De La Rue had been regarded as the leading banknote paper manufacturer in the world, having manufactured banknote paper for the Bank of England since 1724. In 1997, De La Rue acquired Harrison and Sons, the stamp and banknote printers based in High Wycombe. The factory closed permanently in 2003. In early 2002, De La Rue took over ownership from Smurfit Diamond Packaging Corporation of Sequoia Voting Systems, a California-based company that was a large provider of electronic voting systems in the U.S., for U.S. $23 million. After losing money for three years in a business way out of the company's traditional lines,
Rue de la Pompe singing of the birds like treasures." "And when I stroll down from the heights of Passy to the banks of the Seine, I sometimes ask myself where I am and if I have not dreamed." Green lived on the left side of Rue de la Pompe (there where the odd numbers are) and visited Lycée Janson de Sailly with number 106, just across the street. Because he heard nothing but English at home (his parents were Americans) and nothing but French in school, Green described the Rue de la Pompe as "my Atlantic Ocean". Also in opposite to the mentioned