reams of world conquest. It is the safest
politically to deal with, and Leopold recognized this fact.

In the second place he did not want anything to interfere with his Congo
rubber industry. Now we get to the real reason, perhaps, why he sent for
Ryan. In conjunction with the late Senator Nelson W. Aldrich, Ryan had
developed the rubber industry in Mexico, by extracting rubber from the
guayele shrub which grows wild in the desert. Leopold knew this--he had
a way of finding out about things--and he sought to kill two birds with
one stone. He wanted this Mexican process and at the same time he needed
capital for the Congo. In any event, Ryan went to see him and the
Forminiere was born.

There is no need of rehearsing here the concrete details of this
enterprise. All we want are the essential facts. Leopold realized that
the Forminiere was the last business venture of his life and he
projected it on a truly kingly scale. It was the final chance for huge
grants and the result was that the Forminiere received the mining and
mineral rights to more than 7,000,000 acres, and other concessions for
agriculture aggregating 2,500,000 acres in addition.

The original capital was only 3,000,000 francs but this has been
increased from time to time until it is now more than 10,000,000 francs.
The striking feature of the organization was the provision inserted by
Leopold that made Belgium a partner. One-half of the shares were
assigned to the Crown. The other half was divided into two parts. One of
these parts was subscribed by the King and the Societe Generale of
Belgium, and the other was taken in its entirety by Ryan. Subsequently
Ryan took in as associates Daniel Guggenheim, Senator Aldrich, Harry
Payne Whitney and John Hays Hammond. When Leopold died his share went to
his heirs. Upon the death of Aldrich his interest was acquired by Ryan,
who is the principal American owner. No shares have ever been sold and
none will be. The original trust certificate issued to Ryan and
Guggenheim remains intact. The company therefore remains a close
corporation in every respect and as such is unique among kindred
enterprises.

II

At this point the question naturally arises--what is the Societe
Generale? To ask it in Belgium would be on a par with inquiring the name
of the king. Its bank notes are in circulation everywhere and it is
known to the humblest peasant.

The Societe Generale was organized in 1822 and is therefore one of the