Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1939-05-20

Opportunities for making a large a.
mount of money from a small investment,
no matter how speculative growing
fewer and farther between in the modern
trend of trade and industry. OppOrtuni-
ties being narrowed down in every
line of endeavOr. The chance to dupli-
cate the success of Henry FOrd-tO start
new automobile cOmpany-is defin-
itchy at an end. Likewise the OppOrtuni-
ties of an inventor raising funds for the
manufacture of new gadget that may
make millions have faded and with it
has faded the opportunity of investors
who might otherwise back him.
Big business and modern efficiency
are the principal deterrents TO new
enterprise. The man who is foolish
enough to start a new theater will
find himself competing not alone with
the chain theater in the next block but
the entire chain system, going back
through the motion picture industry to
the studios and the banks. The man
who starts a grocery store with the
idea of getting rich quickly finds that
the profits of a store are not figured
in terms of DOUBLING the investment
bUt in paving return of small rate
of interest the investment, under
modern competition.
There was a time when a prOspeCtOr
would show up with "A mining claim of
promise and he would raise enough
money to develop the ore and thereafter
build a mill. All great mines had their
beginning in that fashion Great for
tunes were made in mining enterprises
of this pioneer type: where an invest
ment of 500 has paid $4,000 or more.
II is probably safe to say that the pro-
meters of some of this cOuntry's great
est mines would be languishing i'm Jail
today had the present security laws
been in effect when those mines were
developed. Those days are definitely
past. Under the modern set-up, the
prOspectOr cannot publicly finance his
mine; IL he could finance it, there is no
boom" in the stocks possible; tax laws
are such that there is no incentive for
him TO make large amount of money
for himself or for his associates.
We find that about the only securities
that being sold to the public today
are bonds which refund other bonds
which paid higher rate of interest.
The earnings of money at interest have
dropped TO practically nothing. The risk
is not commensurate with the return
in most instances so a result there
are three billion, nine hundred million
idle dollars in excess reserves languish-
ing in the Federal Reserve Banks.
The only bright spot in investments
today, as we see it, is in LANDOWNERS
ECO1 ALLIES. rms remains poor
mans business" Tt is the trading of
chance-fOr-riches for few dollars ur-
gently needed in these times of stress.
The landowner has in his 1871 % royalty
the chance for fortune. 1t is simple
TO understand: a production of 100 bar
rels of oil per day means 121k barrels
for the landowner, free of cost of pro-
dOction. production of 1000 barrels
per day means 1875 barrels of oil for
the landowner inst one we'll can pro-
duce this much and more. II oil is
worth 81 per barrel, it means $125 per
day to the MISUNDERSTANDING a poor
farmer who has been unable to make a
living on this land, in agricultural pur-
suits. Where else other than in the oil
business, is such a thing possible?
The poor farmers will usually trade
part of his gamble for cash. before the
first well is completed. There are few
who do not sell a part of their rights,
known as royalties. He may sell one