Chapter 148 John Fisher's Worries

Liverpool.

Parsons sat leisurely in the cafe with black tea in his hand, looking at the statistics in his hand, and a proud smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

Yes, it's really proud.

Now he has become a celebrity of the British Admiralty. He has not only received the support of the newly appointed Third Secretary of the Navy, Sir Fisher, but also received a research grant of 50,000 pounds, and also has his own company, Parsons Navigation Steam Turbine Company.

Everything looks so perfect. Judging from the data in his hand, this new steam turbine can reach 700 horsepower. Although it is not very stable, he is confident that he will increase the power to 2,000 horsepower in a year, which is enough to drive a torpedo ship.

As long as you can drive the warship and prove to the Admiralty that your design is correct, everyone will believe that the steam turbine is the greatest invention of this era. Thinking that the warships of the empire and even the world will use his steam turbine in the future, I tremble a little.

This not only represents countless pounds, but also represents power and status. Maybe he can be can be canonized as a baron by the Queen like he met his Admiral John Fisher.

The rest is to complete the final process as soon as possible, and everything will be announced in a year! Parsons looked at his pocket watch. Today is the day of the seminar for all engineers. He should have arrived early, so he drank the last lipstick tea, took out two shillings and put them on the table, and quickly walked to the experimental factory thousands of kilometers away.

However, Parsons didn't notice that while he got up, a man with a wide-brimmed hat not far away and could not see his appearance quickly caught up with his back.

"Hello, Mr. Parsons, here is your package."

As soon as Parsons walked to the door of the experimental factory, he was stopped by a child with a burden about his height. Are you a messenger? Who gave me this burden? Parsons was a little curious. Who sent it himself?

The little boy shook his head, saying that he didn't know who sent it, but the post office told him to deliver it to Parsons in person. He had been waiting here for half an hour.

Parsons took out a shilling and tipped the little boy. After taking the burden, he found that it was really heavy, but he did not open it immediately. The meeting was about to begin, so he walked into the experimental factory with the burden.

The experimental factory is not large. The single-storey structure is about 500 square meters back and forth. There is a small office in the corner of the factory, which is the place where Parsons often works. Of course, it's not that he doesn't want to expand, but that the funds are a little tight, but he believes that in another year, this place will become the focus of the world's attention.

After putting the bag into the office, Parsons looked at the locked cabinet, which was full of important design materials. After seeing no trace of opening, he walked out of the office.

At this moment, the factory is already full of people. Except for more than 30 technicians who have followed him for many years, most of them are their own assistants. In addition, several experts who have just been sent from the Admiralty are also surrounded by a steam turbine placed in the center, pointing and discussing something, which seems to be very serious and conscientious. .

As the atmosphere became more and more enthusiastic, the workers also began to work, and the designers continued to discuss around the steam turbine. No one noticed that a large group of men had appeared outside the factory.

"Do it."

With a sound of German, the big men around the door of the factory pulled out their pistols from their clothes and rushed into the factory.

"Stit, you are." Not until they found that their workers had finished asking, a snowy dagger had pierced the worker's throat, and blood spilled on the ground like a fountain.

This scene suddenly made all the workers and designers stop in fear. Parsons didn't understand who these people were and how they could suddenly kill people.

A moment of dullness, screams, shouts, suddenly filled the whole factory, but before they finished shouting, one of the big men grabbed a designer, stabbed him in the neck, and said in poor English, "Whoever is screaming is the same as him."

Such a crazy killing immediately scared everyone. Even Parsons, the head of the factory, trembled. He knew that as long as he rushed into the office and picked up the phone, he could contact the outside, but he could not move forward anyway.

When a pistol appeared in everyone's sight, everyone was even more scared. In the shouting of the big men, they were all squeezed into the corner.

Parsons' eyes widened in horror. He didn't know why these people suddenly broke into here. It was just a factory and there was no money at all. But as he saw these big men rushing into the office and constantly turning over the information and documents, his face suddenly changed! It's his years of painstaking efforts. If he loses it, it will be a disaster!

