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Empire of the Pacific - A California AAR

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@King50000: I don't think Mr. Jamous will be so lucky in California.

@atomicsoda: Indeed. I was simply amazed when I saw Canada just pop into existence (I'm pretty sure it was by revolution, not entirely sure.)

@Sakura_F: *coughs* I have no idea what your talking about... *coughs*

@CaptRobau: Thank you! As for Pago Pago... The Californians got uppity and renamed the entire island because they couldn't say it. We'll go with that.

@Heroicnoodles: Thank you for your enthusiasm in this AAR, posts like that only make me glad to write these.

@rednax7: Indeed. He can both run the Californian Republic, while riding on the back of a swimming moose as President of the United States.

Due to Popular Demand, Empire of the Pacific shall be written up to the year 2001.
 
@Red Cesar: Emperor Norton I of the United States. He was basically a hobo that wandered around San Francisco claiming to be the Emperor of the United States. He even gave speeches occasionally.
 
Ahh man. A good war will make this aar even more interesting.
 
@Commandante: I'm going after Japan right now, I want to wrestle her out of Russia's control before I go after Canada.

@TKFS: Ah yes, there shall be many wars soon.

@King50000: He does control a crap load of steel, something VERY important in AHD...

@Heroicnoodles: Well, I am glad your happy.

@Morrell8: What King said basically.

@King50000: Small exploit too. I promoted Artisans a lot in the beginning of the game, now they are demoting heavily to Soldiers.

@MrHouse: If it's in the Pacific, I'm going for it.

@Surt: I'll go for the good surfing places first, the rest comes later.

Update inbound. (First one with AHD!)
 
Don't take over Japa, make them your sphere only, please...
 
@Sakura_F: Japan I will not be annexing. If I do anything towards them, it will be puppeting.
 

Harrison: 1886 - 1891​
​


President James Harrison's inauguration was a bright and grand event. The President took the Oath of Office on the steps of the Californian Congress, where he then gave his inaugural address. In it, he proclaimed that he would put together a coalition of "Trust Busters" to first rid the Empire of the Pacific's huge Monopolies, strangling the nation, and then he turned his focus towards the Pacific. He vowed, as he always has, to spread the Californian State across the Pacific, but this time, he mentioned the "liberation" of people currently oppressed under European or native dictatorial rule. This was a landmark statement by the President, as this was the first time he openly advocated claiming land in the Pacific from recognized Governments [1].

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1. James Harrison, Eight President of the Californian Republic.​

Keeping in track with his first promise, the Harrison Administration quickly set out to persuade the Californian Congress to work on doing something about the Trusts inside the nation. This was vehemently opposed by Senator Howard, owner of Howard Industries, who decried the efforts of President Harrison as being downright morally wrong, because without his company, and others like it, it is unlikely that any real development could have taken place in California. Furthermore, he claimed that Howard Industries was his property, and that the Government had no right to intervene in it.

Opinion in the Congress was leaning towards Senator Howard, and the Smith-Webster Antitrust Act, seemed to be gathering enough votes to have it defeated in the House and the Senate. This all changed in the summer of 1886, when a few men in one of Howard Industries' Steel Mills went on strike, demanding better wages. The strike was loosely organized by the Workers Union Party and the local, underground, Steel Workers Union. In response to this, Howard Industries raised their private security force to deal with these workers.

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2. Howard Industries' "Union-Busters" marching through San Diego.​

With the arrival of these armed men, the strikers became panicked. Although only there to protect the steel mill and allow new workers to enter, the men had begun to threaten the strikers. The resulting chaos led to an all out war between the two factions. It is still unknown who fired the first shot, but the strikers and the security team soon began to battle near this mill, unknowingly decisively and devastatingly deciding the fate of Trusts in California. The battle lasted only a few hours, with the security men quickly enveloping the strikers, and either killing or paroling each and every man.

