Chapter 70: End-of-Year Summary for 1900
January 30, 1901 — after a month-long voyage, the fleet finally arrived at Sydney Port, Australia.
Prime Minister Evan had prepared a rather grand welcoming ceremony, and once again, the harbor was filled with crowds of people.
It had been three months since Arthur and his delegation had departed for Europe. Both he and his team had begun to long for Australia.
Since the aid treaties signed with Britain and Germany were undeniably good news for Australia and its people, Arthur seized the opportunity to win public favor with a short speech at the port, sparking enthusiastic cheers from the crowd.
Afterward, he returned straight to his estate, skipping any other public engagements. After a month of monotony and rough seas, Arthur simply wanted to collapse into his large bed and get some proper rest.
The task of settling Diesel, Benz, and the recruited workers was left to Prime Minister Evan.
Fortunately, several apartment buildings vacated during the Australian National University admissions period were still empty and could be put to immediate use.
As for Diesel and Benz, Arthur kept his promise and selected two excellent independent townhouses in central Sydney for them and their families.
January 31, 1901 — Arthur's second day back in Australia.
After resting from the afternoon through to the next day at noon and enjoying a hearty meal, Arthur finally felt like he had recovered.
Putting on a custom-tailored suit, Arthur, accompanied by his guards, made his way to the government building.
By the time he arrived, all cabinet members were already seated quietly, awaiting his presence.
"Your Highness!"
As Arthur entered, everyone stood up and bowed respectfully.
"It's been a while, everyone. It's been three months since I left Australia, and I can already see the changes your efforts have brought. Though a new year has already begun, it's not too late to conduct our annual meeting for the past year. Let's hear it—each department should give a brief report on the plans made last year, what has been accomplished, and what is still in progress. Let's also review the government's overall performance," Arthur said, smiling as he took his seat at the head of the table.
An annual meeting was the government's chance to assess its past year's performance—whether there had been real achievements or not would be evident in these reports.
Clearly, the ministers had come prepared. Even the three who had accompanied Arthur to Europe had spent the past day combing through large volumes of documentation.
"Prime Minister Evan, let's start with the government's overall performance. Do you have your summary report ready?" Arthur asked, turning to him.
"Yes, Your Highness."
Prime Minister Evan stood and walked to the platform at the center of the conference table, placing his report on the lectern.
"Your Highness, colleagues—1900 was a great year for Australia. We finally achieved our independence and now have a wise and capable monarch. Under your leadership, all sectors of the nation began to flourish, and the country is thriving."
Evan knew Arthur disliked empty flattery, so he kept his introduction short before getting to the point:
"Over the course of last year, Australia experienced significant development. According to government estimates, our population grew from approximately 3,788,100 at the end of 1899 to 3,867,100—an increase of about 2%."
"Among these, there were over 36,000 births and 23,000 deaths, with 66,000 new immigrants. After deducting military families and special migration related to the armed forces, we had about 40,000 genuine civilian immigrants, over half of whom were Irish and British," Evan explained.
The population growth rate in 1900 had accelerated compared to the previous two years, largely due to the 20,000 troops and their families assigned to Arthur by Queen Victoria.
Excluding those special cases, Australia's immigration numbers remained roughly in line with prior years.
"Now that we've signed immigration treaties with Britain and Germany, we should expect to see some increase in immigration. The government should prepare accordingly and allocate funds to promote Australia in both countries to attract more settlers," Arthur said calmly with a nod.
Given the lack of formal immigration agreements and that most infrastructure projects had only begun mid-year, last year's stagnant immigration figures were understandable.
With the treaties now in effect and Australia actively promoting itself, it was reasonable to expect improvement in the coming year.
"Yes, Your Highness," Evan nodded quickly.
"How's the national economy? What is the current state of our finances?" Arthur asked.
Thanks to German aid, Australia had effectively resolved its funding problems—for the next several years, at least, there was little to worry about in that regard.
"Your Highness, the government currently holds over £110 million in available funds. If we include the German loan that hasn't yet been disbursed, our usable capital exceeds £160 million," Evan said with a smile, clearly pleased.
Despite spending over £16 million on various construction efforts, the government's treasury had grown by several million pounds instead of shrinking.
Arthur nodded, unsurprised by the massive £100 million surplus. He continued, "And what about average household income? Has there been an increase over the past year?"
While a well-funded government was good news, whether the public was also prospering determined whether Australia's system could be sustained.
If the elite lived in luxury while the common folk went hungry and barefoot, then no amount of government funding would matter.
"Your Highness, the development of various sectors created a large number of jobs, giving Australians many employment opportunities. To protect their rights, we required that no positions exploit or underpay workers. Currently, our industrial zones employ over 10,000 workers who have contributed to both infrastructure and factory production. According to our estimates, average annual income per person has risen from £8 to over £9. In the industrial zones alone, more than 2,000 positions now pay over £10 per year. As workers gain experience and the zones continue to expand, higher-paying roles will become increasingly common, helping further raise national income," Evan said with a smile.
Construction naturally stimulated the economy—and quite effectively so. Australia's massive development projects had created many well-paying jobs.
This had made a substantial contribution to both economic growth and income levels—and it was only the beginning.
(End of Chapter)
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