"No, you must keep the information!"

But before Parsons finished thinking about it, he saw a big man pointing at him, and then two of them ran to him quickly and grabbed him and pulled him in front of the leading man.

"Mr. Parsons, it's nice to meet you." The big man looked at Parsons and laughed. This guy is worth 10,000 pounds! I didn't expect it to fall into my own hands so easily.

Thinking that he could take him to receive the reward later, the big man trembled with excitement. Seeing that Parsons was caught, no workers and designers in the factory dared to breathe. They could only foolishly watch these big men rummaging through boxes and cabinets, like robbers.

"Who are you? What are you going to do?" Parsons' face turned green and he asked shiveringly.

"We are."

"Ruth, look at this." The big man just wanted to tell the story of someone asking him to kidnap Parsons. At this time, a companion suddenly reported a large package from the office, and his eyes were shining. The big man who called Ruth saw the package and immediately shouted, "Come on, open it and see if there is something good."

After several big men untied the package, a wooden box immediately appeared in front of everyone. Ruth didn't have time to look carefully and suddenly lifted the lid of the box. Suddenly, a wire caught his attention.

Before he could see that the wire was connected there, a huge fire suddenly burst out in front of him!

Boom!

At the factory of the newly established Parsons Nautical Steam Turbine Company, a huge mushroom cloud rose to the sky, countless bricks and tiles rose to the sky with the shock wave, and the pedestrians around them were so scared that they lay on the ground.

"Papa." A few pieces of rubble fell on the corner of the street beside the men with wide-brimmed hats. In the dust, the men smiled with satisfaction one after another. After making a look at each other, they disappeared at the end of the street--

Major General John Fisher, the Third Secretary of the Admiral of the Royal Navy of the British Empire, sat opposite with coffee. Sir William White, a famous and one of the best warship designers in the empire, asked with a smile, "Dear Baron William, I don't know what you think about the sinking of the Yoshino you designed in the Far East. Is it?"

William White didn't like coffee, so he specially asked for a cup of tea and laughed, "John, that's not my Yoshino. I just designed it. Damn it, I don't know how to use it at all."

Although William White smiled, the last sentence still revealed his heart. As a great warship designer, no one wants his design to be sunk less than a year after going into the water.

And it's a sneak attack and sinking! Don't even give a chance to face-to-head! Those damn Hawaiian warmongers, if Yoshino faces the enemy, can completely rely on speed to get rid of the entanglement of the other party.

Fisher smiled. This stubborn old guy was stubborn, but in fact, he was still very concerned about the sinking of the Yoshino.

Waiting for William White to calm down a little, Fisher continued: "Mr. William, what do you think of the war in the Far East? Is there any inspiration?"

"It should be said that there is no big inspiration. Those damn guys don't know how to abide by the aristocratic law at all. Whether they are themselves or Hawaiians, they have chosen to sneak up! Damn, if it's a head-on battle, I believe it will expose the problem, which can provide me with more inspiration and enlightenment. William White thought for a thought and then shook his head.

After listening to it, Fisher also smiled bitterly.

The steam-age sea battle in the Far East could have provided more information, but those Far Easterners seem to be reluctant to fight head-on. However, even so, as an expert in artillery and torpedoes, he still got some useful inspiration, especially some information provided by the commander of the Far East Fleet, Filimant, which gave him some inspiration. According to what he said, whether it is the battleships or the heavy patrol of the Pacific Fleet, their main guns have actually not achieved great results, but are not as good as those secondary guns. The reason for this situation is not the power of the artillery, but the problem of firepower output.

Take a majesty-class battleship as an example. The rate of fire of the 12-inch main gun is only one shot in two minutes. Although a ship has four guns, the low rate of fire and accuracy are insufficient, resulting in a volley that can't meet the requirements of fire coverage at all. People who came back from the investigation of the Beiyang Fleet also said that my small-caliber artillery, speed It was faster and completely suppressed the main guns of Dingyuan and Zhenyuan.

