SGB Chapter 315

## Chapter 315: The Power Craving of Scotland Yard

Arthur shook his head in response to Chadwick’s inquiry.

“You know, the so-called tradition of liberty has been considered paramount by Britain ever since the signing of the Magna Carta. And strengthening this tradition is currently the mainstream public opinion. In order to pass the Reform Act, the Prime Minister just persuaded His Majesty the King to restructure Parliament. Those newly elected MPs are very clear about why they can sit on the green leather chairs in the Palace of Westminster. We might be able to persuade one of them to change their stance. But we can’t reverse the current political climate, because that would be equivalent to opposing the Prime Minister. The MPs, especially those from the Whig Party, won’t do such a foolish thing.”

Although Chadwick had known from the beginning that this was an unsolvable problem, hearing it confirmed by someone else still gave him a small mental blow.

His face was changing color, and he paced back and forth, leaning against the wall, seemingly pondering something.

Seeing this, Arthur was about to take out the document he had recently received from Paris from his small bag. However, before he could take it out, he heard the seductive voice of the Red Devil in his ear.

“Arthur, why bother? Why do you care so much about this? They won’t consider changing their own prejudices until they crash and burn. That’s humanity. The only lesson humanity has learned from history is that humanity won’t learn from history. Thus, history often repeats itself in an astonishing way.”

Arthur took out his pipe, put it in his mouth, and asked while lighting it: “Agareus, do you know that I hate Hegel, so you deliberately quoted him to anger me? Or is this just a trivial mistake of your learned devil?”

“Oh…” Agareus chuckled, covering his mouth: “Arthur, I’m sorry, did I upset you?”

Arthur threw away the match and took a puff of his pipe.

“No. If it’s just these few words you said, Hegel is right. But if I don’t put up some resistance, I’ll be part of history soon. As for me hating Hegel, it doesn’t mean I oppose all his theories. I just simply dislike the man.

Similarly, I use Hegel’s other arguments as a counterattack to his own words: Only those who lie in the pit and never look up at the sky will not fall into the pit again. Error itself is a necessary step to reach the truth. It is because of these errors that truth will be discovered. Therefore, those who have never seen ugliness never understand what beauty is.”

Hearing this, the Red Devil’s torn lips almost reached his ears, and a sharp, metallic friction sound came from between his sharp teeth: “Oh? Those who think great thoughts must walk the great paths of error? Arthur, I didn’t expect you to be a supporter of this kind of rhetoric.”

“Those who walk the paths of error are numerous, but their errors may not be great. Before the veil of ignorance that covers everyone is lifted, no one knows whether what they do is right or wrong. Human cognitive abilities cannot go beyond the scope of their own experience or perception, so naturally they cannot recognize the essence and laws of development of things.

This is also the fundamental reason why humans cannot learn from history, because everyone only realizes after receiving enough painful lessons that their own existence, their decades of time, in the end, are just one more number in the statistical data of historical documents. Or maybe it’s plus two or minus three. In any case, different statistical methods will indeed cause some differences.”

The Red Devil put his arm around Arthur’s shoulder and laughed loudly: “Just like Scotland Yard’s statistics on London’s prostitutes?”

“They are streetwalkers, or you can call them lost sheep.”

Arthur glanced at him, took a puff of his pipe: “Agareus, if you were a London thug, I could have sent you to prison to tread the criminal treadmill for six hours a day just for that last sentence. Have you ever seen the wheel of a mill? The criminal treadmill and that thing have almost the same structure. But I think Sir William Cubitt is too lacking in business acumen to only use this thing in prison. He should buy a shop separately and charge customers two shillings a month for treadmill usage. He’ll be rich in no time. At least I think Alexander would have a need for it. A smaller figure would be beneficial for him in a duel.”

“Alexander?” The Red Devil chuckled, covering his mouth: “Arthur, you still remember your fat friend! But I think he won’t need to use the treadmill to lose weight.”

Arthur was startled when he heard this. He blurted out: “Where is he now?”

“Where else? Of course he’s in isolation in the hospital.”

Agareus casually replied as he trimmed his nails: “As you saw before, he and that sensitive and irritable German lad unfortunately encountered a patient having an episode while watching the play. So, for safety’s sake, all the theater patrons were stuffed into the hospital for isolation and observation. If he’s lucky, he should be out in ten days. But if he’s unlucky…”

At this point, Agareus paused, his smile full of malice: “Then you can wait to collect their corpses. Don’t blame me for not reminding you, cholera is one of the top hitters under Baal’s command. Once you get that disease, it can take your life in as little as a few hours. The fat guy’s death can be considered a relief, but for you, Arthur, I can only reiterate, the devil doesn’t have any kind of ‘death pays off the debt’ thing here!”

