DREYFUS ASSET ALLOCATION FUND INC, 497, 1999-08-31

DREYFUS ASSET ALLOCATION FUND INC
497, 1999-08-31

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Dreyfus Asset
Allocation Fund, Inc.

Investing in a combination of equity and fixed-income securities and short-term
money market instruments for maximum total return consisting of capital
appreciation and current income

PROSPECTUS September 1, 1999

As with all mutual funds, the Securities and Exchange Commission has not
approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this
prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

<PAGE>

Contents

THE FUND
- ----------------------------------------------------

2 Goal/Approach

3 Main Risks

4 Past Performance

5 Expenses

6 Management

7 Financial Highlights

YOUR INVESTMENT
- --------------------------------------------------------------------

8 Account Policies

11 Distributions and Taxes

12 Services for Fund Investors

14 Instructions for Regular Accounts

16 Instructions for IRAs

FOR MORE INFORMATION
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------

INFORMATION ON THE FUND'S RECENT STRATEGIES
AND HOLDINGS CAN BE FOUND IN THE CURRENT
ANNUAL/SEMIANNUAL REPORT (SEE BACK COVER).

What every investor should know about the fund

Information for managing your fund account

Where to learn more about this and other Dreyfus funds

<PAGE>

The Fund

Dreyfus Asset Allocation Fund, Inc.
- --------------------------------
Ticker Symbol: DRAAX

GOAL/APPROACH

The fund seeks maximum total return. To pursue this goal, it invests in a mix of
stocks, fixed-income securities and money market instruments. The fund's
benchmark percentages are 55% stocks, 35% fixed-income securities and 10% money
market instruments. Depending on market and economic conditions, the fund's
asset class strategy ranges will be 40% to 80% for stocks, 20% to 60% for
fixed-income securities and 0% to 40% for money market instruments.

Some of the factors Dreyfus may consider in determining the asset allocation mix
include: (1) the level and direction of long-term interest rates versus
short-term interest rates; (2) historical investment returns for each asset
class relative to the prevailing business cycle; and (3) general economic
conditions, such as current inflation, unemployment and capacity utilization
figures, that could affect investments. The fund's stock investments may include
common stocks, preferred stocks and convertible securities.

The fund's fixed-income securities may include U.S. government bonds and notes,
corporate bonds, mortgage-related securities, asset-backed securities,
convertible debt and convertible preferred stock. While there are no
restrictions on the ratings of the fund's fixed-income investments, the fund
generally will not invest more than 35% of its assets in "high yield" or "junk"
bonds.

The fund may invest up to 25% of its assets in equity securities of companies
not publicly traded in the U.S. and up to 30% of its assets in fixed-income
securities of foreign issuers, including those in emerging markets.

Concepts to understand

BENCHMARK PERCENTAGES: represents the asset mix Dreyfus expects to maintain when
its assessment of economic conditions and investment opportunities indicate that
the financial markets are fairly valued relative to each other.

STRATEGY RANGE: indicates ordinarily expected variations from the benchmarks and
reflects expected shifts within specific asset classes.

MAIN RISKS

Because stocks and bonds fluctuate in price, the value of your investment in the
fund will go up and down, and you could lose money. The stock and bond markets
can perform differently from each other at any given time (as well as over the
long term), so the fund's performance will be affected by its asset allocation.
If the manager favors an asset class during a period when that asset class
underperforms, the fund's performance may be hurt.

The fund's stock investments could cause sudden drops in share price or
contribute to long-term underperformance. Small company stocks tend to be more
volatile than large company stocks and could have a disproportionate effect on
performance. Bond prices tend to move inversely with changes in interest rates
and may be hurt by declines in the issuer's financial condition. Foreign stocks
and bonds involve special risks, such as exposure to currency fluctuations,
economic and political instability, and potentially less liquidity.

High yield bonds are considered speculative, involving greater credit risk and
price volatility and less liquidity than investment grade bonds. High yield bond
prices can fall in response to bad news about the issuer, the issuer's industry
or the economy in general. The fund's share price could also be hurt if it holds
bonds of issuers who default on payments of principal or interest, or there is a
decline in the credit quality of a bond, or perception of a decline.

Under adverse market conditions, the fund could invest all of its assets in
money market securities, which could reduce the benefit from any upswing in the
market.

Other potential risks

The fund may invest in derivatives such as mortgage-and asset-backed
securities, and futures and options. Derivatives can be illiquid and highly
sensitive to changes in their underlying securities, interest rate or index. The
fund also may engage in foreign currency transactions and sell short. These
practices can be used to hedge the fund's portfolio or to increase returns; of
course, such practices sometimes may reduce returns or increase volatility.

The fund is non-diversified and may invest a greater percentage of its assets in
a particular company compared with other funds. Accordingly, the fund's
portfolio may be more sensitive to changes in the market value of a single
company or industry.

At times, the fund may engage in short-term trading. This could increase the
fund's transaction costs and taxable distributions, lowering its after-tax
performance accordingly.

The Fund

PAST PERFORMANCE

The tables below show some of the risks of investing in the fund. The first
table shows the changes in the fund's performance from year to year. The
second table compares the fund's performance over time to that of the S&P
500((reg.tm)), a widely recognized unmanaged index of stock performance. Both
tables assume reinvestment of dividends. Of course, past performance is no
guarantee of future results.
--------------------------------------------------------

Year-by-year total return AS OF 12/31 EACH YEAR (%)

1.67 23.53 14.94 28.94 4.45
89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98

BEST QUARTER: Q3 '97 +13.58%

WORST QUARTER: Q3 '98 -7.49%

THE FUND'S YEAR-TO-DATE TOTAL RETURN AS OF 6/30/99 WAS 0.74%.
--------------------------------------------------------
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Average annual total return AS OF 12/31/98

Since
inception
1 Year 5 Years (7/1/93)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C> <C>
FUND 4.45% 14.22% 13.36%

S&P 500 28.60% 24.05% 22.72%*

* FOR COMPARATIVE PURPOSES, THE VALUE OF THE INDEX ON 6/30/93
IS USED AS THE BEGINNING VALUE ON 7/1/93.
</TABLE>

What this fund is -- and isn't

This fund is a mutual fund: a pooled investment that is professionally managed
and gives you the opportunity to participate in financial markets. It strives to
reach its stated goal, although as with all mutual funds, it cannot offer
guaranteed results.

An investment in this fund is not a bank deposit. It is not FDIC-insured or
government-endorsed. It is not a complete investment program. You could lose
money in this fund, but you also have the potential to make money.

EXPENSES

As an investor, you pay certain fees and expenses in connection with the fund,
which are described in the table below. Annual fund operating expenses are paid
out of fund assets, so their effect is included in the share price. The fund has
no sales charge (load) or Rule 12b-1 distribution fees.
--------------------------------------------------------

Fee table

ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES

% OF AVERAGE DAILY NET ASSETS

Management fees 0.75%

Shareholder services fee 0.25%

Other expenses 0.26%
-------------------------------------------------------

TOTAL 1.26%
--------------------------------------------------------
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Expense example

1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C> <C>
$128 $400 $692 $1,523
</TABLE>
This example shows what you could pay in expenses over
time. It uses the same hypothetical conditions other
funds use in their prospectuses: $10,000 initial
investment, 5% total return each year and no changes in
expenses. The figures shown would be the same whether
you sold your shares at the end of a period or kept
them. Because actual return and expenses will be
different, the example is for comparison only.

Concepts to understand

MANAGEMENT FEE: the fee paid to Dreyfus for managing the fund's portfolio and
assisting in all aspects of the fund's operations.

SHAREHOLDER SERVICES FEE: the fee paid to the fund's distributor for shareholder
account service and maintenance.

OTHER EXPENSES: fees paid by the fund for miscellaneous items such as transfer
agency, custody, professional and registration fees.

The Fund

MANAGEMENT

The investment adviser for the fund is The Dreyfus Corporation, 200 Park Avenue,
New York, New York 10166. Founded in 1947, Dreyfus manages more than $120
billion in over 160 mutual fund portfolios. For the past fiscal year, the fund
paid Dreyfus a management fee at the annual rate of 0.75% of the fund's average
daily net assets. Dreyfus is the primary mutual fund business of Mellon Bank
Corporation, a broad-based financial services company with a bank at its core.
With more than $389 billion of assets under management, and $1.9 trillion of
assets under administration and custody, Mellon provides a full range of
banking, investment and trust products and services to individuals, businesses
and institutions. Mellon is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Kevin M. McClintock has managed the fund since May 1996, and has been employed
by Dreyfus since November 1995. From 1993 through October 1995, Mr. McClintock
was managing director, fixed-income investments, for Aeltus Investment
Management, Inc., a subsidiary of the Aetna Corporation.

Dreyfus has a personal securities trading policy (the "Policy") which restricts
the personal securities transactions of its employees. Its primary purpose is to
ensure that personal trading by Dreyfus employees does not disadvantage any
Dreyfus-managed fund. Dreyfus portfolio managers and other investment personnel
who comply with the Policy's preclearance and disclosure procedures may be
permitted to purchase, sell or hold certain types of securities which also may
be or are held in the fund(s) they advise.

