The Invasion of America: a fact story based on the inexorable mathematics of warMuller, J. W. (Julius Washington)
History
The Invasion of America: a fact story based on the inexorable mathematics of war
Muller, J. W. (Julius Washington)
Imaginary wars and battles; United States -- Defenses
Having made good its hold on the new conquest across the Hudson River,
the invading army ceased to expand. Even with the accretion that had
been made to its forces, it had none to spare for further operations,
for it now had under its charge 62,000 square miles of domain with more
than thirty millions of people.
This was a Kingdom. The victor set himself to the task of organizing his
government, which meant the task of turning it to profit.
From the beginning, he had taught the conquered people that an invading
army lives on the country. Wherever his troops entered, the inhabitants
were ordered to supply all that was needed by men and horses.
The occupying troops demanded lodgings and stable-room. They demanded
accommodations for everything belonging to the army. They requisitioned
fuel and straw. They called for teams, cars, motors, wagons, boats, and
claimed the services of their owners. They occupied flour mills and
bakeries. They took machinery, material, tools and equipment for
repairing their munitions of war, bridges, and roads.[159]
In all the towns they seized parts of the hospitals and set them aside
for the care of their men, impressing the hospital attendants into the
service. For the use of their own medical service they forced the towns
to contribute drugs and medicines.
They seized all appliances on land, on water or in the air that might
serve for the transmission of news. Under the allegation that they were
susceptible of use in war, they took all sorts of subjects of peaceful
commerce or industry, from telegraph wire to houses.[160]
_Putting on the Screws_
Already they had subjected Boston to a levy of $50,000 a day for the
maintenance of the troops. They laid on New York and the factory cities
of New Jersey a joint levy of $100,000. They laid another impost for the
same purpose on the big cities of New England of seventy-five thousand.
This one levy alone amounted to 1 million, 575 thousand dollars a week;
and it was only one of many.[161]
They confiscated outright all the cash, funds, realizable securities and
notes belonging to the state, city and local governments. Every bank was
warned under threat of condign punishment to deliver over everything
that might be considered public property. In New York City they seized
from a bank $100,000 that was deposited by a State Department to pay a
draft; and they issued a warning that if the holder of the draft
attempted to collect the amount or permitted it to pass from his
possession, his house and lands would be confiscated.[162]
They declared themselves possessed as absolute owners by right of
conquest of all public property besides cash. Thus in New York they
asserted ownership of ninety-nine million dollars’ worth of suspension
bridges and in Boston they took bridges to the value of ten and a
quarter millions. They took the New York City armories valued at fifteen
millions. They declared that they owned the subways valued at 100
millions.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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