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3. Private Security forces clashing with the Striking Workers.​

The final outcome of the battle was four security members killed, with fifteen wounded. The strikers had one hundred and thirteen killed, with two hundred and two wounded. The outcry against this was immediate, fierce, and wholesome. The Californian Congress, the next day, passed the Anti-Trust Act almost unanimously, with only Senator Howard and a few congressmen voting against it. President Harrison was present in the Congress when the bill was passed, and he signed it into law right on the floor of the Californian Senate.

Public sentiment threw itself unwaveringly towards the Antitrust Act. They were shocked that a company could be allowed to kill these men. Most reasoned because the company had grown so large, that it felt it could do anything. The only way to stop it was to splinter the company and destroy it capability to have a major influence on the nation. Harrison's "Trust Busters" immediately set out, working on dismantling Howard Industries into several smaller companies. Senator Howard himself was also arrest, on the charges that he had ordered the security forces to fire upon strikers. This was a true charge, in fact, Senator Howard had written in the 1879 agreement to establish this security force that all striking members should be fired upon to disperse the crowd.

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4. President Harrison signing the Smith-Webster Anti-Trust Act of 1886.​

With the "Trust Busters" fully at work, President Harrison turned his attention toward the Pacific once again. The Territorial Government in Hawaii recently called for a Constitutional Convention to apply to become a fully functioning state inside California. The Convention took place in the early fall of 1886, with the new Constitution passed on December 6th, 1886. The decision was then turned over to the Californian Congress, where President Harrison gave a stirring speech, requesting that this admission for statehood be accepted by Hawaii. The vote was quick, and overwhelming. The Territory of Hawaii was officially incorporated to the Californian Republic, and had one district allocated to it, adding two senators and three congressmen to the Californian Congress.

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5. The Flag of the District of Hawaii being raised over the new District Capital.​

The Spring of 1887 brought a new jubilation to the Californian Republic, the countries first cruiser, the CRS Pacific, was launched out of a San Diegan sloop under much fanfare and celebration. Her sea trials took only a day, on board was President Harrison to enjoy the comforts and knowledge that the Empire of the Pacific's ships are top of the line, and ready for action should the need arise. She was by far the largest ship of line, and had three more sister ships in que back in San Diego. The Navy enjoyed the versatility of this Cruiser so much, they decided to scrap some of the smaller, antiquated ships from the 1830s and 1840s, just to gain more money and material to construct more cruisers.

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6. The CRS Pacific underway off the coast of San Diego.​

Although everyone in the Californian Republic thought the whole issue of trusts was behind them, one final stand was made by Andrew Jamous, the founder and CEO of Jamous Steel Works. He sued the federal Government, claiming that the Smith-Webster Anti-Trust Act could not apply to him, as he only held control over the steel production in Northern California. The argument he made was that yes, he did run a nearly unopposed business in Northern California, but the Smith-Webster Antitrust Act specifically worded that any nationwide monopoly could not exist and would be broken up. Since his business was not nationwide, he could be excluded from the act.

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7. Andrew Jamous, the man leading the crusade against the Smith-Webster Antitrust Act.​

Jamous was insistent on the legal wording of the Antitrust Act, making every effort he could to wrestle control of his company away from the hands of the Federal Government. Although held in high standards by President Harrison, the "Trust Busters" were a quick unsavory bunch of folks. Even with a trial pending, they began to whittle away at the offices of Jamous Steel Works, even restoring to breaking and entering to take documents and even rob the place of money and items, some belonging personally to Mr. Jamous. When word of this finally reached the Police Department in Eureka, they sprung into action. The Trust Busters were simply acting illegally, looting and pillaging Jamous Steel Work's main office, as the judge had even suspended the break up of the company. They did not go quietly, however, claiming to be above the law, the Trust Busters defiantly continued until the police drew their weapons, and all hell broke loose after that. One of the Trust Busters took out their pistol and fired randomly into the crowd of Police Officers, where a fight soon occurred. Fifteen minuets later and the Trust Busters were subdued, three killed, one wounded, and the rest arrested.