Concepts to understand

YEAR 2000 ISSUES: the fund could be adversely affected if the computer systems
used by Dreyfus and the fund's other service providers do not properly process
and calculate date-related information from and after January 1, 2000.

Dreyfus is working to avoid year 2000-related problems in its systems and to
obtain assurances from other service providers that they are taking similar
steps. In addition, issuers of securities in which the fund invests may be
adversely affected by year 2000-related problems. This could have an impact on
the value of the fund's investments and its share price.

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

This table describes the fund's performance for the fiscal periods indicated.
"Total return" shows how much your investment in the fund would have increased
(or decreased) during each period, assuming you had reinvested all dividends and
distributions. These figures have been independently audited by Ernst & Young
LLP, whose report, along with the fund's financial statements, is included in
the annual report.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>

YEAR ENDED APRIL 30,

1999 1998 1997 1996 1995
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
PER-SHARE DATA ($)

Net asset value, beginning of period 15.49 14.68 13.49 13.81 12.49

Investment operations:

Investment income -- net .35 .24 .33 .32 .39

Net realized and unrealized
gain (loss) on investments (1.00) 4.40 1.83 1.70 1.35

Total from investment operations (.65) 4.64 2.16 2.02 1.74

Distributions:

Dividends from investment
income -- net (.10) (.24) (.34) (.38) (.37)

Dividends from net realized gain
on investments (1.17) (3.59) (.63) (1.96) (.05)

Total distributions (1.27) (3.83) (.97) (2.34) (.42)

Net asset value, end of period 13.57 15.49 14.68 13.49 13.81

Total return (%) (3.95) 34.33 16.49 15.67 14.22
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RATIOS/SUPPLEMENTAL DATA

Ratio of expenses to average
net assets (%) 1.26 1.27 1.31 1.25 .67

Ratio of net investment income
to average net assets (%) 2.05 1.57 2.12 2.16 3.00

Decrease reflected in above
expense ratios due to actions
by Dreyfus (%) -- -- -- .27 1.27

Portfolio turnover rate (%) 294.19 262.74 223.50 370.06 160.11
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Net assets, end of period ($ x 1,000) 64,916 94,896 60,856 62,940 56,639

</TABLE>
The Fund

Your Investment

ACCOUNT POLICIES

Buying shares

YOU PAY NO SALES CHARGES to invest in this fund. Your price for fund shares is
the fund's net asset value per share (NAV), which is generally calculated as of
the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (usually 4:00 p.m. Eastern
time) every day the exchange is open. Your order will be priced at the next NAV
calculated after your order is accepted by the fund or other authorized entity.
The fund's investments are generally valued based on market value or, where
market quotations are not readily available, based on fair value as determined
in good faith by the fund's board.
--------------------------------------------------------

Minimum investments

Initial Additional
--------------------------------------------------------

REGULAR ACCOUNTS $2,500 $100
$500 FOR
TELETRANSFER
INVESTMENTS

TRADITIONAL IRAS $750 NO MINIMUM

SPOUSAL IRAS $750 NO MINIMUM

ROTH IRAS $750 NO MINIMUM

EDUCATION IRAS $500 NO MINIMUM
AFTER THE FIRST
YEAR

DREYFUS AUTOMATIC $100 $100
INVESTMENT PLANS

All investments must be in U.S. dollars. Third-party
checks cannot be accepted. You may be charged a fee for
any check that does not clear. Maximum TeleTransfer
purchase is $150,000 per day.

Third-party investments

If you invest through a third party (rather than directly with Dreyfus), the
policies and fees may be different than those described here. Banks, brokers,
401(k) plans, financial advisers and financial supermarkets may charge
transaction fees and may set different minimum investments or limitations on
buying or selling shares. Consult a representative of your plan or financial
institution if in doubt.

Selling shares

YOU MAY SELL (REDEEM) SHARES AT ANY TIME. Your shares will be sold at the next
NAV calculated after your order is accepted by the fund's transfer agent or
other authorized entity. Any certificates representing fund shares being sold
must be returned with your redemption request. Your order will be processed
promptly and you will generally receive the proceeds within a week.

BEFORE SELLING RECENTLY PURCHASED SHARES, please note that if the fund has not
yet collected payment for the shares you are selling, it may delay sending the
proceeds for up to eight business days or until it has collected payment.
--------------------------------------------------------

Limitations on selling shares by phone

Proceeds
sent by Minimum Maximum
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CHECK NO MINIMUM $150,000 PER DAY

WIRE $1,000 $250,000 FOR JOINT
ACCOUNTS EVERY 30 DAYS

TELETRANSFER $500 $250,000 FOR JOINT
ACCOUNTS EVERY 30 DAYS

Written sell orders

Some circumstances require written sell orders along with signature guarantees.
These include:

(pound) amounts of $1,000 or more on accounts whose address has been changed
within the last 30 days

(pound) requests to send the proceeds to a different payee or address

Written sell orders of $100,000 or more must also be signature guaranteed.

A SIGNATURE GUARANTEE helps protect against fraud. You can obtain one from most
banks or securities dealers, but not from a notary public. For joint accounts,
each signature must be guaranteed. Please call us to ensure that your signature
guarantee will be processed correctly.

Your Investment

ACCOUNT POLICIES (CONTINUED)

General policies

UNLESS YOU DECLINE TELEPHONE PRIVILEGES on your application, you may be
responsible for any fraudulent telephone order as long as Dreyfus takes
reasonable measures to verify the order.

THE FUND RESERVES THE RIGHT TO:

(pound) refuse any purchase or exchange request that
could adversely affect the fund or its operations,
including those from any individual or group who, in the
fund's view, is likely to engage in excessive trading
(usually defined as more than four exchanges out of the
fund within a calendar year)

(pound) refuse any purchase or exchange request in excess of
1% of the fund's total assets

(pound) change or discontinue its exchange privilege, or
temporarily suspend this privilege during unusual market conditions

(pound) change its minimum investment amounts

(pound) delay sending out redemption proceeds for up to
seven days (generally applies only in cases of very large redemptions,
excessive trading or during unusual market conditions)

The fund also reserves the right to make a "redemption in kind" -- payment in
portfolio securities rather than cash -- if the amount you are redeeming is
large enough to affect fund operations (for example, if it represents more than
1% of the fund's assets).

Small account policies

To offset the relatively higher costs of servicing smaller accounts, the fund
charges regular accounts with balances below $2,000 an annual fee of $12. The
fee will be imposed during the fourth quarter of each calendar year.

The fee will be waived for: any investor whose aggregate Dreyfus mutual fund
investments total at least $25,000; IRA accounts; accounts participating in
automatic investment programs; accounts opened through a financial institution.

If your account falls below $500, the fund may ask you to increase your balance.
If it is still below $500 after 45 days, the fund may close your account and
send you the proceeds.

DISTRIBUTIONS AND TAXES

THE FUND USUALLY PAYS ITS SHAREHOLDERS dividends from its net investment income,
and distributes any net capital gains it has realized once a year. Your
distributions will be reinvested in the fund unless you instruct the fund
otherwise. There are no fees or sales charges on reinvestments.

FUND DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS ARE TAXABLE to most investors (unless your
investment is in an IRA or other tax-advantaged account). The tax status of any
distribution is the same regardless of how long you have been in the fund and
whether you reinvest your distributions or take them in cash. In general,
distributions are federally taxable as follows:
--------------------------------------------------------

Taxability of distributions

Type of Tax rate for Tax rate for
distribution 15% bracket 28% bracket or above
--------------------------------------------------------

INCOME ORDINARY ORDINARY
DIVIDENDS INCOME RATE INCOME RATE

SHORT-TERM ORDINARY ORDINARY
CAPITAL GAINS INCOME RATE INCOME RATE

LONG-TERM
CAPITAL GAINS 10% 20%

The tax status of your dividends and distributions will be detailed in your
annual tax statement from the fund.

Because everyone's tax situation is unique, always consult your tax professional
about federal, state and local tax consequences.

Taxes on transactions

Except in tax-advantaged accounts, any sale or exchange of fund shares may
generate a tax liability.

The table at right also can provide a guide for your potential tax liability
when selling or exchanging fund shares. "Short-term capital gains" applies to
fund shares sold or exchanged up to 12 months after buying them. "Long-term
capital gains" applies to shares sold or exchanged after 12 months.

Your Investment

SERVICES FOR FUND INVESTORS

Automatic services

BUYING OR SELLING SHARES AUTOMATICALLY is easy with the services described
below. With each service, you select a schedule and amount, subject to certain
restrictions. You can set up most of these services with your application or by
calling 1-800-645-6561.
--------------------------------------------------------

For investing

DREYFUS AUTOMATIC For making automatic investments
ASSET BUILDER((reg.tm)) from a designated bank account.

DREYFUS PAYROLL For making automatic investments
SAVINGS PLAN through a payroll deduction.

DREYFUS GOVERNMENT For making automatic investments
DIRECT DEPOSIT from your federal employment,
PRIVILEGE Social Security or other regular
federal government check.

DREYFUS DIVIDEND For automatically reinvesting the
SWEEP dividends and distributions from
one Dreyfus fund into another
(not available for IRAs).
--------------------------------------------------------

For exchanging shares

DREYFUS AUTO- For making regular exchanges
EXCHANGE PRIVILEGE from one Dreyfus fund into
another.
--------------------------------------------------------

For selling shares

DREYFUS AUTOMATIC For making regular withdrawals
WITHDRAWAL PLAN from most Dreyfus funds.

