The Shadow of Great Britain-Chapter 1581 - 15: The Publishing Empire of "Britain" (Part 2)
But for Arthur, this kind of success is far from enough.
It’s no longer a few years ago when he was still penniless, scraping by with a few shillings while patrolling Greenwich.
Although he is still far from being the "middle-class who can earn forty thousand pounds a year" as spoken by the Earl of Dalmo, monetary success holds little meaning for him.
Especially after witnessing the immense public pressure Viscount Palmerston endured due to the Caucasus incident this year, Arthur finally realized what the most powerful weapon truly is in a post-Parliament-Reform British society.
Without deploying two hundred thousand troops, without dispatching the Mediterranean Fleet, merely relying on a few quill pens from Fleet Street, the Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland could be left floundering and embarrassed.
No wonder, just a while ago, Disraeli’s "behind-the-scenes boss," Earl of Lyndhurst, enviously remarked, "In my view, Thomas Barnes, the editor of The Times, is the most powerful person in Britain."
Viscount Palmerston had to admit grudgingly, "This ’Jupiter of The Times’ has practically overshadowed the new Prime Minister!"
Of course, their evaluations might be somewhat exaggerated, but being judged so hyperbolically itself indicates something.
As is well-known, Sir Arthur Hastings doesn’t always heed the orders from above, and acting against the authorities’ wishes isn’t an uncommon incident. However, this doesn’t stop him from naturally paying attention to a few sensitive words when reading documents and newspapers, such as: the most powerful.
His desire for power surpassed that for money and any lady, though he didn’t like others to notice this.
Hence, becoming Prime Minister or King was evidently not a good idea; he didn’t want to stand in the limelight with endless glory, as the lesson taught by the Tower of London was too profound. He did not wish for William Turner’s painting "Rain, Policemen, and the Tower of London—Arthur Hastings 1832" to appreciate in value so rapidly.
As the saying goes, prolonged illness makes a skilled doctor; the license-less Arthur proved through personal experience that controlling a publishing company wielding vast influence was exceptionally beneficial for physical and mental health, particularly aiding in alleviating heart ailments.
With such thoughts, it wasn’t difficult to guess what suggestions Arthur might propose at the board meeting.
"Reorganize the magazine and establish a publishing company?"
"And also open and establish new magazines?"
"What? The new magazine will sell for just 6 pennies per copy? If we deduct taxes and printing costs, can we still guarantee profits?"
"Arthur, don’t blame me for not reminding you, but we’re already operating at a deficit with ’Nature’ magazine. Although I see it as a contribution to social progress considering the stable subscription lists from the Royal Society and other national academies of sciences, rashly starting another cheap magazine is probably foolish."
Arthur lounged against the conference table, tapping on the deficit report of "Nature" magazine under his fingertips.
He wasn’t surprised to hear an outcry of opposition to his new suggestion, as not every partner harbored the same ideas as him; since it’s business, economic interests naturally take priority.
However, since Arthur dared to propose this, he surely had a basis for it.
And what gave Arthur such confidence was a new machine that had just been designed recently.
Arthur took out a copy of "The Penny Magazine of the Practical Knowledge Communication Association" from his bag.
Occupying a large section of the page was an illustration: a steel beast was devouring rolls of dazzling white paper, steam rising like the breath of a great dragon between meshing gears. On the left, traditional printing workers sweated over type setting; on the right, workers using the new printers, clad in suits, simply brushed the control panel, and piles of magazines awaited bundling.
Esteemed pioneers of the publishing world!
While Fleet Street struggled with the weekly printing limit of thirty thousand copies, we proudly announced to Britain and all of Europe—the steam cylinder printing press has broken the shackles of production!
A single machine with a steady output of 4000 sheets per hour, equal to twenty hand-operated presses running day and night!
Ink utilization rate increased by 300%, paper wastage reduced to 1.5%, allowing every penny to burst with the energy of a pound!
The patented type-casting system increased typesetting speed eightfold, enabling even Shakespeare’s sonnets to be reproduced in bulk during a tea break!
"With this machine, The Penny Magazine’s circulation can exceed one hundred thousand in three months," praised Mr. Charles Knight of the Practical Knowledge Communication Association: "It is not just a machine but a sowing tool of civilization’s fire!"
Order now to enjoy a year of free maintenance and training certified by the Royal Engineers Association!
Let us jointly tear apart the luxury label of books and magazines, with the power of steam and steel, turning every baker’s breakfast table into a cultural salon of the Enlightenment!
Bradbury & Evans Company
Fleet Street, London | Each for only 850£
"Damn!"
Compared to folks like Dickens and Great Dumas who weren’t precisely short of money, Disraeli was clearly more attuned to the smell of money.
He immediately thought of the new equipment The Times ordered from Germany’s Koenig & Bauer Company earlier this year. Since equipping these new machines, The Times not only enhanced its production capacity but also reduced production costs.
Meanwhile, the press equipped for the Britisher was still the old machine left after Disraeli’s failed launch of the "Representative" newspaper in 1824; even though it was a new product at the time, with a printing speed of 1800 pages per hour, it was undoubtedly at the cutting edge of the industry then.
But after ten years, even leaving aside technological iteration, the old equipment itself often malfunctioned, and the frequently occurring uneven printing was one of the most intolerable issues.
Bradbury & Evans Company’s new product not only easily doubled the printing speed but was also fully steam-powered, enjoying a one-year warranty...
Tired of the old press, Dickens held the advertisement for a long time and finally sighed, "Good, it is genuinely good. And expensive, truly expensive. 850 pounds, six or seven kilograms of gold..."
Heine marveled, "Nearly twenty thousand francs, in Paris, this money is enough to buy four villas with small gardens."
Great Dumas interjected, "In London, it’s enough to buy two detached villas too; I went house hunting with a real estate agent a few years ago; most of the beautiful villas in the West District are only about 500 pounds."
Tennyson, hearing these numbers, could only shiver, "So much money, thrown in just like that?"
Seeing that they were intimidated by the high numbers, Arthur promptly brought out his prepared speech, "850 pounds seem high, but in reality?"
Arthur took a pen and scribbled on paper, "We all know, currently, the mainstream in London’s publishing market is the three-volume set novel. And the standard price for a three-volume novel is 31 shillings 6 pennies; most of us have experienced tough times, and we understand the group that can afford novels at this price is very limited. Many people borrow from circulating libraries or find them in second-hand bookstores. Consequently, many novels from a century or two ago still have a very broad readership. This is also why our separately published three-volume novels always sell worse than ’The Britisher,’ as compared to the three-volume set, ’The Britisher’ priced at 1 shilling is simply too cheap."
Great Dumas, hearing this, couldn’t help but complain, "It’s not just that the three-volume set sells worse than ’The Britisher;’ can you believe it? My ’The Count of Monte Cristo’ doesn’t even sell as much as Eld’s erotic novels. I think his book cannot be publicly released but instead saves his sales. Though the underground printed books are crude, with poor paper quality, evidently, readers don’t care as these books usually sell for just 6 shillings."