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8. The Eureka Police Department dealing with the looting "Trust Busters".​

This simple, barbaric action of looting Mr. Jamous' office was simply too much for the jury to stomach. Instead, they saw how the philanthropic Andrew Jamous was employing workers at fair wages, producing high quality, low cost steel for Northern California. In fact, Jamous' attorney brought up the simple fact that Jamous Steel Work's monopoly on Steel in Northern California was half due to the quality and cheap price of the Steel when compared to competitors. It was of higher quality and still ten percent cheaper. The jury soon found Jamous Steel Works not in violation of the Smith-Webster Antitrust Act, half on the wording inside the bill, and half because Mr. Jamous simply had the good of the people in mind, not the strangling of the Californian Economy like Howard Industries used to be.

Since prevailing over the Antitrust President Harrison, Andrew Jamous was hailed as a Californian Conservative Hero, and was quickly picked by the Conservative Legislature of the Eureka District to serve as Eureka's Senator in the Californian Senate. Mr. Jamous graciously accepted this position and was sworn in as Eureka's junior senator on December 21st, 1887. Senator Jamous gave his first speech in front of the Freedom Fountain in San Diego, calling for all Californian Conservatives to rally around him, and his Anti-Imperialist, Pro-Business message. This speech quickly propelled him to claim to be the leader of the opposition, and by far the Californian Conservative's most outspoken member.

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9. Freedom Fountain in San Diego, with the Californian Congress in the background.​

Quick to respond to this new opposition, President Harrison proclaimed that a majority of the Pacific Islands were currently under Californian Military Administration, with only a few more to land soldiers on. He was emphatic in stating that he would continue to colonize the Pacific, and would soon be looking towards engaging in talks with some governments of Southeast Asian countries to have areas to station troops and ships, to continue California's quest to be the ruler of the Pacific's waves. A small treaty between the United Kingdom and California was worked out, outlining the colonization of New Guinea. California could lay claim to the northeastern section of the island, while the United Kingdom would control the southeastern portion.

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10. The signing of the Anglo-Californian Pacific Treaty of 1888.​

A growing concern was starting to tug at the edges of President Harrison's administration, more and more Californians found themselves out of a job, and immigration to the big cities from the more rural areas began to increase. Because of the recent antitrust legislation, the large corporations that used to provide many jobs were now smaller and more numerous in size, but didn't offer the same amount of jobs. This, combined with immigration from Europe, only made things worse. San Diego alone, the hub of Californian industry, was posting an 8.6% jobless rate amongst non-farm workers. These unemployed and under employed men began to grow angry at the Federal Party in general, and the Californian Conservatives saw a massive boost in growth, because of the attraction of Senator Jamous as well as their pro-business, pro-growth platform.

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11. Out of work Californians waiting outside a steel mill for a potential job.​

The Harrison Administration set out immediately to try and remedy the situation. Ramming a bill through the Federal Congress, massive amounts of Californian Tax Payer money was to be pumped into the economy to try and stimulate growth and development. Factories all across the Californian mainland as well as those in Pacific, were to be expanded and their budgets guaranteed by the Californian Government. President Harrison and his Federal Party felt this was simply the only way out of this situation, but the Californian Conservatives and the rest of the right-wing politicians decried this operation, saying that a government so hellbent on breaking monopolies was in the process of creating one gigantic monopoly, the Californian Government.

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12. Production Report for the Californian Republic in 1888.​

To make matters worse, this new government investment raised increased calls for the Government to do something about the issue of Unions. Ever since the Antitrust legislation was passed, the call for the legalization of Unions was raised, only now was the issue becoming a boiling point. Since many factories had to fire some people, or give them severe cuts in pay, many workers clamored for Unions to be put together to try and protect their rights, and not get undercut by immigrants from Europe who would work for much less, as the Californian Standard of Living was still quite high, as well as wages, which where almost double that of Europe's.