Dreyfus Financial Centers

Through a nationwide network of Dreyfus Financial Centers, Dreyfus offers a full
array of investment services and products. This includes information on mutual
funds, brokerage services, tax-advantaged products and retirement planning.

Our experienced financial consultants can help you make informed choices and
provide you with personalized attention in handling account transactions. The
Financial Centers also offer informative seminars and events. To find the
Financial Center nearest you, call 1-800-499-3327.

Exchange privilege

YOU CAN EXCHANGE SHARES WORTH $500 OR MORE from one Dreyfus fund into another
(no minimum for retirement accounts). You can request your exchange in writing
or by phone. Be sure to read the current prospectus for any fund into which you
are exchanging. Any new account established through an exchange will have the
same privileges as your original account (as long as they are available). There
is currently no fee for exchanges, although you may be charged a sales load when
exchanging into any fund that has one.

Dreyfus TeleTransfer privilege

TO MOVE MONEY BETWEEN YOUR BANK ACCOUNT and your Dreyfus fund account with a
phone call, use the Dreyfus TeleTransfer privilege. You can set up TeleTransfer
on your account by providing bank account information and following the
instructions on your application.

24-hour automated account access

YOU CAN EASILY MANAGE YOUR DREYFUS ACCOUNTS, check your account balances,
transfer money between your Dreyfus funds, get price and yield information and
much more -- when it's convenient for you.

Retirement plans

Dreyfus offers a variety of retirement plans, including traditional, Roth and
Education IRAs. Here's where you call for information:

(pound) for traditional, rollover, Roth and Education IRAs, call 1-800-645-656

(pound) for SEP-IRAs, Keogh accounts, 401(k) and 403(b) accounts, call
1-800-358-0910

Your Investment

INSTRUCTIONS FOR REGULAR ACCOUNTS

TO OPEN AN ACCOUNT

In Writing

Complete the application.

Mail your application and a check to:
The Dreyfus Family of Funds
P.O. Box 9387, Providence, RI 02940-9387

TO ADD TO AN ACCOUNT

Fill out an investment slip, and write your account number on your check.

Mail the slip and the check to:
The Dreyfus Family of Funds
P.O. Box 105,
Newark, NJ 07101-0105

By Telephone

WIRE Have your bank send your
investment to The Bank of New York, with these instructions:

* ABA# 021000018

* DDA# 8900118202

* the fund name

* your Social Security or tax ID number

* name(s) of investor(s)

Call us to obtain an account number. Return your application.

WIRE Have your bank send your investment to The Bank of New York, with these
instructions:

* ABA# 021000018

* DDA# 8900118202

* the fund name

* your account number

* name(s) of investor(s)

ELECTRONIC CHECK Same as wire, but insert "1111" before your account number.

TELETRANSFER Request TeleTransfer on your application. Call us to request your
transaction.

Automatically

WITH AN INITIAL INVESTMENT Indicate on your application which automatic
service(s) you want. Return your application with your investment.

WITHOUT ANY INITIAL INVESTMENT Check the Dreyfus Step Program option on your
application. Return your application, then complete the additional materials
when they are sent to you.

ALL SERVICES Call us to request a form to add any automatic investing service
(see "Services for Fund Investors"). Complete and return the forms along with
any other required materials.

Via the Internet

COMPUTER Visit the Dreyfus Web site http://www.dreyfus.com and follow the
instructions to download an account application.

TO SELL SHARES

Write a letter of instruction that includes:

* your name(s) and signature(s)

* your account number

* the fund name

* the dollar amount you want to sell

* how and where to send the proceeds

Obtain a signature guarantee or other documentation, if required (see "Account
Policies -- Selling Shares").

Mail your request to:
The Dreyfus Family of Funds
P.O. Box 9671, Providence, RI 02940-9671

WIRE Be sure the fund has your bank account information on file. Call us to
request your transaction. Proceeds will be wired to your bank.

TELETRANSFER Be sure the fund has your bank account information on file. Call
us to request your transaction. Proceeds will be sent to your bank by electronic
check.

CHECK Call us to request your transaction. A check will be sent to the address
of record.

DREYFUS AUTOMATIC WITHDRAWAL PLAN Call us to request a form to add the plan.
Complete the form, specifying the amount and frequency of withdrawals you would
like.

Be sure to maintain an account balance of $5,000 or more.

To reach Dreyfus, call toll free in the U.S.

1-800-645-6561

Outside the U.S. 516-794-5452

Make checks payable to:

THE DREYFUS FAMILY OF FUNDS

You also can deliver requests to any Dreyfus Financial Center. Because
processing time may vary, please ask the representative when your account will
be credited or debited.

Concepts to understand

WIRE TRANSFER: for transferring money from one financial institution to another.
Wiring is the fastest way to move money, although your bank may charge a fee to
send or receive wire transfers. Wire redemptions from the fund are subject to a
$1,000 minimum.

ELECTRONIC CHECK: for transferring money out of a bank account. Your transaction
is entered electronically, but may take up to eight business days to clear.
Electronic checks usually are available without a fee at all Automated Clearing
House (ACH) banks.

Your Investment

INSTRUCTIONS FOR IRAS

TO OPEN AN ACCOUNT

In Writing

Complete an IRA application, making sure to specify the fund name and to
indicate the year the contribution is for.

Mail your application and a check to:
The Dreyfus Trust Company, Custodian
P.O. Box 6427, Providence, RI 02940-6427

TO ADD TO AN ACCOUNT

Fill out an investment slip, and write your account number on your check.
Indicate the year the contribution is for.

Mail in the slip and the check (see "To Open an Account" at left).

By Telephone

WIRE Have your bank send your investment to The Bank of New York, with these
instructions:

* ABA# 021000018

* DDA# 8900118202

* the fund name

* your account number

* name of investor

* the contribution year

ELECTRONIC CHECK Same as wire, but insert "1111" before your account number.

TELEPHONE CONTRIBUTION Call to request us to move money from a regular Dreyfus
account to an IRA (both accounts must be held in the same shareholder name).

Automatically

WITHOUT ANY INITIAL INVESTMENT Call us
to request a Dreyfus Step Program form. Complete and return the form along
with your application.

ALL SERVICES Call us to request a form to add an automatic investing service
(see "Services for Fund Investors"). Complete and return the form along with any
other required materials.

All contributions will count as current year.

Via the Internet

COMPUTER Visit the Dreyfus Web site http://www.dreyfus.com and follow the
instructions to download an account application.

TO SELL SHARES

Write a letter of instruction that includes:

* your name and signature

* your account number

* the fund name

* the dollar amount you want to sell

* how and where to send the proceeds

* whether the distribution is qualified or premature

* whether the 10% TEFRA should be withheld

Obtain a signature guarantee or other documentation, if required.

Mail in your request (see "To Open an Account" at left).

DREYFUS AUTOMATIC WITHDRAWAL PLAN Call us to request instructions to establish
the plan.

To reach Dreyfus, call toll free in the U.S.

1-800-645-6561

Outside the U.S. 516-794-5452

Make checks payable to:

THE DREYFUS TRUST COMPANY, CUSTODIAN

You also can deliver requests to any Dreyfus Financial Center. Because
processing time may vary, please ask the representative when your account will
be credited or debited.

Concepts to understand

Your Investment

For More Information

Dreyfus Asset Allocation Fund, Inc.
----------------------------
SEC file number: 811-7710

More information on this fund is available free upon
request, including the following:

Annual/Semiannual Report

Describes the fund's performance, lists portfolio
holdings and contains a letter from the fund's manager
discussing recent market conditions, economic trends and
fund strategies that significantly affected the fund's
performance during the last fiscal year.

Statement of Additional Information (SAI)

Provides more details about the fund and its policies. A
current SAI is on file with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) and is incorporated by reference (is
legally considered part of this prospectus).

To obtain information:

BY TELEPHONE
Call 1-800-645-6561

BY MAIL Write to:
The Dreyfus Family of Funds
144 Glenn Curtiss Boulevard
Uniondale, NY 11556-0144

BY E-MAIL Send your request to [email protected]

ON THE INTERNET Text-only versions of fund documents can be viewed online or
downloaded from:

SEC
http://www.sec.gov

DREYFUS
http://www.dreyfus.com

You can also obtain copies by visiting the SEC's Public Reference Room in
Washington, DC (phone 1-800-SEC-0330) or by sending your request and a
duplicating fee to the SEC's Public Reference Section, Washington, DC
20549-6009.

