MTL - Rebirth in America: Great Slave Owner-Chapter 11 JP Morgan
On this day, John Pierpont-Morgan had just arrived at the company (hereinafter referred to as Morgan) when his assistant reported to him: "Boss, there is a Mr. Downing from New Orleans waiting for you in the parlour!"
"Southerner?" Morgan muttered, frowning.
"He said he has a big business to discuss with you!" the assistant added.
"But I don't want to buy cotton!" Morgan shrugged.
Just when the assistant thought he would refuse, he didn't expect Morgan to change the subject: "Okay, for New Orleans' sake, let him in!"
The assistant knew that Morgan said this because his first business was in New Orleans. At that time, a ship owner accepted a commission to transport a shipment of coffee from Brazil to New Orleans, but he did not expect that the American buyer had gone bankrupt. The boat coffee was in his hand, and it happened that he met a well-dressed Morgan on the road, so he accosted him, but he did not expect that Morgan would buy it without hesitation. (It was very cheap, of course, but even so, JP Morgan, who was still in school at the time, borrowed money from his father, JS Morgan.)
Coincidentally, soon after Brazil suffered a cold wave, coffee prices rose sharply, and Morgan earned two or three times the price difference. Although this income is not a big deal in the eyes of the Morgan family, it is JP Morgan's number one after all. This time I did business and it was profitable, so I was very impressed.
After the assistant brought Tangning in and introduced him, Morgan didn't bother to greet Tangning, so he asked Tangning directly, "Mr. Tangning, you said you have a big business to discuss with me, what kind of business is it?"
Tangning took out a light bulb from her purse and replied, "It's this little thing!"
In fact, Tangning found Morgan for a reason. Historically, it was Morgan who invested in Edison's incandescent lamp business and helped him participate in the Paris Expo. It can be said that Morgan was an important driving force for the introduction of electric lamps into thousands of households. Tangning felt that the probability of finding him to cooperate should be very high.
Another important reason is that Morgan at this time
"What is this?!" Morgan asked curiously.
"The light bulb can last for 400 hours!" Tangning introduced.
"Is this true?" Morgan asked in disbelief.
"Of course it's true. If you don't believe me, see this is a patent certificate!" After speaking, Tangning handed the certificate to Morgan.
After seeing Morgan, Tangning still didn't fully believe it, so she said, "Mr. Morgan, I can install it in your house, but I need a small generator!"
Morgan thought for a while, then nodded and agreed, "Okay!"
When he saw the light coming on, Morgan couldn't help exclaiming, "Oh my God! This light is so soft!"
The reason why Morgan would say this is that there were already electric lamps at that time, but they were only arc lamps. Because the light was too strong, they were all used for street lamps and could not be used in homes. The households were still candles and gas lamps, so Morgan. That kind of feeling.
Tangning added, "Not only that, compared to gas lamps, electric lamps are more energy-saving, environmentally friendly and efficient, and they are also cheaper. Therefore, the future application prospects are very broad!"
"Well, not bad!" Morgan nodded in approval, then asked, "Mr. Tangning, are you trying to sell me this patent?"
Tangning shook her head and replied, "I hope you, Mr. Morgan, can invest in our electric light company, because if you want to send electric lights to all households in New York and even in the United States, the central power station alone needs a huge amount of money."
Morgan thought for a while, then said, "Mr. Tangning, you're right, this does require a huge amount of money, so you have to give me some time to think about it!"
"It's natural!" Tangning nodded and agreed, because he also knew that such a big thing wouldn't be accomplished with just one meeting. Morgan wasn't as indifferent to business as Goebbels, and after all, he paid for it. He, and another point is that at this time the Morgan family is in charge of his father JS Morgan, so even if he wants to invest in this project, such a large amount of money will take time to discuss with his father.
But I didn't expect Morgan to change the conversation and say, "But I can install this kind of light in my house first. I took a look at your principle. It is to use this generator to make the light come on, right?"
At this moment, a light flashed in Tangning's mind, and she quickly replied, "That's right, that's it, but I think since generators have already been installed, it's better to install a set of lighting systems directly in your home. Install such lights in the room, so that when you invite friends over to have a party at home, you can reap their surprise and admiration!"
"And you can also take the opportunity to promote your electric light business, right?" Morgan said sharply.
Tangning nodded in disapproval and replied, "This is a normal business promotion. After all, if you don't show the best things and let customers know their advantages, customers won't buy them, right?"
"Mr. Tangning, I don't think you are really a farmer, but a successful businessman!" Morgan said with emotion.
Tangning shrugged and said, "There's no way around this, who made me born in New Orleans!"
"Who made the current cotton business so profitable!" Morgan added, following Tangning's example. (JP Morgan was only 21 at this time.)
So Tangning installed a lighting system in Morgan's mansion on Fifth Avenue, including 4,000 feet of wires and more than 400 light bulbs. The effect not only satisfied Morgan, but also shocked the wealthy friends Morgan invited. , For a time, it became common practice for wealthy people in New York to install lighting systems.
However, there is also a rich man who is not only disturbed, but also slandered in every possible way. He is Rockefeller. In fact, he has a reason for opposing it, because he can see that the appearance of electric lights will definitely affect his business, because his oil refinery controls the absolute control of the United States. Most of the refined kerosene supplies, and a major product of refined kerosene is household kerosene. If everyone starts installing electric lights, then they must give up kerosene lamps, so his kerosene sales will be greatly affected. (In fact, the same is true. After Edison's electric light company officially opened, the gas company's stock price fell by 25%...)
PS: You can often see some jokes about the differences in culture and customs between the North and the South on Douyin, but it is still the most ruthless in the United States in this regard. 100,000 people...