mine used a rotating strategy, changing the troops stationed there periodically.
With the protection of the military, Arthur successfully entered the large storage area of the gold mining site, which stored all the gold ore extracted from the mine.
These gold ores would be loaded here and transported to the nearby refinery for purification into pure gold. Then, the gold would be smelted into bars of fixed weight and moved to a more secure location.
Although the storage area was only about several dozen kilometers away from the refinery and could be reached in just four to five hours by carriage, for safety reasons, every time the gold ore was transported, at least several hundred cavalry soldiers would be assigned to protect it, and at least 100 soldiers from the stationed military would follow for additional security.
Such a security force ensured that no power in Australia could seize the gold ore from the military, a situation Arthur and the government both agreed upon for the protection of their own interests.
The refinery itself also had its own security forces. In addition, a military force of several hundred soldiers was stationed nearby to protect the refinery, which was capable of producing gold.
These gold supplies were crucial for Arthur's future plans of issuing his own currency, so Arthur could not afford to be careless.
After several thousand indigenous laborers had been employed, the mining efficiency of the gold mine had significantly improved. The daily maximum output now reached 7,000 tons of gold ore, with each indigenous worker extracting more than two tons of ore per day.
Thanks to the large input of indigenous laborers, the mining efficiency had developed rapidly in a short time, and the cost of mining had not increased much.
However, there was a downside. The loss of indigenous laborers was high, with dozens of them dying every day.
But this loss was insignificant compared to the purchase of thousands of indigenous workers each month, and few Australians cared about the lives of these indigenous workers.
In this brutal society of the survival of the fittest, one could only blame the weakness of their ethnic group and country.
After visiting the gold mining area, Arthur then boarded his private seat and traveled to the nearby refinery.
It had been a week since the first batch of gold ore was transported to the refinery, and it was now time to inspect the first batch of gold bars.
Accompanying Arthur to the refinery were Prime Minister Evan and Minister of Industry Pierre.
Compared to a carriage, the speed of an automobile was much faster.
Having only traveled by carriage in New Zealand, Arthur was now able to enjoy the speed and convenience of an automobile again.
The gold mining area was about 60 kilometers away from the refinery, which would take three to four hours by carriage, but with a car, the journey took just over an hour.
Of course, this was only possible because a smooth, flat road had been built. Without such roads, even automobiles would struggle.
Just over an hour later, Arthur and his group arrived at the refinery.
This refinery was located near New South Wales' industrial district, an industrial zone that had existed since the Australian colonial period. While it wasn't very large, it was reasonably well-equipped.
At the entrance of the refinery, the head of the refinery and the staff were already waiting.
Seeing Arthur and his group get out of the car, Adam Root, the refinery's manager, hurried over and respectfully greeted them, saying, "Your Grace, Prime Minister Evan, Minister Pierre, welcome to the refinery for the inspection!"
Arthur nodded and asked, "Has the first batch of gold been successfully refined?"
"Of course, Your Grace. We have successfully refined the first batch of approximately 4,000 tons of gold ore, producing a total of 48 gold bars weighing 500 grams each. During the refining process, we lost at least 50 grams of gold due to the outdated refining equipment," Adam Root replied.
(End of Chapter)
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