<PAGE>

DREYFUS ASSET ALLOCATION FUND, INC.
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
SEPTEMBER 1, 1999

This Statement of Additional Information, which is not a prospectus,
supplements and should be read in conjunction with the current Prospectus of
Dreyfus Asset Allocation Fund, Inc. (the "Fund"), dated September 1, 1999,
as it may be revised from time to time. To obtain a copy of the Fund's
Prospectus, please write to the Fund at 144 Glenn Curtiss Boulevard,
Uniondale, New York 11566-0144, or call one of the following numbers:

Call Toll Free 1-800-645-6561
In New York City -- Call 1-718-895-1206
Outside the U.S. -- Call 516-794-5452

The Fund's most recent Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report to
Shareholders are separate documents supplied with this Statement of
Additional Information, and the financial statements, accompanying notes and
report of independent auditors appearing in the Annual Report are
incorporated by reference into this Statement of Additional Information.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page
Description of the Fund B-2
Management of the Fund B-24
Management Arrangements B-29
How to Buy Shares B-32
Shareholder Services Plan B-34
How to Redeem Shares B-35
Shareholder Services B-37
Determination of Net Asset Value B-40
Dividends, Distributions and Taxes B-41
Portfolio Transactions B-43
Performance Information B-44
Information About the Fund B-45
Counsel and Independent Auditors B-46
Appendix B-47

DESCRIPTION OF THE FUND

The Fund is a Maryland corporation that commenced operations on July 1,
1993. The Fund is an open-end management investment company, known as a
mutual fund.

The Dreyfus Corporation (the "Manager") serves as the Fund's investment
adviser.

Premier Mutual Fund Services, Inc. (the "Distributor") is the
distributor of the Fund's shares.

Certain Portfolio Securities

The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction
with the Fund's Prospectus.

Money Market Instruments. The Fund may invest in the following types
of money market instruments.

U.S. Government Securities--The Fund may invest in securities issued or
guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its agencies or instrumentalities,
which include U.S. Treasury securities that differ in their interest rates,
maturities and times of issuance. Some obligations issued or guaranteed by
U.S. Government agencies and instrumentalities are supported by the full
faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury; others by the right of the issuer to
borrow from the Treasury; others by discretionary authority of the U.S.
Government to purchase certain obligations of the agency or instrumentality;
and others only by the credit of the agency or instrumentality. These
securities bear fixed, floating or variable rates of interest. Interest may
fluctuate based on generally recognized reference rates or the relationship
of rates. While the U.S. Government currently provides financial support to
such U.S. Government-sponsored agencies or instrumentalities, no assurance
can be given that it will always do so, since it is not so obligated by law.

Repurchase Agreements--The Fund may enter into repurchase agreements with
certain banks or non-bank dealers. In a repurchase agreement, the Fund
buys, and the seller agrees to repurchase, a security at a mutually agreed
upon time and price (usually within seven days). The repurchase agreement
thereby determines the yield during the purchaser's holding period, while
the seller's obligation to repurchase is secured by the value of the
underlying security. The Fund's custodian or sub-custodian will have
custody of, and will hold in a segregated account, securities acquired by
the Fund under a repurchase agreement. Repurchase agreements are considered
by the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission to be loans by the
Fund entering into them. Repurchase agreements could involve risks in the
event of a default or insolvency of the other party to the agreement,
including possible delays or restrictions upon the Fund's ability to dispose
of the underlying securities. In an attempt to reduce the risk of incurring
a loss on a repurchase agreement, the Fund will enter into repurchase
agreements only with domestic banks with total assets in excess of $1
billion, or primary government securities dealers reporting to the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York, with respect to securities of the type in which
the Fund may invest, and will require that additional securities be
deposited with it if the value of the securities purchased should decrease
below the resale price.

Bank Obligations--The Fund may purchase certificates of deposit ("CDs"),
time deposits ("TDs"), bankers' acceptances and other short-term obligations
issued by domestic banks, foreign subsidiaries or foreign branches of
domestic banks, domestic and foreign branches of foreign banks, domestic
savings and loan associations and other banking institutions.

CDs are negotiable certificates evidencing the obligation of a bank to
repay funds deposited with it for a specified period of time.

TDs are non-negotiable deposits maintained in a banking institution for
a specified period of time (in no event longer than seven days) at a stated
interest rate.

Bankers' acceptances are credit instruments evidencing the obligation
of a bank to pay a draft drawn on it by a customer. These instruments
reflect the obligation both of the bank and the drawer to pay the face
amount of the instrument upon maturity. The other short-term obligations
may include uninsured, direct obligations bearing fixed, floating or
variable interest rates.

Commercial Paper and Other Short-Term Corporate Obligations--The Fund may
purchase commercial paper consisting of short-term, unsecured promissory
notes issued to finance short-term credit needs. The commercial paper
purchased by the Fund will consist only of direct obligations which, at the
time of their purchase, are (a) rated not lower than Prime-1 by Moody's
Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's"), A-1 by Standard & Poor's Ratings Group
("S&P"), F-1 by Fitch IBCA, Inc. ("Fitch") or Duff-1 by Duff & Phelps Credit
Rating Co. ("Duff" and with Moody's, S&P and Fitch, the "Rating Agencies"),
(b) issued by companies having an outstanding unsecured debt issue currently
rated at least A3 by Moody's or A- by S&P, Fitch or Duff, or (c) if unrated,
determined by the Manager to be of comparable quality to those rated
obligations which may be purchased by the Fund.

Other short-term corporate obligations include variable amount master
demand notes, which enable the Fund to invest fluctuating amounts at varying
rates of interest pursuant to direct arrangements between the Fund, as
lender, and the borrower. These notes permit daily changes in the amounts
borrowed. Because these obligations are direct lending arrangements between
the lender and borrower, it is not contemplated that such instruments
generally will be traded, and there generally is no established secondary
market for these obligations, although they are redeemable at face value,
plus accrued interest, at any time. Accordingly, where these obligations
are not secured by letters of credit or other credit support arrangements,
the Fund's right to redeem is dependent on the ability of the borrower to
pay principal and interest on demand. Such obligations frequently are not
rated by credit rating agencies, and the Fund may invest in them only if at
the time of an investment the borrower meets the Fund's criteria for
commercial paper issuers.

Convertible Securities. Convertible securities may be converted at
either a stated price or stated rate into underlying shares of common stock.
Convertible securities have characteristics similar to both fixed-income and
equity securities. Convertible securities generally are subordinated to
other similar but non-convertible securities of the same issuer, although
convertible bonds, as corporate debt obligations, enjoy seniority in right
of payment to all equity securities, and convertible preferred stock is
senior to common stock, of the same issuer. Because of the subordination
feature, however, convertible securities typically have lower ratings than
similar non-convertible securities. The Fund also may invest in convertible
preferred stocks that offer enhanced yield features and higher dividend
income than is available from an issuer's common stock.

Although to a lesser extent than with fixed-income securities, the
market value of convertible securities tends to decline as interest rates
increase and, conversely, tends to increase as interest rates decline. In
addition, because of the conversion feature, the market value of convertible
securities tends to vary with fluctuations in the market value of the
underlying common stock. A unique feature of convertible securities is that
as the market price of the underlying common stock declines, convertible
securities tend to trade increasingly on a yield basis, and so may not
experience market value declines to the same extent as the underlying common
stock. When the market price of the underlying common stock increases, the
prices of the convertible securities tend to rise as a reflection of the
value of the underlying common stock. While no securities investments are
without risk, investments in convertible securities generally entail less
risk than investments in common stock of the same issuer.

Convertible securities are investments that provide for a stable stream
of income with generally higher yields than common stocks. There can be no
assurance of current income because the issuers of the convertible
securities may default on their obligations. A convertible security, in
addition to providing fixed income, offers the potential for capital
appreciation through the conversion feature, which enables the holder to
benefit from increases in the market price of the underlying common stock.
There can be no assurance of capital appreciation, however, because
securities prices fluctuate. Convertible securities, however, generally
offer lower interest or dividend yields than non-convertible securities of
similar quality because of the potential for capital appreciation.

The Fund may invest in convertible preferred stocks that offer enhanced
yield features, such as Preferred Equity Redemption Cumulative Stock
("PERCS"), and higher dividend income than is available on a company's
common stock. PERCS are preferred stock which generally feature a mandatory
conversion date, as well as a capital appreciation limit that is usually
expressed in terms of a stated price. The Fund also may invest in other
classes of enhanced convertible securities, such as ACES (Automatically
Convertible Equity Securities), PEPS (Participating Equity Preferred Stock),
PRIDES (Preferred Redeemable Increased Dividend Equity Securities), SAILS
(Stock Appreciation Income Linked Securities), TECONS (Term Convertible
Notes), QICS (Quarterly Income Cumulative Securities) and DECS (Dividend
Enhanced Convertible Securities). These securities are company issued
convertible preferred stock. Unlike PERCS, they do not have a capital
appreciation limit. They are designed to provide the investor with high
current income with some prospect of future capital appreciation, issued
with three or four-year maturities, and typically have some built-in call
protection. Investors have the right to convert them into shares of common
stock at a preset conversion ratio or hold them until maturity. Upon
maturity they will convert mandatorily into either cash or a specified
number of shares of common stock.

Warrants. A warrant is an instrument issued by a corporation which
gives the holder the right to subscribe to a specified amount of the
corporation's capital stock at a set price for a specified period of time.
The Fund may invest up to 5% of its net assets in warrants, except that this
limitation does not apply to warrants purchased by the Fund that are sold in
units with, or attached to, other securities.

