I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1430 This is the Industrial Revolution

As Queen Mary walked out of the sealing workshop, she felt somewhat dazed.

According to the manager, the factory is capable of producing nearly 500 million 4-kilogram cans of fish or 610 million 2.7-kilogram cans annually.

Two years ago, Saint Malou was a small city with only seven or eight thousand inhabitants, who made a living by fishing and smuggling.

Today, this is home to France's second-largest cannery, a factory as large as a city. The canned goods produced here alone can meet one-tenth of Paris's meat consumption.

This was a spectacle she could never have imagined in Versailles!

She suddenly puffed out her chest with pride. Her son had just mentioned to her that several of the machines used to produce canned goods were patented by her husband!
The "old Louis" in her heart seemed to instantly transform back into the handsome, gentle, and wise man he once was.

Joseph, meanwhile, was discussing the expansion with Delatte. "The Brittany railway line should begin construction within five years, after all, there's also an important shipbuilding industry here."

Delattre exclaimed excitedly, "Your Highness, if there were a railway connecting to Paris, I believe the annual production could soon exceed 1 million cans!"

The mayor of St. Malou City Council expressed some concern: "At that time, there might not be enough workers..."

“That is precisely one of the railway’s greatest advantages, Mr. Regis,” Joseph said. “A large number of young people from the towns and villages along the railway will come to work in Saint-Malou.”

“The villages and towns within a ten-kilometer radius will gradually become part of Saint Malou in a few years.”

As the group was talking, shouts and cries suddenly came from the workshop to their side.

Delat frowned and hurriedly sent his assistant to see what was wrong. He regretted not telling the overseers that His Highness the Crown Prince was coming.

A moment later, his assistant returned and muttered a few words quickly.

Delat's expression softened somewhat, and he turned to Joseph and bowed, saying, "Your Highness, it's just a small matter. A new worker didn't properly secure the guide rod of the oil press, causing it to bend."

"Fortunately, there are spare parts, so it should be repaired soon."

"An oil press?" Joseph's mind involuntarily conjured up an image of a "stinky" machine, and he subconsciously asked, "What kind of oil press?"

"The latest production from Paris, Your Highness, uses a steam engine and can press rapeseed until it's as clean as wood."

His assistant added in a low voice, "It was invented by a gentleman named Schramm."

It really was him. Joseph remembered the name. He had asked him to convert the "manure press" into an oil press, and it seemed he had succeeded.

What Joseph didn't know was that he himself was one of the inventors of this oil press—Schram insisted on listing him as a co-inventor, but according to his usual practice, he didn't announce it to the public.

The revolutionary oil press sold more than 40 units in just eight months after it went into production—this was the maximum production capacity of the oil press, and orders were already booked for three years ahead.

Joseph's account also saw an increase of more than 5 francs as a result.

Joseph looked at the now quiet workshop: "Let's go in and take a look."

Delat hurriedly led the way, but worried that the earlier commotion might have displeased the Crown Prince, so he tried to change the subject, saying, "Your Highness, in order to improve the taste of the cod, our chef suggested soaking the fish in oil."

"You see, now our high-end canned goods all contain more than 30 grams of flaxseed oil."

“Previously, we needed to buy large quantities of oil from Saint-Brieu, which was very expensive to transport. Then the board decided to buy this oil press. Now it can produce 360 ​​kilograms of flaxseed oil per day, saving us a significant amount of money.”

Flaxseed oil has a fishy smell, so it's not a popular choice in the cooking oil market and is relatively inexpensive. However, when mixed with canned fish, the fishy smell disappears completely, and the taste of the canned food is greatly improved.

As soon as Joseph entered the oil pressing workshop, he saw a young man of about sixteen or seventeen years old standing in the corner with his head down, his face still wet with tears, clearly having just gotten into trouble.

Several technicians were replacing the damaged parts.

Queen Mary felt a pang of pity, tugged at her son's sleeve, and then gestured with her eyes to the young man.

Joseph nodded and asked Delat, "How much does that broken club cost?"

"Ah, this..."

The latter had no choice but to bring over the technician to inquire, and then said to Joseph, "32 francs, Your Highness."

"Please don't blame that gentleman," Joseph gestured to the young man in the corner. "I'll compensate the factory for him."

"How can that be? Don't worry, I won't make him pay compensation."

According to the conventions of that era, workers who damaged factory property were required to pay for it at cost.

A servant had already slipped several francs into Delat's hand.

Joseph then continued, "By the way, did you insure such an expensive machine as the oil press?"

"Ah? Please forgive my ignorance, Your Highness, is there such a thing as insurance?"

“Equipment insurance has been available for almost two years now.” Joseph nodded calmly. “Let’s buy insurance for all the major machinery and equipment in the future. It costs more than 30 francs. If we let that young gentleman pay the claim, it could very well bankrupt him.”

Yes, he personally arranged for the equipment insurance to be included in the claims program of the Royal Insurance Company of France. Now, it has everything: accident insurance, workers' compensation insurance, safety liability insurance, and so on.

However, these factories do not appear to be insured.

Joseph thought to himself: It seems that we need to add a mandatory insurance requirement to the Factory Act.

The young man who had caused the trouble was so moved when he learned that an old gentleman had helped him pay for the oil press parts that he burst into tears again. Indeed, as Joseph had said, he simply couldn't afford the 32 francs, so he had to resort to a loan shark. And that would ultimately cost him everything.

It was the old man who suddenly appeared and saved him.

He wanted to come over and express his gratitude, but seeing the guards beside Joseph, he became too nervous to approach. In the end, he remained in the corner, bowing repeatedly to Joseph and muttering indistinct words of thanks.

Joseph smiled and offered a few words of comfort. The foreman next to him came over, pointed to the oil press, and gestured for him to continue working.

Soon, the oil press's sleeve was repaired, and the technician tried to close the gears. The huge iron disc immediately began to slowly descend under the action of hydraulic pressure.

The workers busied themselves, filling the freshly pressed oil-water mixture into large earthenware vats, and then carrying them to the next room for cooling and settling.

Delat continued to explain to the Crown Prince: "Your Highness, the oil extracted by this machine is very clean. When stored in wax-sealed bottles, it will not turn sour or spoil for three or four months."

(End of this chapter)