He Opened A Matchmaking Agency In 18Th Century London [EN]: Chapter 10

10. The Poor Noble, Sir Daniel Burke

◈ A week later, at the Intelligence Club.

For a week, Tae-oh focused on finding a man who would be the best match for Sarah Clarke.

But it wasn’t easy.

He was in the harsh conditions of the 18th century, without even a matching analysis program or member data.

He had no choice but to rummage through notebooks listing club members or meet with outside figures to find suitable candidates one by one.

Moreover, he was anxious because he thought he had to introduce someone as soon as possible because Lord Clarke’s condition was critical.

After much effort, he finally found a man who seemed to have the best personality, taste, and values to match Miss Sarah Clarke within a week.

The final candidate selected was Sir Daniel Burke, who was also a member of the Intelligence Club.

Although Sir Burke was not a wealthy nobleman, based on his behavior in the club so far, he seemed highly compatible with Sarah in all aspects.

In particular, he scored very high in terms of his potential to make a lot of money through active business during the upcoming turbulent Industrial Revolution.

‘A man like Sir Daniel Burke, who is ambitious and developing, is perfect for Miss Sarah Clarke, rather than a penniless nobleman with only a title.’

However, it was necessary to analyze Sir Burke a little more. He was not yet sure of his compatibility with Sarah Clarke based only on the formal conversations they had at the club.

Monday evening, when the club opens.

Tae-oh, who had been talking with Sir Daniel Burke for a while, stood up and said.

“Sir Burke’s story is very interesting. I have to leave now, but why don’t we meet at the Tea Garden in the city this week and talk more about it?”

Sir Daniel Burke, who had always been greatly fascinated by Tae-oh’s knowledge and insight, gladly accepted the offer to meet.

***

A few days later, London Tea Garden.

Slightly past noon. The London Tea Garden was crowded with citizens who came to enjoy tea.

Tock-

Tae-oh, who had been listening to Sir Daniel Burke’s story for a while, put down his teacup and asked.

“So, does Sir Burke have any particular business in mind?”

Although the times were changing rapidly, it was still a society that viewed nobles engaging in money-making activities negatively.

Of course, the atmosphere would change drastically when the huge wave of capitalism swept through England in just over a decade, but the remnants of the past still remained strong.

However, Sir Daniel Burke enjoyed talking about business with the gentry (capitalists from merchant backgrounds) rather than mingling with other nobles, even at the Intelligence Club.

“I want to mine coal directly from the mine and start a coal processing business.”

“Ah, the coal processing business… I see.”

At this time, England had abundant coal reserves, but most of the deposits were in areas prone to frequent flooding, so water often filled the mines, causing difficulties in mining.

Therefore, the mine itself had investment value, but productivity was too low compared to the reserves, and the risk was high, so it did not lead to active investment.

“Since I was a child, I have enjoyed exploring and digging something out of the ground as if I were getting treasure. Even now that I am an adult. But my parents were very ashamed of me. Still, I find it interesting.”

His face was bitter, but at the same time, he felt pride in what he liked to do.

In the late 18th century, when Tae-oh was staying, about 6 million tons of coal were produced annually in England.

However, when the Industrial Revolution begins in earnest a few years later and the steam engine takes hold, the demand will increase more than three times.

And by 1830, more than 30 million tons of coal would be produced in England, which is a huge amount equivalent to 85% of the world’s coal production.

In other words, Sir Daniel Burke foresaw the future possibilities even though the business was still uncertain, and jumped into the business with the best profitability at the most appropriate time.

However, Tae-oh wanted to ask how he was going to solve the immediate practical problems.

“I heard that it is difficult because water tends to fill the mine now, is it manageable?”

“Yes. That’s the biggest problem, but I think that’s more of an opportunity.”

“Why do you think so?”

Sir Burke took a sip of black tea and continued with his eyes shining.

“First of all, the current mine prices are quite low due to the water filling the mine. So you can buy a good mine cheaply.”

“······.”

“And think about it again. Most of England’s coal deposits are near the economic center, right? So, if you only mine coal, you can quickly move it to the center nearby and maximize profits.

If the future profitability is good like this, I think the technology for this will inevitably develop.”

Sir Daniel Burke’s prediction was accurate.

Unlike China and other countries, England has many coal landfills near its economic center, and the canals for transportation are well developed, so the mining industry developed rapidly in the era of the Industrial Revolution, which required a large amount of coal.

“If coal mining goes smoothly, you can make good profits as Sir Burke said, but can you solve the problem of water filling the tunnels right away, as you said earlier? Are you thinking of pumping out water by turning Newcomen’s steam engine?”

At Tae-oh’s question, Daniel Burke suddenly leaned forward and said as if whispering.

“That’s it. According to the information I found out, a new steam engine was recently registered with the Patent Office and has begun to be sold commercially.

But the efficiency of the steam engine is so good that it produces tremendous power even with a small machine. Of course, pumping water in the tunnel will be incomparable to the Newcomen engine [an early type of steam engine]. When I heard that information, I thought the big opportunity had finally come.

If my prediction is correct, an enormous number of factories will be built in line with the development of steam engines, which is incomparable to what it is now. As such, coal demand will increase exponentially.