Zero Coupon Securities. The Fund may invest in zero coupon U.S.
Treasury securities, which are Treasury Notes and Bonds that have been
stripped of their unmatured interest coupons, the coupons themselves and
receipts or certificates representing interests in such stripped debt
obligations and coupons. Receipts include "Treasury Receipts" ("TRs"),
"Treasury Investment Growth Receipts" ("TIGRs"), "Liquid Yield Option Notes"
("LYONs"), and "Certificates of Accrual on Treasury Securities" ("CATS").
TIGRs, LYONs and CATS are interests in private proprietary accounts while
TRs are interests in accounts sponsored by the U.S. Treasury. Zero coupon
securities also are issued by corporations and financial institutions which
constitute a proportionate ownership of the issuer's pool of underlying U.S.
Treasury securities. A zero coupon security pays no interest to its holders
during its life and is sold at a discount to its face value at maturity.
The market prices of zero coupon securities generally are more volatile than
the market prices of securities that pay interest periodically and are
likely to respond to a greater degree to changes in interest rates than
non-zero coupon securities having similar maturities and credit qualities.

Municipal Obligations. Municipal obligations are debt obligations
issued by states, territories and possessions of the United States and the
District of Columbia and their political subdivisions, agencies and
instrumentalities, or multistate agencies or authorities, the interest from
which, in the opinion of bond counsel to the issuer, is exempt from Federal
income tax. Municipal obligations generally include debt obligations issued
to obtain funds for various public purposes as well as certain industrial
development bonds issued by or on behalf of public authorities. Municipal
obligations are classified as general obligation bonds, revenue bonds and
notes. General obligation bonds are secured by the issuer's pledge of its
faith, credit and taxing power for the payment of principal and interest.
Revenue bonds are payable from the revenue derived from a particular
facility or class of facilities or, in some cases, from the proceeds of a
special excise or other specific revenue source, but not from the general
taxing power. Industrial development bonds, in most cases, are revenue
bonds that do not carry the pledge of the credit of the issuing
municipality, but generally are guaranteed by the corporate entity on whose
behalf they are issued. Notes are short-term instruments which are
obligations of the issuing municipalities or agencies and are sold in
anticipation of a bond sale, collection of taxes or receipt of other
revenues. Municipal obligations include municipal lease/purchase agreements
which are similar to installment purchase contracts for property or
equipment issued by municipalities. Municipal obligations bear fixed,
floating or variable rates of interest, which are determined in some
instances by formulas under which the Municipal obligation's interest rate
will change directly or inversely to changes in interest rates or an index,
or multiples thereof, in many cases subject to a maximum and minimum.
Certain Municipal obligations are subject to redemption at a date earlier
than their stated maturity pursuant to call options, which may be separated
from the related Municipal obligation and purchased and sold separately.
The Fund also may acquire call options on specific Municipal obligations.
The Fund generally would purchase these call options to protect the Fund
from the issuer of the related Municipal obligation redeeming, or other
holder of the call option from calling away, the Municipal obligation before
maturity.

While, in general, Municipal obligations are tax exempt securities
having relatively low yields as compared to taxable, non-Municipal
obligations of similar quality, certain Municipal obligations are taxable
obligations, offering yields comparable to, and in some cases greater than,
the yields available on other permissible Fund investments. Dividends
received by shareholders on Fund shares which are attributable to interest
income received by the Fund from Municipal obligations generally will be
subject to Federal income tax. The Fund may invest in Municipal obligations,
the ratings of which correspond with the ratings of other permissible Fund
investments. The Fund currently intends to invest no more than 25% of its
assets in Municipal obligations. However, this percentage may be varied
from time to time without shareholder approval.

Mortgage-Related Securities. Mortgage-related securities are a form of
derivative collateralized by pools of commercial or residential mortgages.
Pools of mortgage loans are assembled as securities for sale to investors by
various governmental, government-related and private organizations. These
securities may include complex instruments such as collateralized mortgage
obligations and stripped mortgage-backed securities, mortgage pass-through
securities, interests in real estate mortgage investment conduits
("REMICs"), adjustable rate mortgages, real estate investment trusts
("REITs"), or other kinds of mortgage-backed securities, including those
with fixed, floating and variable interest rates, those with interest rates
based on multiples of changes in a specified index of interest rates and
those with interest rates that change inversely to changes in interest
rates, as well as those that do not bear interest.

Residential Mortgage-Related Securities--The Fund may invest in
mortgage-related securities representing participation interests in pools of
one- to four-family residential mortgage loans issued or guaranteed by
governmental agencies or instrumentalities, such as the Government National
Mortgage Association ("GNMA"), the Federal National Mortgage Association
("FNMA") and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation ("FHLMC"), or issued
by private entities. Similar to commercial mortgage-related securities,
residential mortgage-related securities have been issued using a variety of
structures, including multi-class structures featuring senior and
subordinated classes.

Mortgage-related securities issued by GNMA include GNMA Mortgage Pass-
Through Certificates (also known as "Ginnie Maes") which are guaranteed as
to the timely payment of principal and interest by GNMA and such guarantee
is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. GNMA
certificates also are supported by the authority of GNMA to borrow funds
from the U.S. Treasury to make payments under its guarantee.
Mortgage-related securities issued by FNMA include FNMA Guaranteed Mortgage
Pass-Through Certificates (also known as "Fannie Maes") which are solely the
obligations of FNMA and are not backed by or entitled to the full faith and
credit of the United States. Fannie Maes are guaranteed as to timely
payment of principal and interest by FNMA.

Mortgage-related securities issued by FHLMC include FHLMC Mortgage
Participation Certificates (also known as "Freddie Macs" or "PCs"). Freddie
Macs are not guaranteed by the United States or by any Federal Home Loan
Bank and do not constitute a debt or obligation of the United States or of
any Federal Home Loan Bank. Freddie Macs entitle the holder to timely
payment of interest, which is guaranteed by FHLMC. FHLMC guarantees either
ultimate collection or timely payment of all principal payments on the
underlying mortgage loans. When FHLMC does not guarantee timely payment of
principal, FHLMC may remit the amount due on account of its guarantee of
ultimate payment of principal at any time after default on an underlying
mortgage, but in no event later than one year after it becomes payable.

Commercial Mortgage-Related Securities--Commercial mortgage-related
securities generally are multi-class debt or pass-through certificates
secured by mortgage loans on commercial properties. These mortgage-related
securities generally are structured to provide protection to the senior
classes investors against potential losses on the underlying mortgage loans.
This protection generally is provided by having the holders of subordinated
classes of securities ("Subordinated Securities") take the first loss if
there are defaults on the underlying commercial mortgage loans. Other
protection, which may benefit all of the classes or particular classes, may
include issuer guarantees, reserve funds, additional Subordinated
Securities, cross-collateralization and over-collateralization.

Subordinated Securities--The Fund may invest in Subordinated Securities
issued or sponsored by commercial banks, savings and loan institutions,
mortgage bankers, private mortgage insurance companies and other
non-governmental issuers. Subordinated Securities have no governmental
guarantee, and are subordinated in some manner as to the payment of
principal and/or interest to the holders of more senior mortgage-related
securities arising out of the same pool of mortgages. The holders of
Subordinated Securities typically are compensated with a higher stated yield
than are the holders of more senior mortgage-related securities. On the
other hand, Subordinated Securities typically subject the holder to greater
risk than senior mortgage-related securities and tend to be rated in a lower
rating category, and frequently a substantially lower rating category, than
the senior mortgage-related securities issued in respect of the same pool of
mortgage. Subordinated Securities generally are likely to be more sensitive
to changes in prepayment and interest rates and the market for such
securities may be less liquid than is the case for traditional fixed-income
securities and senior mortgage-related securities.

Collateralized Mortgage Obligations ("CMOs") and Multi-Class Pass-Through-
Securities--A CMO is a multiclass bond backed by a pool of mortgage
pass-through certificates or mortgage loans. CMOs may be collateralized by
(a) Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac pass-through certificates, (b)
unsecuritized mortgage loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration
or guaranteed by the Department of Veterans' Affairs, (c) unsecuritized
conventional mortgages, (d) other mortgage-related securities, or (e) any
combination thereof.

Each class of CMOs, often referred to as a "tranche," is issued at a
specific coupon rate and has a stated maturity or final distribution date.
Principal prepayments on collateral underlying a CMO may cause it to be
retired substantially earlier than the stated maturities or final
distribution dates. The principal and interest on the underlying mortgages
may be allocated among the several classes of a series of a CMO in many
ways. One or more tranches of a CMO may have coupon rates which reset
periodically at a specified increment over an index, such as the London
Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") (or sometimes more than one index). These
floating rate CMOs typically are issued with lifetime caps on the coupon
rate thereon. The Fund also may invest in inverse floating rate CMOs.
Inverse floating rate CMOs constitute a tranche of a CMO with a coupon rate
that moves in the reverse direction to an applicable index such a LIBOR.
Accordingly, the coupon rate thereon will increase as interest rates
decrease. Inverse floating rate CMOs are typically more volatile than fixed
or floating rate tranches of CMOs.

