The record of the steps by which the transformation was effected is simply a further series of illustrations of the autocracy and diligence of the King. He strove with might and main to reanimate and develop the old industries and to establish new ones. This involved incessant contrivance and inspection on his part, the free use of subsidies by the State, and the constant imposition of vexatious restrictions upon every form of trade.
One of the most conspicuous examples of Frederick’s methods is the development of the porcelain industry of Berlin. During the Prussian occupation of Saxony the secret of the far-famed Dresden ware was extorted from the employees of Augustus. The King spared no effort to make the most of his prize. He bought up the manufactory at Berlin, forbade all purchase of rival goods from abroad, installed porcelain at his own table in place of the gold and silver associated with royal state, used porcelain snuffboxes, and bestowed samples of the finest products when convention prescribed a regal gift. To promote the welfare of Prussia, Jews who wished to marry were compelled to purchase a service of porcelain and to dispose of it abroad.
With the same unflinching resolution the King pursued his design of making Berlin a great industrial centre, of establishing manufactures in all his towns, and of forcing Prussia to provide for all her own needs and for many of the needs of foreign lands. Every industry, silk and satin, cloth and linen, shipbuilding and mining, alike received the royal stimulus and was compelled to submit to the royal interference. Frederick’s success varied, for in some cases it was more apparent than in others that precepts, prohibitions, and subsidies could not make good deficiencies of climate, skill, and enterprise. While the production of porcelain was firmly established, that of tobacco by no means fulfilled the expectations of the King. He commissioned a Prussian chemist to find out a sauce which would make the home-grown leaf at least comparable with the Virginian. The experiment, which occupied more than two and a half years, was furthered by all the resources of Government. No less than 1180 samples were tested. The report of the General Tobacco Administration, however, stated that only 34 of these were in any way better for the treatment, and that these 34, “notwithstanding they made a brave show to outward seeming,” were too unsavoury even to be mixed with the products of Virginia.