Today's naval department requires a large-scale increase in the number of secondary guns to make up for the slow firing speed and insufficient coverage of the main gun. Some people even put forward the idea of canceling the large-caliber main gun and uniformly installing 6-inch guns, but Fisher does not think so. According to his calculation, if the number of main guns can be increased. To eight to nine doors, in this way, a volley can fully achieve the required coverage.

Although he already has an idea, it is difficult to do it, because according to his calculations, the installation of eight main guns, plus the secondary guns and armor, requires about 20,000 tons of displacement, and the recokazures caused by the simultaneous firing of the eight main guns is enough to shatter the deck. .

Another problem is the power. To promote such a large warship, it must be at least 20,000 horsepower. At the current level, twenty-four coal-fired boilers and six steam engines are needed. It is very difficult to install these big guys in it alone, although he put forward the idea of replacing coal with fuel for a long time. However, so far, it has not received enough attention, and the Admiralty Department still conservatively believes that coal combustion is safer than fuel oil.

So he came to William White today to consult the most famous warship designer in the empire. But after listening to Fisher's words, William White also shook his head. The idea of installing more than eight main guns at the same time was really too radical. Let's not say that it can be built, even if it can be built, the speed will be as slow as The old cow has completely become a target.

Fisher smiled bitterly. It seems that we still need to wait for a few more years, at least until the Parsons-designed steam turbine is practical.

Seeing Fisher with a wry smile on his face, William White smiled: "John, in fact, we don't have to install so many main guns at a time. We can use our brains on the secondary guns."

"Sub-gun?"

"Yes." William White put down the teacup, took out a piece of paper from his bag, drew the outline of a ship a few times, and said, "To be honest, I really want to see the young Hawaiian master. Do you remember the two battleships he ordered? At that time, when I saw the data, I thought that guy was crazy, but today I know how predictable he was.

As a good friend of William White for many years, Fisher was surprised to hear him praise a person like this for the first time, and said, "What's the foresight surname?"

William White marked the outline of the ship a few times before saying, "This cute little guy, when he ordered the battleship, in addition to the new 12-inch main gun, he also proposed the need for four double 8-inch secondary guns, and in order to reduce the weight, he also greatly reduced the number of six-inch secondary guns. And even removed the torpedo! At that time, I thought he was crazy to use two large-caliber guns on a warship.

"But judging from this naval battle, his idea is correct. Although he can't install so many main guns as you said, he can completely use the 8-inch gun as the second main gun, so that when firing, he can have eight large-caliber naval guns on one side. Although it can't be compared with 12 inches, it is compared with 6 inches. The secondary gun is really much more powerful.

"Imagine that when the two ships exchange fire, there are eight guns of more than 8 inches on one side, and four guns of more than 8 inches and ten 6 inches of secondary guns on the other, who do you think will win?"

Fisher shook his head. The idea tower of the second-class main gun has actually existed for a long time, but no one of the very critical and difficult problems has been noticed, that is, because the caliber of the naval gun is different, the trajectory produced is also different. In the crossfire, even if you are experienced, it is difficult to rely on the other party. The ballistics of the trajectory calculate the accurate landing point. In the future, as the caliber of the naval gun becomes larger and the range becomes more and more distant, the problem will be infinitely expanded, so he has always opposed to the use of two more than eight-inch naval guns on the same warship.

Seeing Fisher still depressed, William White smiled and said, "What's wrong? Are you still worried about that young master? Don't worry, didn't the Admiralty decide not to build ships for him anymore? Speaking of this, he deliberately sighed: "It's a pity that we can't see these two battleships. It's a pity that they will have a practical effect on me a few years later!"

Since the topic was off, Fisher gave up the idea for the time being. Hearing the meaning of his words, he smiled and said, "Dear Baron William, don't you want to plead for Hawaii today? Are they also lobbying you?