Many inverse floating rate CMOs have coupons that move inversely to a
multiple of the applicable indexes. The effect of the coupon varying
inversely to a multiple of an applicable index creates a leverage factor.
Inverse floaters based on multiples of a stated index are designed to be
highly sensitive to changes in interest rates and can subject the holders
thereof to extreme reductions of yield and loss of principal. The markets
for inverse floating rate CMOs with highly leveraged characteristics at
times may be very thin. The Fund's ability to dispose of its positions in
such securities will depend on the degree of liquidity in the markets for
such securities. It is impossible to predict the amount of trading interest
that may exist in such securities, and therefore the future degree of
liquidity.

Stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities--The Fund also may invest in stripped
mortgage-backed securities which are created by segregating the cash flows
from underlying mortgage loans or mortgage securities to create two or more
new securities, each with a specified percentage of the underlying
security's principal or interest payments. Mortgage securities may be
partially stripped so that each investor class receives some interest and
some principal. When securities are completely stripped, however, all of
the interest is distributed to holders of one type of security, known as an
interest-only security, or IO, and all of the principal is distributed to
holders of another type of security known as a principal-only security, or
PO. Strips can be created in a pass-through structure or as tranches of a
CMO. The yields to maturity on IOs and POs are very sensitive to the rate
of principal payments (including prepayments) on the related underlying
mortgage assets. If the underlying mortgage assets experience greater than
anticipated prepayments of principal, the Fund may not fully recoup its
initial investment in IOs. Conversely, if the underlying mortgage assets
experience less than anticipated prepayments of principal, the yield on POs
could be materially and adversely affected.

Real Estate Investment Trusts--A REIT is a corporation, or a business trust
that would otherwise be taxed as a corporation, which meets the definitional
requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code").
The Code permits a qualifying REIT to deduct dividends paid, thereby
effectively eliminating corporate level Federal income tax and making the
REIT a pass-through vehicle for Federal income tax purposes. To meet the
definitional requirements of the Code, a REIT must, among other things,
invest substantially all of its assets in interests in real estate
(including mortgages and other REITs) or cash and government securities,
derive most of its income from rents from real property or interest on loans
secured by mortgages on real property, and distribute to shareholders
annually a substantial portion of its otherwise taxable income.

REITs are characterized as equity REITs, mortgage REITs and hybrid
REITs. Equity REITs, which may include operating or finance companies, own
real estate directly and the value of, and income earned by, the REITs
depends upon the income of the underlying properties and the rental income
they earn. Equity REITs also can realize capital gains (or losses) by
selling properties that have appreciated (or depreciated) in value.
Mortgage REITs can make construction, development or long-term mortgage
loans and are sensitive to the credit quality of the borrower. Mortgage
REITs derive their income from interest payments on such loans. Hybrid
REITs combine the characteristics of both equity and mortgage REITs,
generally by holding both ownership interests and mortgage interests in real
estate. The value of securities issued by REITs are affected by tax and
regulatory requirements and by perceptions of management skill. They also
are subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers or tenants,
self-liquidation and the possibility of failing to qualify for tax-free
status under the Code or to maintain exemption from the Investment Company
Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act").

Adjustable-Rate Mortgage Loans ("ARMs")--ARMs eligible for inclusion in a
mortgage pool will generally provide for a fixed initial mortgage interest
rate for a specified period of time, generally for either the first three,
six, twelve, thirteen, thirty-six, or sixty scheduled monthly payments.
Thereafter, the interest rates are subject to periodic adjustment based on
changes in an index. ARMs typically have minimum and maximum rates beyond
which the mortgage interest rate may not vary over the lifetime of the
loans. Certain ARMs provide for additional limitations on the maximum
amount by which the mortgage interest rate may adjust for any single
adjustment period. Negatively amortizing ARMs may provide limitations on
changes in the required monthly payment. Limitations on monthly payments
can result in monthly payments that are greater or less than the amount
necessary to amortize a negatively amortizing ARM by its maturity at the
interest rate in effect during any particular month.

Private Entity Securities--These mortgage-related securities are issued by
commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, mortgage bankers, private
mortgage insurance companies and other nongovernmental issuers. Timely
payment of principal and interest on mortgage-related securities backed by
pools created by non-governmental issuers often is supported partially by
various forms of insurance or guarantees, including individual loan, title,
pool and hazard insurance. The insurance and guarantees are issued by
government entities, private insurers and the mortgage poolers. There can
be no assurance that the private insurers or mortgage poolers can meet their
obligations under the policies, so that if the issuers default on their
obligations the holders of the security could sustain a loss. No insurance
or guarantee covers the Fund or the price of the Fund's shares.
Mortgage-related securities issued by non-governmental issuers generally
offer a higher rate of interest than government-agency and
government-related securities because there are no direct or indirect
government guarantees of payment.

Other Mortgage-Related Securities--Other mortgage-related securities include
securities other than those described above that directly or indirectly
represent a participation in, or are secured by and payable from, mortgage
loans on real property, including CMO residuals. Other mortgage-related
securities may be equity or debt securities issued by agencies or
instrumentalities of the U.S. Government or by private originators of, or
investors in, mortgage loans, including savings and loan associations,
homebuilders, mortgage banks, commercial banks, investment banks,
partnerships, trusts and special purpose entities of the foregoing.

Asset-Backed Securities. Asset-backed securities are a form of
derivative. The securitization techniques used for asset-backed securities
are similar to those used for mortgage-related securities. The collateral
for these securities has included home equity loans, automobile and credit
card receivables, boat loans, computer leases, airplane leases, mobile home
loans, recreational vehicle loans and hospital account receivables. The
Fund may invest in these and other types of asset-backed securities that may
be developed in the future.

Asset-backed securities present certain risks that are not presented by
mortgage-backed securities. Primarily, these securities may provide the
Fund with a less effective security interest in the related collateral than
do mortgage-backed securities. Therefore, there is the possibility that
recoveries on the underlying collateral may not, in some cases, be available
to support payments on these securities.

Depositary Receipts. The Fund may invest in the securities of foreign
issuers in the form of American Depositary Receipts and American Depositary
Shares (collectively, "ADRs") and Global Depositary Receipts and Global
Depositary Shares (collectively, "GDRs") and other forms of depositary
receipts. These securities may not necessarily be denominated in the same
currency as the securities into which they may be converted. ADRs are
receipts typically issued by a United States bank or trust company which
evidence ownership of underlying securities issued by a foreign corporation.
GDRs are receipts issued outside the United States typically by non-United
States banks and trust companies that evidence ownership of either foreign
or domestic securities. Generally, ADRs in registered form are designed for
use in the United States securities markets and GDRs in bearer form are
designed for use outside the United States.

These securities may be purchased through "sponsored" or "unsponsored"
facilities. A sponsored facility is established jointly by the issuer of the
underlying security and a depositary, whereas a depositary may establish an
unsponsored facility without participation by the issuer of the deposited
security. Holders of unsponsored depositary receipts generally bear all the
costs of such facilities, and the depositary of an unsponsored facility
frequently is under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications
received from the issuer of the deposited security or to pass through voting
rights to the holders of such receipts in respect of the deposited
securities.

Foreign Government Obligations; Securities of Supranational Entities.
The Fund may invest in obligations issued or guaranteed by one or more
foreign governments or any of their political subdivisions, agencies or
instrumentalities that are determined by the Manager to be of comparable
quality to the other obligations in which the Fund may invest. Such
securities also include debt obligations of supranational entities.
Supranational entities include international organizations designated or
supported by governmental entities to promote economic reconstruction or
development and international banking institutions and related government
agencies. Examples include the International Bank for Reconstruction and
Development (the World Bank), the European Coal and Steel Community, the
Asian Development Bank and the InterAmerican Development Bank.

High Yield-Lower Rated Securities. The Fund is not subject to any
limit on the percentage of its assets that may be invested in fixed-income
securities having a certain rating. Thus, it is possible that a substantial
portion of the Fund's assets may be invested in fixed-income securities that
are unrated or rated in the lowest categories of the Rating Agencies (i.e.,
securities rated C by Moody's or D by S&P, Fitch or Duff). Lower-rated and
unrated securities have special risks relating to the ability of the Fund to
receive timely, or perhaps ultimate, payment of principal and interest.
They are considered to have speculative characteristics and to be of poor
quality; some obligations in which the Fund may invest, such as debt
securities rated D by S&P, Fitch and Duff, may be in default. The Fund
intends to invest less than 35% of its assets in debt securities rated Ba or
lower by Moody's and BB or lower by S&P, Fitch and Duff. See "Investment
Considerations and Risks--Fixed-Income Securities" and "--Lower Rated
Securities" below for a discussion of certain risks. Securities rated Ba by
Moody's are judged to have speculative elements; their future cannot be
considered as well assured and often the protection of interest and
principal payments may be very moderate. Securities rated BB by S&P, Fitch
or Duff are regarded as having predominantly speculative characteristics
and, while such obligations have less near-term vulnerability to default
than other speculative grade debt, they face major ongoing uncertainties or
exposure to adverse business, financial or economic conditions which could
lead to inadequate capacity to meet timely interest and principal payments.
Securities rated C by Moody's are regarded as having extremely poor
prospects of ever attaining any real investment standing. Securities rated
D by S&P, Fitch and Duff are in default and the payment of interest and/or
repayment of principal is in arrears. These securities, though high
yielding, are characterized by great risk. See the Appendix for a general
description of securities ratings.

