Chapter 1039: The Bible: Indian Gospel
North of the Port of New Orleans.
Elcano peered through his telescope at the "performance" his soldiers and the Indians were staging. Turning to his staff officer, he said, "We must send scouts to double-check that there are no American militias in the buffer zone."
He had received a report yesterday afternoon that Wayne's forces had already disbanded.
With that, the immediate crisis facing New Orleans was essentially resolved.
Yet, the furrow in Elcano's brow did not soften.
He knew that the Louisiana colony was far from truly safe.
As long as the American government continued to push its westward expansion, he would inevitably face the pressure of American militias again sooner or later.
He couldn't help but let out a heavy sigh.
There were simply too many Americans. It was estimated that by next year, the number of Americans on the eastern bank of the Mississippi River would exceed 300,000.
Meanwhile, Madrid's investment in Louisiana remained incredibly stingy.
Following the current trend, in three years at most, the number of Americans infiltrating Louisiana would be several times that of the Spaniards.
The Empire was destined to lose this colony.
Elcano instructed his staff to keep a close eye on the skirmish before returning to his tent with a heavy heart. He pulled out a pen and paper and began drafting a letter to the King. The core of his message detailed the dire situation in Louisiana and pleaded for more immigrants to be sent as quickly as possible.
In truth, the reason Joseph had prevented Spain from sending an expeditionary force to North America was twofold: he didn't want to divert forces from the Portuguese front, and it was a calculated move in his North American strategy.
He was well aware that Spain could never hold Louisiana.
Even if Carlos IV started desperately sending immigrants now, they could never outpace the speed of American westward expansion.
To block the Americans east of the Mississippi River, one had to rely on the local Indians.
Only they had the numbers to match the Americans.
But given the capabilities of the Spanish, even with step-by-step guidance, they would find it difficult to consolidate the power of the Indian tribes.
Moreover, the Spanish looked down on these "savage" natives from the bottom of their hearts, considering it beneath them to rely on their strength.
It was a case of being unwilling to learn even if someone offered to teach them.
According to the original course of history, the Americans would effectively control Louisiana within a few years.
After that, the entire western half of North America would be an open road for them.
They wouldn't encounter any real resistance until they hit the Spanish colony of California on the western coast.
And Spain, with only the thin strip of California and no strategic depth, would be unable to withstand the American militias.
The result would be the formation of the modern American borders—an emerging empire with a perfect geographic location and incredibly rich resources.
Thus, Joseph intended to take over Louisiana from Spain first. It had been a French colony just over twenty years ago, and many French immigrants still lived there.
Only by deploying according to his strategy would it be possible to sever America's path to the west.
An America confined to the eastern part of North America could be effectively checked by Canada alone.
If he added the influence of the Indian tribes and the Mexicans, the North American continent of the future would not be as lopsided as it was in his previous life. This would allow France to develop peacefully in Europe.
At the moment, Joseph had successfully blocked the Americans on the eastern bank of the Mississippi, yet he ensured they remained a potent threat to Spain.
Given Spain's historical lack of interest in Louisiana, Carlos IV would likely be more than willing to toss this "hot potato" to France, provided France could offer a suitable price.
Just as they had once sold it to Napoleon without a second thought.
However, Joseph did not intend to trade Tuscany for Louisiana—that was the price Napoleon had offered Spain in the past, though it was never actually delivered.
Joseph had something else that could sway the Spanish.
In fact, at the same time Father Vigne and the others arrived in Florida, several small teams of French geologists had landed in California in western North America.
Following the clues provided by the Crown Prince, they were searching for the bargaining chip that would be used to trade for Louisiana.
...
Southern United States.
In a town built by the Creek tribe, thousands of Indians were excitedly surrounding a mountain of loot. Several priests were chanting arcane incantations, performing sacrifices to tell the spirits of this hard-won victory.
It was no wonder they were so thrilled. In the past, it was always the Americans who plundered them, while they could only retaliate with small ambushes on isolated American merchant caravans.
This time, they had truly made the Americans suffer.
Cekili had just finished a rough tally; the value of the seized goods likely exceeded $300,000!
This was a staggering amount of wealth, something they hadn't dared to dream of before.
Once the sacrifice concluded, Cekili fairly distributed the spoils among all the participating tribes.
Cheers from the various Indian tribes echoed through the surroundings.
Night fell.
Inside a small wooden hut in the Creek settlement, Vigne and several other priests were discussing and recording something. Outside the window, the rhythmic thumping of Indian drums and bursts of laughter frequently interrupted their conversation.
A young priest pushed open the door and walked in, addressing Father Vigne. "They have decided to form an alliance. It includes all eleven tribes in the Alabama region."
"Cekili has become the leader of the alliance. They are currently discussing how to respond to the potential retaliatory actions the Americans might take."
Vigne nodded slightly. "Thank you for your hard work."
He marveled silently. Everything was unfolding exactly as the Crown Prince had predicted. After commanding the attack on New Orleans and presiding over the distribution of loot, Cekili's prestige among the Indian tribes had reached an all-time high.
The first step of the tribal alliance had been successfully completed.
But he immediately recalled the Crown Prince's instructions before they left Paris.
Although these Indian tribes had formed an alliance, they remained very wary of one another. This was a major reason why they had always failed to defeat the Americans.
It wasn't surprising; their customs varied wildly. For instance, their totems were all different, and some even conflicted. The Creek tribe's totem was the eagle, while the Ishiki tribe's was the crane; the former had always believed their totem preyed upon the latter's.
Some tribes even spoke different languages.
This made it impossible for them to truly merge into one.
Without a large enough scale, they would continue to be bullied at will by the Americans.
The primary goal of missionaries like Vigne in North America was to follow the Crown Prince's orders and mold the Indians into a single, unified entity.
Vigne turned up the oil lamp, glanced at the manuscript in his hand, and addressed the others. "Alright, let's continue. Next, let's discuss their God of Fire. Has anyone figured out the appropriate correspondence?"
The discussion continued until one in the morning before they finally dispersed to rest.
Vigne carefully straightened the manuscripts and tucked them into his traveling bag.
The title written on the first page of those documents was: "The Bible: Indian Gospel."
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