Chapter 365: Swindling Immigrants
For two full days and nights, the fire raged. Only after a torrential downpour did the citywide inferno subside. By then, two-thirds of Chicago was reduced to ashes—hotels, commercial towers, opera houses, banks, and the post office all devoured by the flames.
Charred bodies lay everywhere on the streets, while countless more had been incinerated with no remains at all. Others, in panic, fled to the shoreline of Lake Michigan, only to drown after leaping into the lake. Corpses drifted upon the water. Meanwhile, crowds of displaced survivors converged on the western district near the Hechingen Bank's Chicago branch.
To ward off potential outbreaks of disease, the bank's staff spent a fortnight disinfecting the area around their premises, setting up makeshift shelters for refugees. Though not located downtown, the branch had more capital invested in land and buildings than anywhere else—indeed, it occupied the largest bank property in Chicago, with broad open spaces reminiscent of East Africa's own. This helped them fence off trouble.
"Manager, a telegram arrived from New York Headquarters!"
"They seem pretty well-informed," Manager Odysseus said, sipping tea in his office.
Although most of Chicago's communications had been cut off, in the western area they had been restored. The south side's warehouses, railways, mills, and wharves along the Chicago River were also spared from the flames.
Scanning the telegram, Odysseus's brow furrowed.
"Sigh... they won't let me rest for even a moment. And how is it I've never heard of an East African 'Immigration Bureau' in Chicago? Have you?"
His secretary shook her head.
"If you haven't, sir, I certainly haven't."
Odysseus shrugged.
"Whatever. The New York office wants us to assist that bureau. But the thought of people emigrating out of America feels… surreal."
Yet Odysseus didn't doubt success. The fire had wiped out many Chicagoans' life savings. Now, the streets teemed with refugees; if they didn't get help soon, they wouldn't even have food. Indeed, in the last day alone, robberies in the West Side never ceased. Relying on the US government? Just as well pray to God. In fact, most relief in Chicago came from grassroots groups and churches, not official agencies.
Finding that the East African Immigration Bureau was active in the US was no shock. Besides Germany and Austria, the largest German population was in America. Even with East Africa siphoning off some fraction, the US in 1870 still had some 7 million Germans (historically, closer to 8 million), out of a total population of around 36 million (in reality, 38 million).
This meant America had more Germans than even the "German" Kingdom of East Africa, and they were arguably more "authentic." Though some were Hungarian and other Austro-Hungarian nationals, that was still more legitimate than East Africa's approach—where "German" went beyond bloodline to cultural identity.
Soon, with support from the Hechingen Bank's Chicago branch, the East African Immigration Bureau launched its plan:
"Hey, friend, where are you from?"
"Huh?"
"I mean, are you interested in moving elsewhere? We find jobs for unemployed folks."
"Really? A job? Good heavens, yes!" In the aftermath of the fire, just hearing "job" lit hope in people's eyes.
"Of course! Only thing is, it's not here in Chicago. It's out of state."
"That's no problem, mister. Look at this place—my restaurant boss is now a pile of ashes…my home's gone, everything's burned up…" He choked back sobs.
"Don't cry. The worst is behind you now. You just need a fresh start, friend. Being a grown man, you can't spend the day weeping!"
"Easy for you to say. I came to America at fifteen, and after years of saving, it's all gone!"
"Well, look at it this way—Jesus was nailed to the cross, and yet by God's grace, you crossed paths with me. I can bring you someplace better—better conditions than Chicago, just less entertainment. But for folks like us who've lost everything, if you're willing to work hard, you can build a good life."
"That… well…"
"We're leaving by boat, if that helps. Setting off from the canal heading east."
"A boat east, so not out west? Then… all right."
The poor man had nothing left to lose. He assumed "east" meant New York or somewhere else in the eastern United States. Unbeknownst to him, the "south" was actually the Southern Hemisphere—East Africa.
For a few days, the bureau roamed Chicago picking up whomever they could—primarily Germans, but also from various backgrounds. They'd pass themselves off as "friendly job recruiters," deftly avoiding any mention of East Africa as the destination. In many cases, the immigrants assumed "going south" meant Mississippi or Louisiana. Only once they boarded the ocean liner in New York did they realize the next stop wasn't the American South.
After that, East African soldiers in uniform took over: gone was the smiling "friend." Now they faced stern military discipline. Some real Germans suspected it was a sneaky drafting scheme—they'd fled Germany precisely to avoid conscription, after all. Anxiety pervaded, but it was too late. The ship had already weighed anchor for East Africa.
Not just in Chicago, the bureau had set up across the Americas—Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico. Countless German immigrants to the New World were scraping by. Many had found it wasn't the paradise they'd imagined, so the bureau took advantage of that desperation. If you spoke German, you could "watch over the natives," or "farm the land"—suitable for East Africa's needs.
Compared to the original recruits from Germany, this fresh wave of immigrants might be second-tier. But East Africa needed them too. Among them were plenty of railroad workers—the perfect labor force for the kingdom's upcoming railway expansion.
All told, it was a grand scheme of deception. But in the midst of disaster and chaos, with the US government largely absent, these unfortunates were only too eager to believe. And so from the ashes of Chicago to the piers of New York, they boarded ships bound for a far-off land… East Africa.
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