Illiquid Securities. The Fund may invest up to 15% of the value of its
net assets in securities as to which a liquid trading market does not exist,
provided such investments are consistent with the Fund's investment
objective. These securities may include securities that are not readily
marketable, such as securities that are subject to legal or contractual
restrictions on resale, repurchase agreements providing for settlement in
more than seven days after notice and certain privately negotiated, non-
exchange traded options and securities used to cover such options. As to
these securities, the Fund is subject to a risk that should the Fund desire
to sell them when a ready buyer is not available at a price that the Fund
deems representative of their value, the value of the Fund's net assets
could be adversely affected.

Investment Techniques

The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction
with the Fund's Prospectus.

Foreign Currency Transactions. The Fund may enter into foreign
currency transactions for a variety of purposes, including: to fix in U.S.
dollars, between trade and settlement date, the value of a security the Fund
has agreed to buy or sell; to hedge the U.S. dollar value of securities the
Fund already owns, particularly if it expects a decrease in the value of the
currency in which the foreign security is denominated; or to gain exposure
to the foreign currency in an attempt to realize gains.

Foreign currency transactions may involve, for example, the Fund's
purchase of foreign currencies for U.S. dollars or the maintenance of short
positions in foreign currencies, which would involve the Fund agreeing to
exchange an amount of a currency it did not currently own for another
currency at a future date in anticipation of a decline in the value of the
currency sold relative to the currency the Fund contracted to receive in the
exchange. The Fund's success in these transactions will depend principally
on the ability of the Manager to predict accurately the future exchange
rates between foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar.

Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods
of time. They generally are determined by the forces of supply and demand
in the foreign exchange markets and the relative merits of investments in
different countries, actual or perceived changes in interest rates and other
complex factors, as seen from an international perspective. Currency
exchange rates also can be affected unpredictably by intervention by U.S. or
foreign governments or central banks, or the failure to intervene, or by
currency controls or political developments in the United States or abroad.

Leverage. Leveraging (that is, buying securities using borrowed money)
exaggerates the effect on net asset value of any increase or decrease in the
market value of the Fund's portfolio. These borrowings will be subject to
interest costs which may or may not be recovered by appreciation of the
securities purchased; in certain cases, interest costs may exceed the return
received on the securities purchased. For borrowings for investment
purposes, the 1940 Act requires the Fund to maintain continuous asset
coverage (that is, total assets including borrowings, less liabilities
exclusive of borrowings) of 300% of the amount borrowed. If the required
coverage should decline as a result of market fluctuations or other reasons,
the Fund may be required to sell some of its portfolio holdings within three
days to reduce the amount of its borrowings and restore the 300% asset
coverage, even though it may be disadvantageous from an investment
standpoint to sell securities at that time. The Fund also may be required
to maintain minimum average balances in connection with such borrowing or
pay a commitment or other fee to maintain a line of credit; either of these
requirements would increase the cost of borrowing over the stated interest
rate.

The Fund may enter into reverse repurchase agreements with banks,
brokers or dealers. This form of borrowing involves the transfer by the Fund
of an underlying debt instrument in return for cash proceeds based on a
percentage of the value of the security. The Fund retains the right to
receive interest and principal payments on the security. At an agreed upon
future date, the Fund repurchases the security at principal plus accrued
interest. To the extent the Fund enters into a reverse repurchase
agreement, the Fund will segregate permissible liquid assets at least equal
to the aggregate amount of its reverse repurchase obligations, plus accrued
interest, in certain cases, in accordance with releases promulgated by the
Securities and Exchange Commission. The Securities and Exchange Commission
views reverse repurchase transactions as collateralized borrowings by the
Fund. Except for these transactions, the Fund's borrowings generally will
be unsecured. Reverse repurchase agreements may be preferable to a regular
sale and later repurchase of the securities because they avoid certain
market risks and transaction costs. Such transactions, however, may
increase the risk of potential fluctuations in the market value of the
Fund's assets. In addition, interest costs on the cash received may exceed
the return on the securities purchased.

Short-Selling. (All Funds) In these transactions, the Fund sells a
security it does not own anticipation of a decline in the market value of
the security. To complete the transaction, the Fund must borrow the
security to make delivery to the buyer. The Fund is obligated to replace
the security borrowed by purchasing it subsequently at the market price at
the time of replacement. The price at such time may be more or less than
the price at which the security was sold by the Fund, which would result in
a loss or gain, respectively.

Securities will not be sold short if, after effect is given to any such
short sale, the total market value of all securities sold short would exceed
25% of the value of the Fund's net assets. The Fund may not make a short
sale which results in the Fund having sold short in the aggregate more than
5% of the outstanding securities of any class of an issuer.

The Fund also may make short sales "against the box," in which the Fund
enters into a short sale of a security it owns in order to hedge an
unrealized gain on the security. At no time will more than 15% of the value
of the Fund's net assets be in deposits on short sales against the box.

Until the Fund closes its short position or replaces the borrowed
security, it will: (a) segregate permissible liquid assets in an amount
that, together with the amount deposited with the broker as collateral,
always equals the current value of the security sold short; or (b) otherwise
cover its short position.

Lending Portfolio Securities. The Fund may lend securities from its
portfolio to brokers, dealers and other financial institutions needing to
borrow securities to complete certain transactions. The Fund continues to
be entitled to payments in amounts equal to the interest or other
distributions payable on the loaned securities which affords the Fund an
opportunity to earn interest on the amount of the loan and on the loaned
securities' collateral. Loans of portfolio securities may not exceed 33-
1/3% of the value of the Fund's total assets, and the Fund will receive
collateral consisting of cash, U.S. Government securities or irrevocable
letters of credit which will be maintained at all times in an amount equal
to at least 100% of the current market value of the loaned securities. Such
loans are terminable by the Fund at any time upon specified notice. The
Fund might experience risk of loss if the institution with which it has
engaged in a portfolio loan transaction breaches its agreement with the
Fund. In connection with its securities lending transactions, the Fund may
return to the borrower or a third party which is unaffiliated with the Fund,
and which is acting as a "placing broker," a part of the interest earned
from the investment of collateral received for securities loaned.

Derivatives. The Fund may invest in, or enter into, derivatives, such
as options and futures, mortgage-related securities, asset-backed securities
and interest rate swaps, for a variety of reasons, including to hedge
certain market risks, to provide a substitute for purchasing or selling
particular securities or to increase potential income gain. Derivatives may
provide a cheaper, quicker or more specifically focused way for the Fund to
invest than "traditional" securities would.

Derivatives can be volatile and involve various types and degrees of
risk, depending upon the characteristics of the particular derivative and
the portfolio as a whole. Derivatives permit the Fund to increase or
decrease the level of risk, or change the character of the risk, to which
its portfolio is exposed in much the same way as the Fund can increase or
decrease the level of risk, or change the character of the risk, of its
portfolio by making investments in specific securities. However,
derivatives may entail investment exposures that are greater than their cost
would suggest, meaning that a small investment in derivatives could have a
large potential impact on the Fund's performance.

If the Fund invests in derivatives at inopportune times or judges
market conditions incorrectly, such investments may lower the Fund's return
or result in a loss. The Fund also could experience losses if its
derivatives were poorly correlated with its other investments, or if the
Fund were unable to liquidate its position because of an illiquid secondary
market. The market for many derivatives is, or suddenly can become,
illiquid. Changes in liquidity may result in significant, rapid and
unpredictable changes in the prices for derivatives.

Although the Fund will not be a commodity pool, certain derivatives
subject the Fund to the rules of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
which limit the extent to which the Fund can invest in such derivatives.
The Fund may invest in futures contracts and options with respect thereto
for hedging purposes without limit. However, the Fund may not invest in
such contracts and options for other purposes if the sum of the amount of
initial margin deposits and premiums paid for unexpired options with respect
to such contracts, other than for bona fide hedging purposes, exceeds 5% of
the liquidation value of the Fund's assets, after taking into account
unrealized profits and unrealized losses on such contracts and options;
provided, however, that in the case of an option that is in-the-money at the
time of purchase, the in-the-money amount may be excluded in calculating the
5% limitation.

Derivatives may be purchased on established exchanges or through
privately negotiated transactions referred to as over-the-counter
derivatives. Exchange-traded derivatives generally are guaranteed by the
clearing agency which is the issuer or counterparty to such derivatives.
This guarantee usually is supported by a daily variation margin system
operated by the clearing agency in order to reduce overall credit risk. As
a result, unless the clearing agency defaults, there is relatively little
counterparty credit risk associated with derivatives purchased on an
exchange. By contrast, no clearing agency guarantees over-the-counter
derivatives. Therefore, each party to an over-the-counter derivative bears
the risk that the counterparty will default. Accordingly, the Manager will
consider the creditworthiness of counterparties to over-the-counter
derivatives in the same manner as it would review the credit quality of a
security to be purchased by the Fund. Over-the-counter derivatives are less
liquid than exchange-traded derivatives since the other party to the
transaction may be the only investor with sufficient understanding of the
derivative to be interested in bidding for it.

