I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1351 Chaotic Switzerland

The Swiss Speaker was not offended at all; instead, he smiled and said, "Count Gösselin, you see, if this railway can be built, it will greatly promote trade throughout Switzerland..."

Gesellan seemed somewhat impatient and raised his voice slightly: "Your Excellency Speaker, radicals in our country are inciting a civil riot, and the city guard urgently needs this money to quell the unrest. This is a resolution of the parliament, please forgive me."

Oberholzer paused awkwardly for two seconds before nodding and saying, "While it's a bit of a shame, we will respect the state legislature's choice."

He flipped through the documents in his hand: "The Republic of Geneva has previously provided supplies worth 35 francs. This money will be allocated to you before the end of next month."

Switzerland is a very loosely confederated country—each of the thirteen cantons has its own parliament, laws, and army, and the confederation parliament has no jurisdiction over them.

Even the thirteen cantons had different political models. For example, the cantons of Uri and Schwyz in the south-central forest region had a direct democracy based on "plaza assembly" and based on yeoman farmers. Meanwhile, the cantons of Bern, Zurich, and Basel were ruled by nobles and urban oligarchs. Many other areas were even colonized by larger cantons.

Therefore, as long as the cantonal parliaments are resolute, the Swiss Confederation Parliament has no choice but to comply.

Geneva's situation was particularly unique; it wasn't even part of the Confederation, but rather a "Republic of Geneva" bound to the Confederation Congress, making it more independent than the other cantons.

Gesellan nodded in satisfaction, then added, "Please pay us in francs. Bazen is not well-received in the south."

Bazen is the currency of the cantons of Zurich and Bern.

Oberholzer sighed inwardly, quickly skipping over that section, and continued, "Regarding the distribution of profits from this investment, we will set a minimum return of 4.5%, referencing the French government's standards. Any amount exceeding this will be distributed according to the respective states' contribution ratios..."

Below the stage, the representatives from Schwyz and Uri exchanged glances and raised their hands one after the other. "Your Excellency Speaker, if Geneva does not participate in the railway investment, our canton will also take back our money."

"And Uri Oblast..."

They had initially worried that getting the money back would offend the Confederate Congress and the Canton of Zurich, but with the Genevan people taking the lead, their concerns lessened considerably.

Both states are located deep in the mountains, and even if a railway were built between Bern and Zurich, they would not be able to benefit from it.

The Deputy Speaker of Bern immediately became somewhat anxious and stood up, saying, "Perhaps you don't need to make a decision so quickly, we can..."

He gestured rapidly back and forth with his index finger between himself and the Schwyz state representative, implying a private "deal."

The Uri representative, a mercenary officer who had started as a woodcutter, was known for his straightforwardness. He immediately asked in a gruff voice, "What compensation can our state expect?"

Bern's deputy speaker hesitated, "For example, reducing tariffs from Uri to the southwest."

The canton of Bern has a vast sphere of influence, with most of southwestern Switzerland under their control.

“I’m sorry, I can’t convince the parliament like this.” The Uri representative shook his head. “Please, Confederate Parliament, allocate funds to us as soon as possible.”

The main source of income for the Uri region was providing mercenaries to the German regions, and it had very little trade with other regions, so it was not concerned about tariffs.

The Bern deputy speaker's failure to win over Uri and Schwyz has angered representatives from other states.

The Lucerne representative looked at him and said, "Count Elach, our state can support your railway plan, but we also hope to obtain tariff preferences."

"The State of Fribourg also requested concessions on tariffs..." At four o'clock in the afternoon, when the Confederation Parliament adjourned, Count Elach was already covered in cold sweat.

Currently, five states are firmly opposed to participating in the railroad plan, while four other states are demanding that the State of Bern offer its share.

If they cannot be persuaded, France will have less than 200 million francs left to pay, and the Bern-Zurich railway will never be completed.

It should be noted that the Bern Parliament originally thought that with the support of the Confederation Parliament, it would be able to retain the 670 million francs, so it raised more than 800 million francs from the public and abroad in advance.

With the extensive use of almost free labor in the cantons of Vaud and Jura, and with funding from the Zurich Parliament, the railway construction was basically completed for a total of 1800 million francs.

Unexpectedly, the riots in Geneva escalated, and as a result, the cantons refused to cooperate, leading to a funding shortfall of nearly 30%!
The Swiss Speaker approached with a grave expression and asked anxiously, "Can you still find investment on your end?"

Count Elach shook his head.

Oberholzer's expression darkened further.

Zurich had been devastated by the war, and raising more than 300 million francs was the limit.

Both the Zurich and Bern parliaments used the promise of "long-term benefits from the railway" to attract investment, and if the railway could not be built, both states would have to pay exorbitant compensation.

After a long while, Count Elach finally spoke: "I will try to persuade the state legislature to meet the demands of the states of Lucerne, Fribourg, and others."

"Put some more pressure on those forest states..."

The two had no idea that this financing event would cause such a huge upheaval in Switzerland.

Given the loose structure of the Swiss Confederation Parliament, word quickly spread that many cantons had reclaimed their own funds for supplies.

After receiving the news, a Milan bank that had invested in the Bern-Zurich railway, out of caution, commissioned two experts from the French National Railway Company to conduct an estimate. The conclusion was that "the current total amount of funds is far from sufficient to complete the railway construction."

The bank immediately approached the Bern State Parliament, requesting access to the project's funding and construction plans.

The Bernese parliament could only stall in various ways, and then the Milan bank took them to court.

The judges of the Bern court, who had also invested their entire fortune in the railway project, panicked after seeing the indictment and went to several close nobles to try to recoup their investment.

Just over two weeks later, the whole of Switzerland knew that there was a problem with the Bern-Zurich railway.

The Bern state court was almost trampled flat by those who sued the parliament.

The financial officer in charge of the railway project handed the compensation estimate report to the state assembly speaker. Count Elah and other key members of parliament looked at the terrifying figure of 2500 million francs on the paper and were all ashen-faced.

Forget 2500 million, they couldn't even manage to return 800 million of the investment—after the railway plan was finalized, the project committee ordered 300 million francs worth of rails from France, as well as leveling instruments, hand-operated railcars, and other construction equipment. Of course, a significant portion of that money ended up in the pockets of the members of parliament after circulating through several channels.

(End of this chapter)