The Fox of France-Chapter 494: The Inauguration of Ireland (2)

The years-long War of Independence has brought immense destruction to Ireland. Almost every village in our base areas has martyrs, and in the fiercely contested regions, hardly a household’s home has escaped being burnt down. Although the Confederation has always adhered to the principle of carrying out revolution while promoting production, the bulk of our able-bodied labor has been recruited into the military, and much of the agricultural work has had to rely on women, the elderly, and children. Moreover, with the British occasionally employing their “Scorched Earth Policy,” our agricultural production has also been greatly damaged. Without the selfless support of the French, Ireland would have already experienced famine.

Therefore, Ireland’s current primary task is the restoration of agricultural production.

For this purpose, the Irish Independence Army is undergoing large-scale demobilization, with the numbers being reduced by half. Only the most experienced and capable fighters will remain in the military. A portion of these elite troops will also take on international responsibilities—continuing to fight to overthrow British imperialism.

Ireland is rich in peat due to its many marshes, which many Irish families use as fuel. However, the calorific value of peat is low; it’s fine for domestic cooking but less suitable for industrial use. Low-grade peat can also be used as fertilizer. In the eyes of the French, this material has little economic value, but for Ireland now, it is of great importance, especially the mining of low-grade peat, which is crucial for the recovery of Irish agriculture. Thus, the exploitation of peat becomes our first important direction.

Additionally, according to British surveys, Ireland has some copper and silver mines, but their reserves are quite limited and not of high quality. However, lead and zinc mines are quite good. This is probably a future focus for the development of Ireland’s mining industry.

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However, Ireland lacks the most crucial coal and iron mines, so the development of heavy industry is basically very challenging. But for a nation destined to be fierce, what need is there for heavy industry? Since when do dogs need to buy their own bones? Only those that have to buy their own bones are actually fat pigs without even the qualifications to be dogs.

However, Ireland has excellent hydropower resources. In the southern and northwestern mountainous regions of Ireland, there are numerous rivers with significant drops, which are very suitable for the development of hydroelectric power. With electricity, not only is agriculture greatly benefited, but the development of many light industries has also become possible.

“The next step, the most important thing inside Ireland is economic reconstruction. Due to the lack of coal and iron resources, Ireland is not suitable for the development of heavy industry. But from what I understand, the hydropower resources in the mountainous areas of southern and northwestern Ireland are indeed very abundant. Relying on the Atlantic moisture, Ireland receives plentiful rainfall, and the difference in altitude between the mountains in the south and northwest and the plains in the center provides very favorable conditions for us to build cascading power stations.

Everyone probably knows that today in Europe, French agriculture is the most secure. We are free from droughts and famine. What do we rely on? We rely on an electricity-based irrigation system. With electricity, during droughts, we can use electric power to pump river water, even groundwater, to irrigate our fields; during waterlogging, we can pump excess water back into the rivers. This has multiplied the resistance of French agricultural production to natural disasters, making nearly every year a bumper harvest year. If Ireland could establish such a water-powered irrigation system, the Irish people would also enjoy bumper harvests every year.

Sufficient electricity will also make the development of light industries possible. Textiles, as well as the food industry, can develop rapidly, and the development of these industries will also make Ireland become prosperous.

Comrades, friends. At this moment, I am suddenly reminded of something my brother Napoleon said a few years ago after defeating the reactionary forces on the European continent that interfered with the French Revolution, during a session of the French National Assembly discussing the fundamental tasks of the revolution. He said: 'The French people must win a prosperous, happy life! They have the right to a wonderful prosperous life, which should not be trampled upon by those greedy feudal rulers.' Similarly, comrades, why do the Irish people revolutionize? Fundamentally, isn’t it also in pursuit of a wonderful prosperous life?

Comrades, the battles of the past few years have fully demonstrated how adept we are at destroying an old world; and in the future, a greater, more arduous goal awaits us. That is, to prove to the whole world how adept we are at building a new world!"

At the founding meeting, Joseph's speech elicited enthusiastic applause from the representatives.

In the following days, under Joseph’s facilitation, the Roman Bank provided Ireland with large amounts of interest-free and low-interest loans to support the economic development

of Ireland. At the same time, Joseph also represented the French Academy of Sciences and the University of Paris to establish an educational assistance plan with Ireland.

"Education is the foundation of a nation's development. 'Even in poverty, education cannot be neglected,' as Frederick the Great rose Prussia, relying heavily on promoting education. Today, if Ireland wants to develop well, it must also focus on education. For instance, to build a large number of hydroelectric stations, we need a lot of engineers specializing in electricity. In the short term, we can rely on hiring French engineers to solve the problem, but in the long run, Ireland must cultivate its own builders. Therefore, education is of utmost importance. We must pay great attention to it.

During British colonial rule, they not only did not establish schools in Ireland but also prohibited Irish people from studying abroad, from applying for degrees and scholarships at universities in Britain. Why did they do this? Isn’t it to keep us ignorant, to continue to exploit us, enslave us.

Our French comrades are willing to provide us with selfless help in this regard. Our two countries will set up an education fund together to promote education. Our French comrades will send us a group of teachers every year to support our basic education, helping us establish a complete primary education system.

Moreover, our French comrades will also provide our excellent students with full scholarships for studying abroad. Each year, they will offer such opportunities based on a certain proportion of our high school graduates. After several years, the cultural quality of our people will be significantly enhanced. Our culture and economy will both see significant development.

Of course, given such selfless help from our French comrades, we cannot have nothing to give in return. Although our French comrades did not think of these when helping us, we Irish are not ungrateful. Our capabilities are limited, and it's difficult for us to help our French comrades, but we are willing to fight alongside our French comrades at any time. Friends of France are friends of the Irish; enemies of France are enemies of the Irish. Therefore, I request the Confederation to authorize me to represent the Confederation, the new Irish government, and sign a 'Franco-Irish Friendship and Cooperation Treaty' based on equality and mutual assistance with the government of the French Republic." At the final preparation meeting, Chairman Russell made such a request to the whole assembly.