Arthur didn’t really care about the Red Devil’s threat. On the contrary, he was more concerned about Dumas and Heine’s situation.

Although he had not received a medical education, at least he had the concept of bacteria and viruses in his mind.

Therefore, even though he didn’t know exactly what caused those diseases that ran rampant in the 19th century, he still managed to avoid most diseases by consistently drinking hot tea, only eating cooked food, and regularly cleaning his clothes and bed sheets.

But Dumas, a pure 19th-century Parisian, was different. As a well-known gourmand, the French fat man’s culinary spectrum was second only to the ‘extremely intelligent’ Darwin, who could taste exploding insects, among all Arthur’s friends.

Most importantly, the fat man’s eating habits were always raw and cold. The only fortunate change since he came to London was that under Eld’s influence, he became an old alcoholic like a senior Royal Navy sailor.

Before publishing *The Count of Monte Cristo*, Dumas, who was short of money, mainly lived on strong port wine.

After he had money, the fat man’s taste naturally became more refined. He mainly drank brandy and Scotch whisky, occasionally having some imported Imperial Stout beer as a change.

Thinking about Dumas being stuffed in the isolation hospital, with the French fat man’s flamboyant personality, he might even concoct a cholera-era romance. Arthur’s hairs stood on end.

He quickly put out his pipe and approached Chadwick, who was deep in thought, holding the document in his hand.

“Edwin, about the prevention and control measures for cholera, I received a letter from a friend in Paris a few days ago. It contained some French government’s prevention and control methods for cholera, as well as a *Cholera Prevention Manual* issued by the Paris Police Department. You know, the Russian experience of the Central Health Commission is unlikely to be accepted by Parliament in the short term.

I estimate that once this report is submitted to Parliament, it will most likely be immediately rejected. If Parliament demands changes to the prevention and control methods, we might as well refer to some French practices. Although the French standards are still too strict compared to the traditional British practices, they are certainly easier for Parliament to accept than the Russian methods.”

“Documents from the Paris Police Department?” Chadwick took the thick booklet from Arthur’s hand: “Where did you get this?”

Arthur chuckled softly: “François Vidocq, the head of the Paris Security Department. He came to London with Talleyrand last year to protect the French delegation’s personal safety during the London Conference. Since we are both police officers, Vidocq and I had a very pleasant chat. Since then, I have occasionally exchanged letters with him to share policing experiences between England and France. And you know, because of the concentrated outbreak of cholera in Eastern Europe, France, like Britain, has entered a state of early warning. Vidocq has talked to me most about cholera in his recent correspondence.”

Hearing this, Chadwick hurriedly flipped open the document in his hand.

As the secretary primarily responsible for the health and medical field in the Court of the Lord Chancellor, he deeply understood that the Central Health Commission, an ad hoc organization established only two months ago, had no authority whatsoever before Parliament. Rather than hoping that the MPs would succumb to professional opinions, it was better to prepare a backup plan in advance.

Although Britain and France often looked down upon each other, they were like Siamese twins in many matters.

For example, sending doctors to Russia to learn about prevention and control experience happened almost simultaneously in Britain and France.

Moreover, compared to the slow development of British medicine, French medicine had undergone a leapfrog development in the past half century. Due to the French Revolution, and the fact that all the French regimes during this period were anti-church, French doctors were not short of corpses and did not have to consider the ethical and legal risks of dissecting corpses.

And precisely because of France’s leading position in the medical field, Chadwick, an official in the field of public health, naturally believed in these experiences from Paris.

All 19th-century Britons believed one thing: the French are always good at dealing with corpses, whether they are hanging in the oven or lying in a sickbed.

And this *Cholera Prevention Manual* that Arthur handed to Chadwick also demonstrated the professionalism and comprehensiveness of French doctors.

To prevent the accumulation of miasma indoors, citizens should keep windows and doors open as long as possible to keep their homes ventilated.

Pay attention to keeping warm and avoid getting cold. Wear clothes made of wool or flannel. If you engage in heavy physical labor, please use this week’s wages to buy a new pair of shoes. Wearing shoes with holes or walking barefoot will increase your risk of getting sick.

Empty the chamber pot frequently, do not accumulate urine and feces, and do not arbitrarily discharge sewage into the streets.

