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There is other mineral wealth “in them thar hills” besides gold. There are overlooked Fortunes in the many newer and rarer minerals which prospectors and rockhounds are walking over in the hills today, and mine owners are throwing upon their waste-dumps unrecognized, all waiting for someone to come along with the proper the proper knowledge to find their hidden values and cash in on them! This knowledge may be yours now! Duke’s “Short Course in Prospecting and Mineral Identification” will show you what these minerals are, how and where to find them, and their quick and accurate identification as given in Duke’s “ Quick Qualitative Analysis.”

The Mineral Situation – Past, Present, and Future

Prospectors – Old and New
A few years ago there were but half-dozen or so important mineral elements to look for – gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc were the “Big Five!” It all started with the Gold Rush of the forty-niners; those who got in on the ground floor in virgin territory made a fortune! Thousands of others hearing of the fabulous fortunes made over-night rushed to join them, swarming over the mountain-sides like ants on an ant-hill, and thus in time all the big surface gold “Bonanzas” were found! The thousands who came too late for the big surface strikes- all started wildly digging “worthless” holes in the hillsides!

What is a “worthless” hole? A so-called “worthless” hole does not necessarily mean one containing nothing of value, but simply one in which the digger did not find the particular thing for which he was seeking, and all the gold hunters were interested seeking for was gold!

Then came the Silver Boom! History repeats itself: many who got in on the ground floor made a fortune: many of those fortunes ere made form the old “worthless” abandoned prospect holes and mine dumps of the gold hunters! Those who came too late for the big silver surface strikes all started digging more “worthless” holes in the hillsides!

Then came Copper, lead, and zinc! History repeats itself: many who got in on the ground floor made a fortune; many of those fortunes were made from old “worthless” abandoned prospector holes and mine dumps of the gold and silver hunters! Many of the later generation, reading the “rosy stories” of the Big five and fabulous fortunes made overnight by the old-timers, became filled with the desire and ambition, or at least the desire, to follow in their footsteps and do the same thing! So once more the prospectors swarmed over the mountain-sides like ants on am ant-hill until every exposed outcrop carried scars of a prospector’s pick, and thus in time all the big surface deposits of the Big Five were found! Those who came too late for the surface strikes, as thousands did, and maybe , you all started digging mores “worthless” holes in the hill-sides – all seeking the same Big Five!

In this, understand, we are not saying all the Big five have been found; we are speaking of surface deposits, or those within the reach of the poor prospector or small mine owner with limited capital who must depend, more or less, on surface or shallow discoveries.

Here is the situation: The more people there are who have been looking for certain minerals, and the longer it has been looked for, the greater are the chances the surface deposits have been found, and thus the less your chances of finding them. It was the man who got in on the ground floor who made the fortune, which is the situation with the Big five of the past and up to the present.

But a New Day Has Dawned
Yes, a new day has dawned for the prospector and mine owner, large and small; a day of greater opportunities and possibilities than ever existed in the boom days of the Big Five! By this we do not mean – more chances to make greater fortunes; but we do mean - greater chances to make more smaller fortunes – to make men financially independent – to increase your chances for success in the prospecting and mining business!

Your New Opportunities
Modern discoveries in science, invention, manufacturing and industry all call for new and better materials, many of the most important of which are obtained from the newer, rarer and less known elements such as Columbium, Cobalt, Tantalum, Titanium, Molybdenum, Vanadium, Uranium, Nickel, Bismuth, Thallium, Germanium, etc., to mention just a few of which there are some 40 or more. Not one prospector in 1000 knows anything whatever about the majority of these newer elements. Results: history will repeat itself: many who get in on the ground floor with these new minerals will make a fortune; many of these fortunes will be made from the old “worthless” abandoned prospect holes and mine-dumps of the Big Five! Many of these may be of far more value than those which you have been or are now looking for!

A Few Examples
If you found a gold or silver ore worth $$$$ a ton you would call it a “Bonanza,” and in this day and age we might add a “Miracle!” But do you know Casserite, the main ore of the element Tin, is now worth $.80 a pound for the contained tin, and thus a 50% ore would be worth $$$$ a ton, and some ores may contain 76% tin oxide.

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