"Yes, not only me, but they also lobbied every senior director of Armstrong Shipyard." William White did not hide it at all. After saying that, he deliberately stared at Fisher and continued, "And I believe that they must have sent someone to lobby you!"

"You guessed right. They not only found me, but also found a lot of senators." John Fisher took a sip of coffee and seemed to be surprised by the lobbying power of the Hawaiians. He said, "And as far as I know, they are not only looking for us, but also looking for France and Italy, and have achieved great results."

John Fisher put down his coffee and said with a wry smile, "Our Prime Minister still hasn't spoken, but the Italians have changed. They have promised to sell all the complete naval gun technology to Hawaii. It is said that in order to obtain these technologies, Hawaii also bought eight sets of double 12-inch naval guns and more than five large supply ships from Italy.

"Damn it!" Hearing that the Italians had obtained such a rich contract, even William White couldn't help but take a breath and said, "John, I'm not a politician. I said that the war with the Hawaiians has nothing to do with me. I just hope to see the warships I designed all over every ocean!" And only by handing over warships to Hawaii can we gain practical experience from the war a few years later and design better warships to serve the empire.

"As the Third Minister of the Navy, you should immediately make your own suggestions to the Admiralty and the Prime Minister!" William White continued to shout excitedly, "Don't forget that compared with my own order, Hawaii's battleships and cruisers are almost completely behind. They still need at least four battleships and two large armored cruisers!" We must strive for such a big contract!"

"No, Mr. Baron, you miscalculated." Fisher smiled bitterly and said that he had just got new information: "It's two battleships and two cruisers, because I just got the news that the Argentines, like Chileans, handed over the two battleships they bought from our country to the Hawaiian Pacific Fleet, and the remaining four."

"What's the matter?" Seeing that John Fisher's face suddenly looked much more ugly, William White quickly asked.

"The Germans took action, and they announced that they would send the Far East Fleet to Hawaii. I believe that the Germans must have seen such a tempting contract, and what worries me more is that the Germans may take over Hawaii and enter the Far East!"

"Are the Germans going to the Far East too?" William White looked at the young third naval minister of the empire in front of him in surprise and asked, "John, last time you said that Russia also sent warships to the Far East. Then will they?"

"I don't know, but I believe in one thing. When the Japanese navy is re-armed, the Far East will become very crowded!" John Fisher shook his head and his face became solemn: "At that time, General Felix and his Far East Fleet will face the most serious challenge!"

Although William White is a warship designer, he is not a political idiot. After a while, he immediately understood what Fisher meant, nodded and sighed, "John, don't worry too much. Hasn't the Admiralty Department built a new Bavreur-class battleship?! General Fiermant will be replenished soon.

"Yes, I know. I'm the Third Secretary of the Navy responsible for ship building and logistics." John Fisher smiled at himself and took a breath: "But don't forget that compared with the navy, the Russians are more afraid of their army!"

Fisher took a sip of coffee: "I'm worried that there may be a huge change in the Far East!"

"A huge change?" William White also took a sip of black tea and understood what John Fisher meant. From the navy, even if Germany and Russia joined hands, they were not the opponents of the Imperial Royal Navy, but if they launched an offensive from land, even if the empire immediately changed the continental isolation policy, it was difficult to say that they could defeat them.

"Unfortunately, the Qing Dynasty is really disappointing. They have the largest population and the largest army in the world, but they have been disgraced by the Japanese in North Korea. Now both the prime minister and the parliament have been disappointed with them. With their power, it is impossible to limit the expansion of the Russians." John Fisher sighed: "It turns out that some people in the parliament are also ready to support Japan against Russia, because for us, if the Russians conquer the Far East, we will face a powerful force with a larger territory, abundant resources and a large population than ours!" Fisher sighed again.)

