Editing Tailspins & Tiki Gods:The Authorities
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− | + | ==Direct Rule== | |
+ | The French method of colonial government is called "Direct Rule". It differs from the British method in a several major ways: British governors are allowed more leeway for decision than their French counterparts (who carry out instructions from, and answer to, Paris). And where the British foster relationships with 'native leaders' (Chieftains, and so on), the French system considers all in its territory to be French. Therefore there is no official acknowledgement of tribal life or mores. The state owns all land not privately owned. | ||
− | + | (The Kamekame shrewdly played this game, first by wrangling up a Protectorate status, then having scrambling to "buy" their own lands with trade-goods in the late 1800s.) | |
− | The policy also encourages assimilation, and association ( | + | The policy also encourages assimilation, and association (that is more social intermixing than the British system). There is somewhat less stigma in the French system on "going native", for example, or taking a 'native bride'. |
− | + | Oceania's trade has recovered from the Great Depression. The value of both imports and exports more than quadruple the figures for 1933. | |
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= The Mayor's Office = | = The Mayor's Office = | ||
(For more on the Mayor himself, see here: [[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Tailspins_%26_Tiki_Gods:The_Mayor]] ) | (For more on the Mayor himself, see here: [[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Tailspins_%26_Tiki_Gods:The_Mayor]] ) | ||
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=The Port Authority = | =The Port Authority = | ||
The rather grand-sounding Port Authority is, at most times, no more than 5-10 people. If need be, they can call on the police- but this is seldom necessary. | The rather grand-sounding Port Authority is, at most times, no more than 5-10 people. If need be, they can call on the police- but this is seldom necessary. | ||
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They are responsible for regulating both interisland trade (still mostly sail-driven, though steamers up to 200-300 displacement tons are coming on the scene) and incoming ships from far away. (Luckily, most of these vessels do not require fuelling- Port Cochere being merely a “through port” on the way somewhere else.) | They are responsible for regulating both interisland trade (still mostly sail-driven, though steamers up to 200-300 displacement tons are coming on the scene) and incoming ships from far away. (Luckily, most of these vessels do not require fuelling- Port Cochere being merely a “through port” on the way somewhere else.) | ||
Being mainly concerned with the harbor and the lagoon, the Port Authority seldom moves out of La Bas Ville. There are actually painted wooden poles denoting the limits of the Authority’s beat on land. | Being mainly concerned with the harbor and the lagoon, the Port Authority seldom moves out of La Bas Ville. There are actually painted wooden poles denoting the limits of the Authority’s beat on land. | ||
− | '''Structure:''' The | + | '''Structure:''' The Capitaine de Port, Alaine St. Heler de Montaigne, may have up to 10 agents at any given time. They answer to him directly, and he answers (rather tenuously) to the Mayor’s Office. |
==“Daytime Business” (and standing policies)== | ==“Daytime Business” (and standing policies)== | ||
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''Pilotage'': If you have a larger vessel and wish to NOT drop anchor outside the lagoon’s barrier reefs, the Port Authority will charge you to have a PA Pilot either taking the wheel of your vessel or watch over your shoulder. | ''Pilotage'': If you have a larger vessel and wish to NOT drop anchor outside the lagoon’s barrier reefs, the Port Authority will charge you to have a PA Pilot either taking the wheel of your vessel or watch over your shoulder. | ||
− | ''Quarantine:'' They are authorized to call ‘quarantine’ on a ship. This usually involves consulting with Port Cochere’s town doctor. If an initial inspection shows rampant vermin (rats, bugs, etc), contagious illness, or is shown to carry insufficiently contained dangerous live cargo, that vessel may be quarantined for any amount of time. Alternately, a ‘restricted bill of health’ may allow the crew to unload onto a lighter without any further contact or disembarkation. (This is a big deal- through a combination of vigilance and dumb luck, Ile Trouve is almost completely clear of invasive species like rats | + | ''Quarantine:'' They are authorized to call ‘quarantine’ on a ship. This usually involves consulting with Port Cochere’s town doctor. If an initial inspection shows rampant vermin (rats, bugs, etc), contagious illness, or is shown to carry insufficiently contained dangerous live cargo, that vessel may be quarantined for any amount of time. Alternately, a ‘restricted bill of health’ may allow the crew to unload onto a lighter without any further contact or disembarkation. (This is a big deal- through a combination of vigilance and dumb luck, Ile Trouve is almost completely clear of invasive species like rats.) |
