I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1031: Those who cheat and those who run blindly
Admiral Jervis put the report in his hand on the table and looked up at the head of the Navy Committee Investigation Team:

"Are you sure this isn't a joke?"

After nearly ten days of detailed investigation, the Navy Committee gave the cause of the accident on the Avenger that day as follows: the officer in charge of logistics materials was drunk and mistakenly loaded coal soaked in seawater on board, causing the boiler to flame out. The warship did not have any serious technical problems.

Well, a poor little officer was court-martialed yesterday, and is expected to be sentenced to five to eight years, but his wife had an extra two thousand pounds in her account at the Bank of England, which made him plead guilty very readily.

The head of the investigation team nodded guiltily, and then looked at Sir Middleton, the Comptroller of the Admiralty Committee who came with him. It was he who personally handed him the investigation results.

The British Naval War Board and the Admiralty Board are two departments.

The former was responsible for fighting, and the chief officer was the Secretary of State for Naval War, Jarvis.

The latter was responsible for shipbuilding, supplies, and administrative management of officers. Jervis also served as a member of the committee, but day-to-day affairs were handled by the Comptroller General.

Middleton smiled and said, "Don't waste too much time on the investigation. You see, the Chatham Shipyard has been unable to start work for a while."

Before Jervis could get angry, he continued, "Sir Hope said that the shipyard is improving construction efficiency and reducing costs. This will allow you to deliver three more warships while maintaining the same shipbuilding budget."

In fact, Hope promised him that as long as he received investment from the government investment fund, the Navy Committee would be able to reduce its expenditure by 12%. Of course, all this money would remain in his account.

Jarvis's frown relaxed immediately upon hearing this: "The delivery deadline remains unchanged?"

"Of course, I assure you."

"In the future, the coal on board must be strictly inspected."

The two smiled at each other, both very happy.

In the small bookstore, Porter held the small note in his hand close to the candlelight and lit it.

There was only a simple line of words on it - the plan was implemented smoothly.

When the paper was burned out, he picked up the book "Performing Arts" next to him, opened it, shook his head and chuckled:
"It's such a hassle to earn this little salary from the Security Bureau. I still miss the days when I worked for Madam Lavisia..."

At this moment, in faraway Paris, Mrs. Lavisia also missed her "compass" very much.

After Portier resigned, her life immediately became a mess.

She sighed heavily, waved and shouted to her husband and Baron Prilesi who were about to draw their swords for a duel in the street:
"Please, for God's sake, stop fighting!"

……

In the City Hall on the east side of London Bridge, the UK "Government Investment Fund" Management Committee formally voted on the first batch of investment projects.

Yes, after months of repeated research and arguments, the management committee still could not decide on the investment areas and investment amounts.

Each committee member made a valid point, but they were unable to reach a consensus.

Ultimately, committee chairman Sir Conor Malik recommended to Parliament that applications be accepted publicly and that the fund's investment proposals be voted on by the management committee.

In fact, government investment funds were completely unsuitable for the information-blocked 18th century.

The technological direction of industrialization is still unclear. If the government concentrates a large amount of funds on a project, the losses will be very heavy if the decision is wrong.

In this case, it is best to let the market guide investment, just as it has happened in history.

You mean France?

That's a cheat, it guarantees that the investment direction will never be wrong. So the more concentrated the investment and the higher the amount, the greater the effect will be.

This is something that other countries cannot replicate.

However, France's rapid development momentum made it difficult for some countries not to want to imitate it. As music sounded, Sir Malik first came on stage and made an opening speech, saying that Great Britain's future would be extremely brilliant, and then signaled to his assistant:
“Now, we begin voting on investment applications.”

His assistant came up and picked up the first application:
"Birmingham Kovac Steel Company applies for relief investment of £15..."

He then finished reading the application.

The content is roughly that Kovac Steel Company said that its business was in good condition, but due to malicious selling by the Dutch, its stock price collapsed and it is now facing a situation of insolvency.

If the government invests, it will be able to recover the cost and start making a profit in three or four years. Or the government can directly invest in the holding company of the fund.

The 14 members of the Management Committee discussed quietly for a while - in fact, they had already discussed the application project countless times, but they still had to pretend to do it - and then someone raised his hand.

Sir Malik said loudly:

"6 votes in favor, 8 votes against, the application was not approved."

Several shareholders of Kovac Steel Company in the audience were stunned and their eyes turned red instantly.

This is their last chance. If they don’t get investment, they will most likely go bankrupt.

Of course, the management committee’s logic is correct.

There are so many steel mills in the UK, so this one is not a big deal. The money should be invested in something more useful.

Malik's assistant continued:

"Wedgwood Holly-Chin Ceramics Company applied for a fine white porcelain production project with an investment of £9.

“… and a series of other processes have achieved the quality of oriental ceramics, with the cost being only one-fifth of that imported from the East.

“Sales markets include…

“Expected sales: £3+ per annum.

"Profit margin 35%..."

The members of the management committee all nodded slightly. This product that could replace oriental ceramics was indeed a high-quality project.

Sir Malik quickly announced the result:
"11 votes in favor, 3 votes against, the application is approved!"

There was immediate cheering from the audience.

"Next. Leeds Light Yarn Textile Factory, applying for a new automatic loom project, with an investment of 13 pounds..."

"4 votes in favor, 10 votes against, the application was not approved."

The textile industry in the UK has abundant sources of funds and does not need government funds to invest. Moreover, the textile industry market is currently saturated and the profit margin is very low, so the management committee is naturally not interested.

"Next. Birmingham McAnnitt Ironworks, applying for a new blast furnace project, with an investment of 10 pounds..."

"3 votes in favor, 11 votes against, the application was not approved."

"Next. Chatham Royal Dockyard, applying for a new steam paddle steamer project, with an investment of £50."

The members of the Management Committee immediately began to whisper to each other.

The project of Chatham Shipyard was submitted only more than ten days ago. Some of them are not very familiar with it, and the investment amount of 50 pounds is really too shocking.

But as Malik's assistant continued to read out the contents of the application, their eyes lit up.

This is definitely a good project!
(End of this chapter)