Background.
The currency of
Therubia is called
Kropak, which translates as Milk Jug. Kropak is a
beverage-based currency. It began as the standard measure for
milk. Since the general populace of Therubia desired milk they traded for it and received
payment in jugs of milk as doled out with a special measuring jug called a kropak. In course of time
tokens and then coins were given out as
exchange for the value of a jug of milk, and these coins became Kropaks in the
vernacular.
The spark.
Some time in late 1872
Herve Hrudnuk, a wealthy dairy farmer, began
tampering with his jugs. It is believed that his reason for this was a lapse in production volumes due to the poor
clover crop that year. Whatever his reasons were, he began experimenting with
affixing various
objects inside the bottom of the jugs to lessen the volume of milk measured. At least some of his staff of
milkmaids must have been accomplices in this deception, but all later swore innocence. Considering the fate of Herve, this was not at all surprising.
The Uprising.
As 1873 began, people were noticing
oddities. Baking recipes were no longer coming together, the last bowl of
cereal was too dry, one of the children was left thirsty after a meal. People began to talk, and began to get angry. It was not only the daily use that
suffered, people felt their savings were
shrinking,
competitors felt unfairly treated,
the whole economy was under attack. Angry mobs formed, armed themselves with pitchforks and torches, and converged on the
Hrudnuk Dairy compound. Hrudnuk himself defied the crowds gathering below his window, claiming his only interest was in
progress, but found himself forced to retreat when objects were thrown at him, including lumps of
cow dung.
Tragedy.
The crowd broke down the doors, charging into the building and setting fire to the inventory, but Hrudnuk was nowhere to be found. The building was thoroughly
sacked before the fire became too great, and an
effigy of Hrudnuk was thrown into the flames. Then news came back from a mob that had entered the side of the dairy to destroy the tampered jugs: they had found Hrudnuks body. It seemed that Hrudnuk had taken
refuge among his cattle in the milking shed, but when the animals
panicked due to the smoke and noise he was trampled to death by the fleeing cows. The
victorious but somewhat
deflated crowd returned to their homes.
Aftermath.
Due to the inherent risks brought to the fore by the actions of Hereve Hrudnuk, a
referendum was held and hugely carried that the Kropak should become
metric. From 1873 and unto this day the Kropak is equal to one
litre of milk, and the most stable currency in the world.