I was the Founding Father of the United States

Chapter 145 Clipper Ship

Chapter 145 Clipper Ship

Because Chen Wenbin did not specifically instruct that the donation of his estate be kept secret, the news spread quickly.

In no time, rumors such as "Governor Robin has gone mad!", "Dr. Robin is the richest man in North America!", and "Dr. Robin Chen is going to donate his £200,000 estate!" spread throughout almost every tavern and village in New England.

People talk about Dr. Robin's legendary deeds and his wealth, and also discuss the authenticity of his donations.

People in North America at that time were very simple and honest, and most of them were easily swayed by public opinion. Chen Wenbin had a very good public image before, so many people were willing to believe that this was true.

Then, The New England Voice and The Boston Globe published a major news story:

His Excellency Governor Robin Chan has donated £5000 to establish the best university in America in Pittburgh in the west!

This seems to further confirm the rumor.

Even when Rhode Island Colony Governor Stephen Hopkins inspected the shipyard, he asked Chen Wenbin about this matter directly.

"—I do indeed intend to donate the majority of my estate!"

When questioned by the governor, Chen Wenbin readily nodded and admitted it.

"This can't really be considered a donation. My children will also have management and control over the foundation in the future, and they'll receive a stipend every year—you know, it's not a good thing for a family to have too much wealth that doesn't match their status!"

Stephen Hopkins was a clever man. He paused for a moment, then pointed at Chen Wenbin and laughed loudly, "Robin! You're a cunning fellow! You fooled me too! I really thought you'd gone mad and wanted to be a saint!"

Chen Wenbin shrugged and said, "Saints never end up well. I'm very fortunate and don't want to experience suffering and tragedy!"

The governor shook his head and sighed, "Yes! What fool would deliberately endure hardship? If such a person existed, it would surely be for greater profits and benefits!"

Chen Wenbin agreed wholeheartedly, exchanged a glance with the governor, and tacitly avoided discussing the topic.

"—So, when will this Clipper be launched? You raved about it so much last time, I'm really curious whether its actual speed after launch will reach the twelve knots you mentioned."

The governor looked at the Three Gun clipper ship in the dry dock, which was almost finished and being painted, and turned to ask.

"You'll have to ask Mr. Viktorai at the shipyard for the exact launch time. I just got back five days ago, and this is my first time at the shipyard."

Chen Wenbin explained briefly, then turned and waved to the middle-aged man in a gentleman's suit not far behind him, saying, "Henry! Please come over and introduce this ship to the Governor!"

"Yes, Your Excellency!"

Henry Vicsolley immediately walked quickly to the two men's side.

He was a professional shipbuilding engineer recruited by Chen Wenbin from France. He had participated in the repair work of the French warship "Sun King". His grandfather and father were also shipbuilding craftsmen in France.

However, because he was a Huguenot, he was always ostracized in France. After Chen Wenbin used Prince Conti's connections to hire him, he sent him to North America with five craftsmen to take over the shipyard in Robin City. Now, five months later, he has already memorized all the data on the clipper ship.

He then introduced in somewhat broken English: "—The design of the Clipper was by the genius Lord Robin; we simply brought his blueprints to life."

The most striking features of this ship are its V-shaped bow, its impressive 6:1 length-to-width ratio, its towering three-gun sails, and the fact that its interior is reinforced with steel components.

"We've tested it with a scale model, and the V-shaped bow effectively reduces water resistance. We predict the fastest speed could reach over 15 knots. In another two weeks, once the paint has dried, it will be ready for sea trials."

The governor thought for a moment and asked, "How many tons of displacement does it have? How many sailors does it require?"

Henry Vicsolley immediately replied, "It has a displacement of about 754 tons and requires at least 30 crew members. This is a small clipper ship. We are currently planning to build a medium-sized immigration ship of 1200 tons. As for large clipper ships of more than 1500 tons, they require a lot of steel, so there are no plans for them at the moment."

Chen Wenbin took over the conversation and said to the governor, "I plan to build a steel plant in Pittburgh, which will then supply steel components directly to the shipyard, thus speeding up the shipbuilding process."

Governor Hopkins nodded slowly. He actually attached great importance to the dock industrial area of ​​Robintown, because it was one of the few industrial towns in the entire New England region. It could not only manufacture spinning machines, glassware, iron farm tools and firearms, but now it could also build ships.

The jobs provided by these factories allowed many people who had lost their livelihoods due to the sugar tax to regain their income, effectively stabilizing the order of the colony.

His only worry now is that Chen Wenbin is going to take up the post of governor in the west. Once Chen Wenbin closes down these factories and takes the craftsmen away, he will have a headache for those who have lost their jobs.

I heard that Governor Bernard in Boston has completely given up on things and left Hutchinson to take the fall for the angry businessmen and the public, but he doesn’t want to lose his title as Governor of Rhode Island.

So after visiting the dock and returning to the shipyard's lounge, he sat by the fire and directly expressed his concerns to Chen Wenbin—he was the one who brought Governor Chen and Diana together, and there was nothing wrong with the two of them.

Upon hearing the governor's concerns about Rhodes Island's unemployment rate, Boss Chen laughed heartily and waved his hand, saying, "My dear Stephen! You can rest assured, I will definitely not close the factory in Robin City. This is my home; how could I abandon it?"

"That's good!"

The governor breathed a sigh of relief, exaggeratedly wiped the sweat from his forehead, and then sighed helplessly to Chen Wenbin: "Now the North American colonies are not allowed to issue paper money, which has led to the bankruptcy of many merchants. Moreover, the strict crackdown on smuggling has also increased the cost of brewing rum by a lot, but the price of selling rum cannot be increased. — You have seen those rum merchants like John Hancock in Boston, haven't you?"

I heard they're planning to cause a scene, to let those London councilors know about the discontent of the North American people—sigh! If it weren't for your factories, I certainly wouldn't be so relaxed right now!

Upon hearing this, Chen Wenbin could only offer a few words of comfort to the governor. He then told him about the possibility of repurchasing the shares of the London Textile Company at a 10% premium, or directly exchanging them for shares of the Southern Development Company and the Bank of America. The old governor hesitated only slightly before readily choosing the latter.

He was certain that Chen Wenbin wouldn't cheat him, and he also believed in Chen Wenbin's ability to make money. So what was there to hesitate about?

Just like when we decided to invest in Chen Wenbin, we should continue to increase our investment.