Rule 497(e)
Registration No. 33-8746
THE TOCQUEVILLE TRUST
The Tocqueville Fund
The Tocqueville Small Cap Value Fund
The Tocqueville International Value Fund
The Tocqueville Gold Fund
Supplement dated October 1, 1999 to the Prospectus dated February 28, 1999
Effective October 1, 1999, each portfolio of the Trust will impose a
1.5% fee on the redemption of shares held less than 90 days. This redemption fee
is applicable for shares purchased on or after October 1, 1999.
In connection with this change, the following prospectus revisions are
made:
o In the FEE TABLE (pg. 9), the line item Redemption Fee will now read as
follows:
Redemption Fee ...................... 1.50%* 1.50%* 1.50%* 1.50%*
(for shares purchased after 10/1/99
and held less than 90 days)
o In the FEE TABLE (pg. 9), the Example section is amended to include the
following information:
You would pay the following expenses if you did not redeem your shares:
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
------ ------- ------- --------
Tocqueville Fund $536 $822 $1,130 $2,002
Tocqueville Small Cap Value Fund $563 $905 $1,271 $2,297
Tocqueville International Value Fund $595 $1,002 $1,435 $2,634
Tocqueville Gold Fund $808 $1,632 $2,470 $4,621
</TABLE>
o In the Additional Shareholder Services section, after the second sentence
of the first paragraph under Exchange Privilege (pg. 19), the following
language is inserted:
However, a redemption fee is charged on shares held less than 90 days.
o The Additional Exchange and Redemption Information section (pg. 20) is
amended to include the following:
<PAGE>
Redemption Fee. The Trust is not designed for short-term traders whose
frequent purchases and redemptions can generate substantial cash flow. These
cash flows can unnecessarily disrupt the Trust's investment program. Short-term
traders often redeem when the market is most turbulent, thereby forcing the sale
of underlying securities held by the Trust at the worst possible time as far as
long-term investors are concerned. Additionally, short-term trading drives up
the Trust's transaction costs--measured by both commissions and bid/ask
spreads--which are borne by the remaining long-term investors. For these
reasons, the Trust assesses a 1.50% fee on the redemption of shares held for
less than 90 days. Redemption fees will be paid to the Trust to help offset
transaction costs. The fee does not apply to any shares purchased through
reinvested distributions (dividends and capital gains). This fee also does not
apply to clients of the Investment Advisor and its affiliates that hold shares
in IRA accounts or in retirement plans (such as 401(k), 403(b), 457, Keogh,
Profit Sharing Plans, and Money Purchase Pension Plans).
The Trust will use the first-in, first-out (FIFO) method to determine the
90-day holding period. Under this method, the date of the redemption will
be compared to the earliest purchase date of shares held in the account. If
this holding period is less than 90 days, the redemption fee will be
assessed. In determining "90 days" the Trust will use the anniversary date
of a transaction. Thus, shares purchased on October 1, 1999, for example,
will be subject to the fee if they are redeemed on or prior to December 29,
1999. If they are redeemed on or after December 30, 1999, the shares will
not be subject to the redemption fee. The redemption fee will be applied on
redemptions of each investment made by a shareholder that does not remain
in a Fund for a 90-day period from the date of purchase.
