African Entrepreneurship Records

Chapter 418 Apprentice

 After the final design, the field cooking cart was divided into two stoves and was approximately square. It could be pulled by one horse or pushed or pulled by two people. It was somewhat similar to the Prussian field cooking cart but quite different.

 (Picture: Prussian version of World War I)

This kind of field cooking cart has been modified by Ernst, and its counterweight has been greatly reduced. At the same time, because it has only two wheels, it has enhanced adaptability to East African roads or fields. However, because it only has two wheels, it requires two removable wheels when fixing it. Retract and retract the stand.

There are no special ovens and coffee stoves. In fact, the current prototype Prussian field cooking truck cannot be equipped with an oven. After all, it is useless for burning. The battlefield must pay attention to efficiency, the process of making baked goods is complicated, and there may also be a problem of clean drinking. Due to water shortage, flour products need to be kneaded with water.

As for the World War I military ration review in the previous life, just take it as a joke. Those fancy-looking things cannot be used by the army as food every day, and they can be used for emergencies.

Hot food is an effective guarantee to improve the combat effectiveness of the army. Who can bear to hide in the trenches and chew cold bread all the time.

The two stoves designed by Ernst can be equipped with different kitchen utensils, one is a cylindrical rice steaming bucket, the other is a curved iron pot, two frying plates, and two large kettles.

 It can basically meet the needs of the army. Of course, the shortcomings of this field cooking truck are also very obvious, that is, it cannot solve the problem of smoke and may expose its position.

However, the main application of field cooking trucks is to facilitate the march of the East African Army. For example, this time the 111th Division and the 123rd Division spanned more than 2,000 kilometers from East Africa to South Africa. As East Africa itself, there is no combat need in the middle, so it does not exist the above issues.

Moreover, the problem of chimneys is not unsolvable, it is just that it cannot be solved at present and there is a lot of room for improvement in the future.

Ernst looked at the field cooking cart he designed and was generally satisfied. This was thanks to the roadside food carts in his previous life that provided him with abundant inspiration.

Ernst: "For the military, it is said that details determine success or failure. In addition to considering combat needs, we must also consider issues from the military life level. Sometimes the non-combat attrition of a war can be much greater than that of the war."

This is particularly evident in the East African Army. The East African Army has not encountered a strong enemy and the intensity of the war is not high. On the contrary, non-combat attrition losses are higher than war losses.

"Of course, I am not advocating hedonism. The army is for fighting and defending the country, not for enjoying happiness. Therefore, we must not relax our training and often simulate difficult war environments. As for improving the living environment of soldiers, This is also necessary and there is no conflict between the two.”

 …

  January 17, 1873.

While Ernst was working on improving the logistics support of the army, the East African arsenal also received new equipment. For this reason, the Mauser brothers made a special trip from Germany to East Africa to guide the installation of the production line of Mauser rifles.

William Mauser: "The 1873 Mauser rifle, which is the 1871 rifle currently equipped in Germany, has a huge improvement in range and accuracy compared to the Dreiser rifle. The German Army has also adopted our plan, but the Ministry of Defense We mainly gave orders to some old arsenals for production, and we were unable to supply the German Army in large quantities due to production capacity issues."

The 1871 Mauser rifle is called the 1873 rifle in East Africa because of the difference in equipment time with Germany.

Ernst: "I understand this matter. Our arsenal in Germany was just a small factory that Prussia was about to eliminate. It has never been the main customer of the Prussian army's arms. I personally think that we can get some orders from the German army. Enough." As one of the suppliers of the German army, the Hechingen Consortium is more concentrated in the fields of food, clothing, and daily necessities. As for arms, not to mention Krupp, an iconic enterprise of the German army, even some medium-sized enterprises are better than those in East Africa. It is much better. This is all due to human nature. It would be good if they can allow the Hechingen Consortium to enter the German army's supply system, and the Hechingen Consortium cannot break the rules.

At that time Constantine was still serving in the Prussian Army, and with the surname Hohenzollern, this was one of the reasons why the Hechingen Consortium was able to enter.

Ernst: "When you come to East Africa this time, I happen to have something to ask for. I hope you won't refuse."

Brother Mauser didn't dare to make excuses in front of the boss, so he hurriedly said: "Your Highness, you are too polite. Without your kindness, we would not be where we are today. As for the demands, they are all due and we will naturally fulfill them within our ability."

Ernst said: "It's not a big deal, I just hope you can bring in more new people. Of course, I'm not talking about the company's internal staff, but the students I specially trained in the Hechingen area, so that they can help you more." Get started."

 So that’s what it’s about, isn’t it just about taking on an apprentice! The Mauser brothers came here the same way, but they mainly learned the craft from their father for a longer time. Isn't this just a matter of your words? Brother William Mauser said: "As long as you say it, Your Highness, we will never hide it secretly."

Ernst nodded and said: "That's good. They are all young children, and some of them are not even very proficient in German, so you have to be more patient."

The apprentices Ernst arranged for the Mauser brothers were not many students at the school in Hechingen, only five, but Ernst thought five were enough, and two of them were from the Far East.

At present, only a few of the students Ernst has trained have entered universities in Germany. They are all gifted geniuses. Not to mention universities, they are middle schools in Germany. It is difficult for people to enter these days unless they spend money. Well Ernst should not take advantage of this, it is not a small sum of money. The actual education quality of the middle school established by Ernst himself in Hechingen cannot be compared with other middle schools in Germany, because the current middle schools also belong to elite education.

  Putting aside university, the only way to learn top-level knowledge is to become an apprentice with weapons research and development experts like the Mauser brothers. Apprenticeships are now very common in Europe, so Ernst’s request is not too much. The most important thing is that students can learn something.

 The Mauser brothers also have middle school education, but this is not the main reason why they became experts in weapons research and development. It is more influenced by their family background.

So the assistants Ernst assigned to the Mauser brothers were also students from Hechingen Middle School, so there would not be much obstacles in learning. The main thing was to accumulate experience and learn design ideas.

It’s hard to say whether it will succeed, but if it does, East Africa will make a lot of money. If not, you can also work as a professional technician in the East African arsenal.

Ernst continued: "In the field of work, the environment in Germany is definitely better, but East Africa is not bad, especially the East African Army, which is your strong backing. Some data on firearms and weapons can also provide you with rich first-hand information." According to the data, Germany is located between the cold temperate zone, while East Africa is located between Asia and the tropics, with rich application scenarios, which is of great benefit to weapons research and development, so you can come to East Africa more and walk around."

William Mauser: "Your Highness, don't worry, we will definitely consider East African factors more when it comes to firearms research and development."

Both parties maintained a tacit understanding and did not mention the matter of stationing in East Africa. The environment in East Africa is a big problem and cannot attract high-end talents to settle in. This environment refers more to the comprehensive environment. East Africa is not highly developed, especially the more livable areas. The inland areas have not been effectively developed. Ernst did not dare to let them stay on the coast. Although Dar es Salaam is one of the most prosperous cities in the tropics, the climate is somewhat hot, compared with Germany. There is a big difference. The inland climate of East Africa is stronger than that of Germany, but the infrastructure cannot keep up.

 (End of this chapter)