In Santa Monica, California, a group of workers, called the Californian Union Rights Group, meet inside the boardroom of the popular Arcadia Hotel, to issue their own resolution to the Californian Government, asking to, quite frankly, make Unions legal or face a general uprising from like-minded people, as well as the increasingly powerful Worker's Union Party, which now could rightly claim to be the third largest party in the nation.

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13. The Arcadia Hotel in Santa Monica, the location of the Californian Union Rights Group.​

The Harrison Administration, fearing a revolt at home while it conquered the vast Pacific Ocean, had no choice but to concede. It threw its support behind a bill in Congress that would legalize all Trade Unions in the Californian Republic and give them specific rights that the corporations couldn't infringe upon. This reform was generally seen as the largest victory by the Worker's Union Party in their existence, and it showed the people that they were now a force to be reckoned with, that the Federals nor the Conservatives could effectively govern without them having some say in the Government. This gave the Worker's Union, and their leader John Henderson, substantial power.

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14. John Henderson, the leader of the Worker's Union Party.​

Surprisingly, at a meeting of the Federal Party in San Diego, a normally simple issue of planning the party's platform turned into a huge debate over the way the Federal Party was run. The Pro-Imperialist group rallied behind President Harrison and the continuation of his Pacific Expansion policy, mostly meaning the now conquest of other nation's territory, while the Anti-Expansionist, but supportive of keeping current territory, faction rallied around Henry Hunters. After a fierce debate about which policy to adopt, the party simply split into two, the Pro-Harrison faction remaining the Federal Party and the Pro-Hunters faction becoming the new Progressive Party.

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15. Henry Hunters, the leader of the new Progressive Party.​

When 1890 rolled around, the Californian Census department released quite surprising findings. California proper didn't experience much growth at all, instead Baja California and the Hawaiian Islands experienced the most growth over the past five years. Overall, the California Republic grew by 320,000 able bodied males in the past five years. The total population of the Californian Republic was recorded to be 6,494,252 persons. Another surprising trend was the increase of support for the Worker's Union Party which was growing immensely.

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15. Population Statistics of the Californian Republic, 1890.​

With the election season once again descending upon California, President Harrison took his damaged coalition of parties and sought to regain control of the Presidency once again. This election was filled with candidates, each faction vying for political control. The Progressives ran Edward Warner, a former expansionist who now feels California has grown large enough, and its time to work with what colonial holdings she has now. The Californian Conservatives ran Senator Andrew Jamous, the gifted speaker who is against expansion and pro-business. The Worker's Union decided to stop boycotting the elections and ran Donald Appleton, a Worker's Union member of Congress. The fairly new Californian Communists decided to throw their weight behind Appleton. The remaining minor parties supported their coalition leaders.

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16. Progressive Candidate Edward Warner, a now ardent anti-expansionist.​

In the end, the election was very tight. The splitting of the Federal Party led to the collapse of President Harrison's support in Northern California, with that area breaking decisively for their industrial hero, Andrew Jamous. But Harrison's support with the Pacific holdings, and major urban centres along California's coast propelled him once again to victory. Worker's Union Candidate Donald Appleton found his main support only in the big cities, and barely any in the rural countryside. President Harrison was deeply relieved at this victory, but began to doubt if he could win another term after 1896. He remarked to his aide that this would be his last term in office. Publicly, he was authentically enthusiastic of his re-election. At his speech upon the proclamation of victory, he claimed that in this term, the Empire of Liberty would come into full fruition. As the world's 6th strongest nation, and the largest holder of Pacific territory, this claim didn't seem that far fetched.

Previous Update: Baxton: 1881 - 1886
Next Update: Harrison: 1891 - 1896

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Author's Note(s)
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[1] - While the smaller native islands did have governments, none of the Great Powers recognized them as legitimate.


[*] WritAAR of the week!? Magc8Ball, I sincerely thank your for bestowing this honour upon me and my AAR!
 
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