Deanna Spingola | 2008-12-14 - The exploitation of the Philippine Islands’ vast mineral reserves, so strongly encouraged by President McKinley, gave one particular American Expeditionary soldier, First Lieutenant John William Haussermann (1867-1965, discharged September 1, 1899), an Ohio-born attorney from Leavenworth, Kansas, a (literally) golden opportunity. Since Philippine law didn’t recognize the American entity known as a “corporation,” the U.S. Congress passed a law on July 1, 1902 which enabled Haussermann, then city attorney for Manila, to organize a corporation on June 1903, which became known as the Benguet Consolidated Mining Company by 1906.3 In 1927, Benguet bought out its competitor, Balatoc Mining, giving it 80% of the Philippine gold industry. Philippine gold made Haussermann “the Gold King” and his associates a massive fortune which would later be selectively shared with influential political puppets like General Douglas MacArthur, who comfortably identified with the Philippine oligarchy.

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