In the modern age we often think of queens or princesses similar to the late Princess Diana of England. She was a relatively naïve, young lady from the right family who eventually grew into her position after producing heirs to the English throne. A very different woman was Josephine Bonaparte. In the book Ambition and Desire – the Dangerous Life of Josephine Bonaparte written by Kate Williams published by Random House, NY, 2013. The end prize was being married to Napoleon who went from a small town roots to one of the greatest generals in France to becoming Emperor of the empire to his downfall, but that is a different story. Josephine was born in the French Island of Martinique where the family estate grew sugar cane and employed many slaves. When she married she moved to France but she was essentially the same naïve young lady from the islands. After having children and a separation – she moved into a convent  which catered to separated wealthy ladies where she learnt the rules of court, how to use her figure and who to target to achieve her ambition of money and power. She learned well becoming the mistress of the French leader after the revolution and settling with Napoleon.

Linking to dividend paying stocks, similar to people, there are many layers to dividend paying stocks. There is the image of a well run profitable company, it could be because of the long-held monopoly – as long as it holds strong then all else is good; there is the dividend which comes from the ability of the company to make profits; there is the reputation of the company as well as the years of being in business. All help shape the users of the goods and services of the company.

There are more questions than answers, till the next time – to raising questions.