Keep your home clean, wash the gutters and toilets with chlorine water every day. Quickly drain rainwater using nearby drainage ditches and eaves. We have reason to believe that they contain some small things that cause disease.

Maintain a regular lifestyle, combining work and rest, avoiding overwork, and also controlling your diet, avoiding overeating and drinking.

Eat as much cooked and easily digestible meat, eggs, bread, and ripe fruit as possible.

Drinking water should be clean, filtered water is best. Don’t drink alcohol, don’t drink spirits, beer, apple cider, but you can drink a small amount of quality wine.

Chadwick glanced at the booklet, and as Arthur had said, this manual was clearly much easier to accept than the Russian experience.

Chadwick was ecstatic, as if he had found a treasure: “Everything said here is absolutely right. I even think we can submit it to the Health Commission today, and after modification, it can be distributed to each parish directly by Scotland Yard.”

Seeing his expression, Arthur knew the matter of the manual was settled, but it was just an appetizer.

Although the Paris Police Department’s power was not as great as the Russian Third Department of the Imperial Chancellery, it was still a world apart from Scotland Yard. How could they possibly only do simple tasks like distributing manuals?

Arthur handed over another document: “Of course, doing preventive propaganda is important, but the organization of environmental sanitation work by the Paris Police Department is also very important. You may not know that they are the leading institution for sanitation in Paris. And in order to deal with the cholera that could strike at any time, the French government also authorized the establishment of a Central Health Commission, but unlike Britain, their commission is not under the leadership of the Privy Council, but works under the arrangement of the Paris Police Department.

As far as I know, they have divided Paris into 12 district health commissions and 48 street health commissions, which are responsible for supervising the sanitary conditions of the entire city. The Central Health Commission’s function is to provide advice to the government, as well as to receive and discuss reports submitted by the district and street health commissions, and propose necessary remedial measures.

The district health commissions act as intermediaries between the Central Health Commission and the street health commissions, responsible for communicating up and down, without any real power. The street health commissions not only report to the Central Health Commission, but also need to report to the Paris Police Department.

Moreover, the Paris Police Department has also requested that at least one medical aid station be set up in each district, based on the police station. Medical aid stations should be equipped with at least 6 doctors, 1 pharmacist, 6 medical students, 6 caregivers, and 2 nurses every day.

In addition, the Paris Police Department last week required strict scrutiny of hotels, inns, and rental houses, including but not limited to checking guests’ passports, visas, and residence permits, registering their names, ages, permanent addresses, and occupations. Operators are obliged to report to the district constable within a specified time frame. Ordinary citizens who provide free accommodation to guests must also comply with the same regulations. As for foreigners or tourists without documents, they must apply for a residence permit to the police station within 3 days of arriving in Paris, otherwise they will be referred to the court for processing.”

Chadwick understood Arthur’s meaning immediately after hearing these words.

Whether it is the Central Health Commission’s plan or the French plan that Arthur just submitted, it will inevitably require an expansion of government power.

Although Arthur’s French plan seems to expand less power than the Central Health Commission’s plan, if Parliament really decides to choose the French plan, then it would…

Because, although both expand government power, the subjects of power in the two plans are completely different.

The Central Health Commission’s plan advocates for delegating power to local parishes, with the police acting only as an auxiliary to the local committees in their work.

And once Arthur’s French plan is passed, Scotland Yard will instantly become the absolute power center of London’s health and medical services. They will have the practical decision-making power in cholera prevention.

Chadwick held the documents, his eyes fixed on Arthur: “Arthur, do you know what you just said?”

Arthur nodded slightly: “Of course I know, but now is not the time to argue. There has to be a plan that gets passed, either the Russian one or the French one. We don’t have time to draft a British plan of our own right now, do we? We need to come up with a temporary plan to use first, right?”

Chadwick looked at him for a while, then suddenly smiled and extended his hand towards him: “I agree. You may not know this, but everyone calls me the Prussian official of the Court of the Lord Chancellor. Since they don’t want the Court of the Lord Chancellor to have too much power, then it’s fine to hand it over to a second-tier department like Scotland Yard, right? I’ll take these documents first, and I can handle the Lord Chancellor’s side. But before that, I have one request. If you don’t agree, the Lord Chancellor’s side may not be willing to give in.”

Arthur asked: “Please speak.”

Chadwick said: “The Court of the Lord Chancellor will select a few people to join the Scotland Yard Health Commission, and the top leadership position must be held by our people. You and Rowan, the Chief Constable, must agree to this.”

(End of Chapter)