William White also seemed to be aroused by resentment and said hatefully, "Damn it, our former Prime Minister has cut too much naval military spending, which has reduced the strength of the imperial navy too much!" Now the parliament is starting to restrict the Hawaii Pacific Fleet! Did he forget it? At present, the so-called third navy of Nicholas II, a madman, can be threatened in the Far East. Except for the Far East Fleet of Ferimante, there is only the Pacific Fleet that occupied Ryukyu.

John Fisher also sighed in his heart. He didn't know that William White was right.

Sitting in his seat, he can see it more clearly than anyone else. Whether they are Russians or Germans, it is impossible for them to enter the Far East by relying on the army, and in order to prevent our country from supporting Qing from the sea, they must establish a maritime force in the Far East that can cut off the sea channel, so In the foreseeable future, both Russia and Germany will continue to deploy troops to the Far East.

It's okay for the Germans to say that after all, they haven't got a decent colony there. Even if Papua New Guinea competes with the British court, it is remote and they can't afford to raise too much wind because of their weak maritime power. But the problem is that if the Germans take this opportunity that the empire is not friendly with Hawaii to collude with them who are already established in the Far East, then the Ryukyus controlled by the Pacific Fleet will become Germany's forward base.

And Russia's threat is even greater. They don't need a forward base at all. The natural port of Vladivostok is enough to build a huge naval base! The Germans have built the third largest navy in the world. If they continue to expand in the Far East, it will be terrible!

More importantly, the Russians are ambitious. This trip to the Far East can almost certainly attack North Korea. Even if the empire intervenes, it will not make Japan win this battle! If they control North Korea, it will be a great challenge to Britain's Far East balance policy!

So he feels that not only should the two Hawaiian battleships be detained, but the construction speed should be accelerated and continue to strengthen Hawaii, so as to slow the Russian navy from entering the Pacific Ocean. What's more, there is no United States, which is gradually revealing ambition and challenging the hegemony of the British Empire in the world! Therefore, the best way is to repair the precarious relationship with Hawaii as soon as possible and try to bring them over!

Unfortunately, I am not a decision maker!

"Who knows? However, the Hawaiians do not have the strength to fight against the Russians at present. Their army is too small." Fisher sighed in his heart and was a little helpless to spread his hands. He scolded in his heart at the same time: "That idiot Greston."

"I." After clearing his throat, Fisher was about to continue talking when a sudden sound of rapid footsteps came from the outside, followed by a knock on the door.

"Please come in." William Fisher straightened his posture.

"Report." The guard rushed into the office of the Third Secretary of the Navy and brought an amazing news: "General, three hours ago, our three experimental factories in Newcastle had a gas pipe explosion at the same time, including an important boiler factory, which has killed 39 experts and hundreds of technicians!"

"What!"

Fisher and William White stood up at the same time, boiler experimental factory?! That's the design headquarters of the new boiler! Is it?

Before they woke up from their astonishment, the guards continued to shout: "In addition, the Parsons Nautical Steam Turbine Company in Liverpool also had a big explosion this morning. All the employees and technicians were killed, and Mr. Parsons and the three experts we sent were also dead!"

"Pon!"

John Fisher punched the table hard, and the coffee and black tea spilled all over the ground! Four important places were bombed in one day, which was beyond the scope of the accident. Someone must be at the scene!

As the Third Secretary of the Navy in charge of logistics and new technology, Fisher knows more than anyone the significance of the Boiler and Parsons Sailing Steamer Company to the Imperial Royal Navy. The explosion of these two experimental factories alone will cause immeasurable losses, not to mention the deaths of so many experts and skilled technicians!

Especially Parsons, the steam turbine expert who he met in person and won 50,000 pounds for him for the navy experiment, was also killed on the spot, and he also caught up with the only three experts in this field sent by him to assist his empire!

The death of the four of them will greatly reverse the research of the new power of the Imperial Navy. Even if it can be re-upled, without the most profound Parsons in this field, it will take at least ten years to succeed!

Ten years! Does anyone want to delay themselves for ten years? Who is he?

(to be continued)