War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace.

Franz has been conducting some research in secret over the years, that is, how to breed French and British Angora rabbits into modern German Angora rabbits.

This thing is usually kept as a pet in modern times because it looks good and is extremely docile. Or used to obtain fur, because of its high yield of plush and the excellent quality of the plush.

Its hair production is four times that of other long-haired rabbits and dozens of times that of ordinary rabbits.

But what Franz valued was its edible value. Yes, like many of his predecessors, he also had the idea of ​​using rabbits to solve the food problem.

As for the meat-to-material ratio, Franz is actually not particularly worried. Because Austria has a lot of agricultural land, it is not a problem as long as there is demand for feed.

In fact, the meat-to-meat ratio of rabbits is usually 2.8~3.5:1. Although it is not as good as the 2.0:1 of chickens and ducks, it is not very different from the usual 3.0:1 of domestic pigs.

The feed-to-meat ratio refers to the amount of feed consumed by livestock and poultry to gain one kilogram of weight. A high meat-to-feed ratio means that more feed is used, but less meat is produced. On the contrary, a low meat-to-material ratio means that it costs less but produces more meat.

So generally speaking the lower the number the better.

The meat-to-meat ratio of German Angora rabbits is 3.1:1, which is actually very different from domestic pigs, but the high-quality fur is something domestic pigs do not have.

Franz found professional cobblers and tailors to make rabbit skins into clothing, and the finished products could be sold at a very good price.

It is impossible for outsiders to tell the difference in material, but even insiders feel that this kind of fur is of extremely high quality.

Of course, Franz understands that rare things are more valuable. Once the output increases to a certain level, the price will inevitably drop sharply. But being able to get a higher-quality experience with a small amount of money is what people are looking for, isn’t it?

Franz is more concerned about the impact it will have on its upstream and downstream industries. First of all, it will definitely revive the leather industry. Secondly, raising a large number of giant rabbits will inevitably increase the demand for feed. Thirdly, due to the decline in fur costs, the pattern of the clothing industry will also change. Something will definitely change.

So far, Franz has not actually eaten the rabbits he raised. This is not because he finds it unpalatable, but because he is afraid that such things may carry hidden diseases.

Every time, people make dishes and send them to the prison for the prisoners to eat. However, whether the rabbit meat was eaten by the prisoners or the jailers is unknown.

In short, so far, I have not heard of sudden deaths or special mutations occurring in a short period of time.

As for the issue of Europeans not eating rabbits, there is no need to worry at all, because that is simply a rumor. The French eat approximately 20 million ducks and 1 million geese every year, as well as more than 30 million rabbits.

They are also very advantageous in many other aspects, such as the breeding environment and diseases. This kind of rabbit does not like exercise and is extremely disease-resistant.

According to Franz’s breeding experience in four major regions in Austria, this kind of rabbit rarely gets sick, at least so far no case of death has been reported.

Very adaptable to the environment, as long as it doesn't get too hot. But there's nothing you can do about it. Woolly rabbits are afraid of heat.

However, after dozens of generations of reproduction, Franz still has not found the breed he wants.

In order to speed up this research, Franz actually gave Mendel a batch of breeding rabbits, hoping that this great scientist could create some more miracles.

In fact, Mendel had a lot of experience in cultivating flowers and plants, but this was his first time cultivating rabbits. But in both minds, it should be similar to cultivating flowers and plants.

Franz has collected most of the giant rabbit species in the world, but they still seem to be inferior to those he has seen in his previous life, and either the growth cycle is too slow or the size is too small.

It simply cannot achieve the dual-use effect required by Franz.

As for the natural disasters that this kind of rabbit may cause, let alone the large-scale industrial breeding planned by Franz, let’s consider the living standards of Europeans in the 19th century.

If someone saw a bunch of rabbits outside the city, they would definitely beat them to death with a stick to improve their family's food supply.

You must know that the European population began to expand at this time, and every famine or economic crisis would cause species extinction.

That’s right! Eat it all!

Franz's sister, little Maria, screamed with excitement when she saw his rabbit.

"Bunny!"

To be honest, Franz didn't like the sharp screams, so he had to give her a few, but he still gave her instructions just in case.

"The rabbits I gave you are all female rabbits. Don't let them run around. If you give birth to too many baby rabbits, I will get rid of them."

"Why? The little rabbit is so cute. The palace is so big, why don't I raise a few rabbits?" Maria shook Franz's arm in an attempt to be cute.

"This thing is very fertile. Thousands, tens of thousands of them. Can the Schönbrunn Palace keep them?"

Maria had no choice but to lower her head, looking like she was about to cry. It was obvious that this little girl was trying to make another plan, and if Franz didn't give in, she would make a scene and call her mother.

Of course, Franz would not let the matter worsen to that extent. In fact, Maria didn't dare. After all, the eldest brother was like a devil who beat people. She subconsciously rubbed her butt.

In fact, Franz knew this would happen, so he made allowances in advance.

"Okay then, can you do addition and subtraction within a hundred?"

"meeting!"

"99-65=how much?"

"34!" Maria replied readily.

"Not bad." Franz praised and then asked, "What about multiplication within a hundred?"

"I can! One to one is one, one to two is two." Maria began to memorize the multiplication tables, which was okay for an eight-year-old girl.

"What about division?"

"Yes," Maria whispered, obviously lacking confidence this time.

"100, no more."

"Why?" Maria shouted unwillingly.

"Trigonometric functions."

"Won't."

"Isn't this enough?"

Maria rubbed her head and felt that what Franz said made sense, but something was wrong. In short, getting the rabbit was the key.

So the little girl jumped away.

Franz didn't pay too much attention to this episode. He was still thinking about his livelihood plans.

The domestic pig species in Austria have degenerated too seriously. Not only in Austria, but also in pigs throughout Europe. Rather than degenerating, it is better to say that they have evolved a more suitable survival strategy.

But the future navy will need more brushes, and the soft bristles of European pigs will naturally not work.

So he also brought breeding pigs back from Asia for breeding. Of course, such animals were not suitable to be kept in Schonbrunn Palace.

After several generations of crossbreeding, the ideal breed was finally obtained, but this was considered a completely perverted behavior by people at the time.

People have speculated whether Archduke Franz had a special hobby for hybrid species, or that he had a grudge against animals.

In addition, the carp breeding plan was not successful. At this time, there were a large number of ferocious freshwater fish in the major rivers of Europe. The carp that Franz put in not only failed to reproduce on a large scale, but were wiped out by predators.