''Registry:'' They gladly keep books of what registered ships have passed through, per international maritime custom. (They do it so gladly that they keep more than one book!) They also ask to know where you’re going, as ports often do. They do know that almost any answer they get is likely to be a lie, however. They also keep an eye out for stolen or otherwise ‘commandeered’ vessels.[OOC: It is by no means a dealbreaker. (“Typical business” means you pay the ‘expediting’ fee) ] | ''Registry:'' They gladly keep books of what registered ships have passed through, per international maritime custom. (They do it so gladly that they keep more than one book!) They also ask to know where you’re going, as ports often do. They do know that almost any answer they get is likely to be a lie, however. They also keep an eye out for stolen or otherwise ‘commandeered’ vessels.[OOC: It is by no means a dealbreaker. (“Typical business” means you pay the ‘expediting’ fee) ] | ||
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If the Mayor’s office represents the high-end “intrigue” end of Port Cochere’s business, the Port Authority represents pure piratical instinct. | If the Mayor’s office represents the high-end “intrigue” end of Port Cochere’s business, the Port Authority represents pure piratical instinct. | ||
− | + | Additional Fees: While it is subsidized by the French government (represented in the person of His Honor the Mayor), the Port Authority nonetheless (off the record) extracts ‘fees for special procedures’ (for things likewise off-the-record). The most profitable fee the Authority uses is a ‘bypass’. Basically, for a fee, one need not bother oneself with the fine details. Port Liberty is sometimes sold, either for a fee or for a refundable security. | |
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Obviously, this is only done within limits, otherwise nobody would use the harbor at all. Thus, all ‘fees’ must be justifiable to someone (ie, no straight up graft), and they must be taken in moderation (“Part of doing business”). The Port Authority does (per the old saw) “stay bought”, typically, and they know when to stop squeezing the stone. | Obviously, this is only done within limits, otherwise nobody would use the harbor at all. Thus, all ‘fees’ must be justifiable to someone (ie, no straight up graft), and they must be taken in moderation (“Part of doing business”). The Port Authority does (per the old saw) “stay bought”, typically, and they know when to stop squeezing the stone. | ||
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==Jail/Punishment== | ==Jail/Punishment== | ||
− | There is a small jail here (maybe five or six old cells in a sun-blasted stone | + | There is a small jail here (maybe five or six old cells in a sun-blasted stone building), mainly used for holding prior to a prisoner transfer. Things tend to be “handled locally”, instead. French Polynesia has three prisons, none of which are near here. Rumor has it that the worst are still, unofficially, sent to the old penal colony at New Caledonia. |
Generally speaking, there is a local distaste for jail-time- many of the French colonist’s forebears were sent to the island as Penal Colonists, so the idea just sits wrong. Fines and “alternate punishment” are favored as a result. Public execution (often by guillotine) is still common in France in this era- it’s an “arrow in the quiver”- but it has not been applied here for ages. | Generally speaking, there is a local distaste for jail-time- many of the French colonist’s forebears were sent to the island as Penal Colonists, so the idea just sits wrong. Fines and “alternate punishment” are favored as a result. Public execution (often by guillotine) is still common in France in this era- it’s an “arrow in the quiver”- but it has not been applied here for ages. | ||
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=Le Deuxieme Bureau= | =Le Deuxieme Bureau= | ||
− | The Second Bureau is France’s national intelligence agency. There are no apparent 2eme Bureau agents in Port Cochere, or on Ile Trouve as a whole. Neither the Mayor nor the Governor has ever contacted anyone from the Bureau. (It is left as an exercise for the reader to figure out exactly | + | The Second Bureau is France’s national intelligence agency. There are no apparent 2eme Bureau agents in Port Cochere, or on Ile Trouve as a whole. Neither the Mayor nor the Governor has ever contacted anyone from the Bureau. (It is left as an exercise for the reader to figure out exactly how useless spies would be in Port Cochere.) |
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