If you miss the opportunity now, you will not only miss the opportunity to have a good mine, but you will also become a latecomer, which will reduce profitability.”

Sir Daniel Burke was talking about James Watt’s steam engine.

Newcomen’s existing steam engine had to be made quite large to generate great power, but James Watt’s engine could generate tremendous power even with a small machine by using steam pressure.

Newcomen’s incomplete steam engine became a proper steam engine by meeting James Watt.

‘He is looking very accurately at what will happen in the future based solely on the current phenomena and information. Hmm… Sir Burke is a born businessman with a really natural eye and knowledge of the economic flow, even though he is a nobleman.’

Considering the social atmosphere of 18th century England, Sir Daniel Burke was a very forward-thinking nobleman.

This is because nobles in this era often regarded it as very shameful to participate in income-generating activities.

Even taking a high-ranking treasurer position in the British royal family was pointed out as a shameful act for a nobleman, as it was considered menial labor.

On the other hand, nobles who had a lot of inherited wealth and lazed around without doing anything were regarded as people who inherited noble blood and received the respect of those around them, and women eagerly hoped to marry such nobles.

‘Given Sir Burke’s outstanding insight, if he meets a wise woman who understands and supports his ambitions, he will be able to run on a successful path.’

Tae-oh suddenly became curious about Sir Daniel Burke’s view of marriage.

“Sir Burke is now of marriageable age, do you have any ideal type in mind?”

However, his confident and assured demeanor, which he had shown so far, disappeared when it came to talking about the woman he would marry.

It was an expression that could be missed in the eyes of ordinary people, but Tae-oh’s well-trained eyes could clearly detect his negative feelings about marriage.

“I don’t have any intention of getting married right now. I have a lot of work to do in the future, so I don’t want to waste unnecessary emotions on such things.”

Women in 18th century England risked everything on marriage, and so did their parents.

Especially in the aristocracy, the most important criterion for a groom was whether the male nobleman had enough wealth to maintain his dignity without doing any work at all.

Therefore, a wealthy nobleman who not only had current wealth but also had a lot to inherit was the best groom, but a man from a poor noble family who had to work hard to make a living was even despised, seeing that his noble blood had been tainted.

Sir Daniel Burke, who did not have much wealth at home, naturally had to find other jobs because he could not live a wealthy life with inheritance alone, and this would inevitably receive a very low score from noble women and their parents at the time.

Sir Burke seemed to have developed negative feelings about marriage and women without realizing it due to the aristocratic social atmosphere.

Tae-oh looked at him carefully.

He felt great interest and pride in doing business and making money.

For him, the consciousness of the aristocracy caused antipathy, and furthermore, it was a natural result that he was critical of marriage.

However, the more a man like this meets a wise woman who understands and supports his heart, the more he will be able to run on a successful path.

“Sir Burke, it was really nice to meet with you today.”

“Yes, it was a very beneficial time for me. I am so happy that I feel like I can pursue the mining industry with greater courage thanks to Mr. Sanderson’s sharp economic diagnosis.”

Tae-oh promised to meet Sir Burke again as soon as possible. And he announced in advance that other people would be attending that day.

Sir Burke, who readily accepted, turned around, expressing his deep gratitude once again to Tae-oh for listening to his story.

Tae-oh looked at Sir Burke’s back as he left the tea garden first and thought.

‘The problem is Lord Clarke. Will he accept Sir Daniel Burke, who is a poor nobleman? If he was a healthy lord, he would prioritize the person’s character, but I wonder how the lord, who is seriously ill and worried about the future of his remaining daughters, will accept Burke, who says he will do his own business because he has no money…’

◈ Lord Clarke’s bedroom

Arriving at Lord Clarke’s house late in the afternoon and exchanging greetings about his health, Tae-oh brought up the story about marriage.

“Lord. It’s about Miss Sarah’s marriage problem that you asked for last time.”

Lord’s eyes widened at Tae-oh’s words. He seemed to be waiting for it too.

“Ah, yes. Did you find a good groom?”

“Um…yes. In my opinion, I found a very good man, but…”

“?”

“The potential is, in my opinion, an exceptionally good nobleman, but not at present.”

The lord, who had been lost in thought for a while after hearing Tae-oh’s story, asked.

“Did Mr. Sanderson think that young man could communicate well with our Sarah and cherish each other?”

Fortunately, the lord was considering his heart before money. And he also trusted Tae-oh’s judgment.

“Yes. At least based on what I’ve seen, the two seem to get along very well. Of course, you can know more clearly if you actually meet and talk.”

The lord took a sip of tea and continued.

“You say that the future is bright, but not at present, so I guess you don’t have much wealth.”

“Yes. Frankly, that’s right. But···”

“?”

“I dare to predict that Sir Daniel Burke will soon become a very successful businessman in England.”

“······.”

In fact, Daniel Burke later grew his company into the largest coal mining company in England, and developed a business model of processing and selling coal to become a global entrepreneur.

However, he was not a famous figure who left his name in history, so Tae-oh did not even expect him to succeed to that extent.

“If that came into Mr. Sanderson’s eyes, he must be a great groom.”

“But if a nobleman does business, other people will not like it, would you be okay with that?”