Futures Transactions--In General. The Fund may enter into futures contracts
in U.S. domestic markets, such as the Chicago Board of Trade and the
International Monetary Market of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, or, on
exchanges located outside the United States, such as the London
International Financial Futures Exchange, the Deutsche Termine Borse and the
Sydney Futures Exchange Limited. Foreign markets may offer advantages such
as trading opportunities or arbitrage possibilities not available in the
United States. Foreign markets, however, may have greater risk potential
than domestic markets. For example, some foreign exchanges are principal
markets so that no common clearing facility exists and an investor may look
only to the broker for performance of the contract. In addition, any
profits that the Fund might realize in trading could be eliminated by
adverse changes in the exchange rate, or the Fund could incur losses as a
result of those changes. Transactions on foreign exchanges may include both
commodities which are traded on domestic exchanges and those which are not.
Unlike trading on domestic commodity exchanges, trading on foreign commodity
exchanges is not regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Engaging in these transactions involves risk of loss to the Fund which
could adversely affect the value of the Fund's net assets. Although the
Fund intends to purchase or sell futures contracts only if there is an
active market for such contracts, no assurance can be given that a liquid
market will exist for any particular contract at any particular time. Many
futures exchanges and boards of trade limit the amount of fluctuation
permitted in futures contract prices during a single trading day. Once the
daily limit has been reached in a particular contract, no trades may be made
that day at a price beyond that limit or trading may be suspended for
specified periods during the trading day. Futures contract prices could
move to the limit for several consecutive trading days with little or no
trading, thereby preventing prompt liquidation of futures positions and
potentially subjecting the Fund to substantial losses.

Successful use of futures by the Fund also is subject to the Manager's
ability to predict correctly movements in the direction of the relevant
market and, to the extent the transaction is entered into for hedging
purposes, to ascertain the appropriate correlation between the transaction
being hedged and the price movements of the futures contract. For example,
if the Fund uses futures to hedge against the possibility of a decline in
the market value of securities held in its portfolio and the prices of such
securities instead increase, the Fund will lose part or all of the benefit
of the increased value of securities which it has hedged because it will
have offsetting losses in its futures positions. Furthermore, if in such
circumstances the Fund has insufficient cash, it may have to sell securities
to meet daily variation margin requirements. The Fund may have to sell such
securities at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so.

Pursuant to regulations and/or published positions of the Securities
and Exchange Commission, the Fund may be required to segregate permissible
liquid assets to cover its obligations relating to its transactions in
derivatives. To maintain this required cover, the Fund may have to sell
portfolio securities at disadvantageous prices or times since it may not be
possible to liquidate a derivative position at a reasonable price. In
addition, the segregation of such assets will have the effect of limiting
the Fund's ability otherwise to invest those assets.

Specific Futures Transactions. The Fund may purchase and sell stock index
futures contracts. A stock index future obligates the Fund to pay or receive
an amount of cash equal to a fixed dollar amount specified in the futures
contract multiplied by the difference between the settlement price of the
contract on the contract's last trading day and the value of the index based
on the stock prices of the securities that comprise it at the opening of
trading in such securities on the next business day.

The Fund may purchase and sell interest rate futures contracts. An
interest rate future obligates the Fund to purchase or sell an amount of a
specific debt security at a future date at a specific price.

Interest Rate Swaps. Interest rate swaps involve the exchange by the Fund
with another party of their respective commitments to pay or receive
interest (for example, an exchange of floating rate payments for fixed-rate
payments). The exchange commitments can involve payments to be made in the
same currency or in different currencies. The use of interest rate swaps is
a highly specialized activity which involves investment techniques and risks
different from those associated with ordinary portfolio security
transactions. If the Manager is incorrect in its forecasts of market
values, interest rates and other applicable factors, the investment
performance of the Fund would diminish compared with what it would have been
if these investment techniques were not used. Moreover, even if the Manager
is correct in its forecasts, there is a risk that the swap position may
correlate imperfectly with the price of the asset or liability being hedged.
There is no limit on the amount of interest rate swap transactions that may
be entered into by the Fund. These transactions do not involve the delivery
of securities or other underlying assets or principal. Accordingly, the
risk of loss with respect to interest rate swaps is limited to the net
amount of interest payments that the Fund is contractually obligated to
make. If the other party to an interest rate swap defaults, the Fund's risk
of loss consists of the net amount of interest payments that the Fund
contractually is entitled to receive.

The Fund may purchase and sell currency futures. A foreign currency
future obligates the Fund to purchase or sell an amount of a specific
currency at a future date at a specific price.

Options--In General. The Fund may invest up to 5% of its assets,
represented by the premium paid, in the purchase of call and put options.
The Fund may write (i.e., sell) covered call and put option contracts to the
extent of 20% of the value of its net assets at the time such option
contracts are written. A call option gives the purchaser of the option the
right to buy, and obligates the writer to sell, the underlying security or
securities at the exercise price at any time during the option period, or at
a specific date. Conversely, a put option gives the purchaser of the option
the right to sell, and obligates the writer to buy, the underlying security
or securities at the exercise price at any time during the option period, or
at a specific date.

A covered call option written by the Fund is a call option with respect
to which the Fund owns the underlying security or otherwise covers the
transaction by segregating permissible liquid assets. A put option written
by the Fund is covered when, among other things, the Fund segregates
permissible liquid assets having a value equal to or greater than the
exercise price of the option to fulfill the obligation undertaken. The
principal reason for writing covered call and put options is to realize,
through the receipt of premiums, a greater return than would be realized on
the underlying securities alone. The Fund receives a premium from writing
covered call or put options which it retains whether or not the option is
exercised.

There is no assurance that sufficient trading interest to create a
liquid secondary market on a securities exchange will exist for any
particular option or at any particular time, and for some options no such
secondary market may exist. A liquid secondary market in an option may
cease to exist for a variety of reasons. In the past, for example, higher
than anticipated trading activity or order flow, or other unforeseen events,
at times have rendered certain of the clearing facilities inadequate and
resulted in the institution of special procedures, such as trading
rotations, restrictions on certain types of orders or trading halts or
suspensions in one or more options. There can be no assurance that similar
events, or events that may otherwise interfere with the timely execution of
customers' orders, will not recur. In such event, it might not be possible
to effect closing transactions in particular options. If, as a covered call
option writer, the Fund is unable to effect a closing purchase transaction
in a secondary market, it will not be able to sell the underlying security
until the option expires or it delivers the underlying security upon
exercise or it otherwise covers its position.

Specific Options Transactions. The Fund may purchase and sell call and put
options in respect of specific securities (or groups or "baskets" of
specific securities) or stock indices listed on national securities
exchanges or traded in the over-the-counter market. An option on a stock
index is similar to an option in respect of specific securities, except that
settlement does not occur by delivery of the securities comprising the
index. Instead, the option holder receives an amount of cash if the closing
level of the stock index upon which the option is based is greater than, in
the case of a call, or less than, in the case of a put, the exercise price
of the option. Thus, the effectiveness of purchasing or writing stock index
options will depend upon price movements in the level of the index rather
than the price of a particular stock.

The Fund may purchase and sell call and put options on foreign
currency. These options convey the right to buy or sell the underlying
currency at a price which is expected to be lower or higher than the spot
price of the currency at the time the option is exercised or expires.

The Fund may purchase cash-settled options on interest rate swaps,
interest rate swaps denominated in foreign currency and equity index swaps
in pursuit of its investment objective. Interest rate swaps involve the
exchange by the Fund with another party of their respective commitments to
pay or receive interest (for example, an exchange of floating-rate payments
for fixed-rate payments) denominated in U.S. dollars or foreign currency.
Equity index swaps involve the exchange by the Fund with another party of
cash flows based upon the performance of an index or a portion of an index
of securities which usually includes dividends. A cash-settled option on a
swap gives the purchaser the right, but not the obligation, in return for
the premium paid, to receive an amount of cash equal to the value of the
underlying swap as of the exercise date. These options typically are
purchased in privately negotiated transactions from financial institutions,
including securities brokerage firms.

Successful use by the Fund of options will be subject to the Manager's
ability to predict correctly movements in the prices of individual stocks,
the stock market generally, foreign currencies or interest rates. To the
extent the Manager's predictions are incorrect, the Fund may incur losses.

Future Developments. The Fund may take advantage of opportunities in
the area of options and futures contracts and options on futures contracts
and any other derivatives which are not presently contemplated for use by
the Fund or which are not currently available but which may be developed, to
the extent such opportunities are both consistent with the Fund's investment
objective and legally permissible for the Fund. Before entering into such
transactions or making any such investment, the Fund will provide
appropriate disclosure in its Prospectus or Statement of Additional
Information.

Forward Commitments. The Fund may purchase or sell securities on a
forward commitment, when-issued or delayed delivery basis, which means
delivery and payment take place a number of days after the date of the
commitment to purchase or sell the securities at a predetermined price
and/or yield. Typically, no interest accrues to the purchaser until the
security is delivered. When purchasing a security on a forward commitment
basis, the Fund assumes the rights and risks of ownership of the security,
including the risk of price and yield fluctuations, and takes such
fluctuations into account when determining its net asset value. Because the
Fund is not required to pay for these securities until the delivery date,
these risks are in addition to the risks associated with the Fund's other
investments. If the Fund is fully or almost fully invested when forward
commitment purchases are outstanding, such purchases may result in a form of
leverage. The Fund intends to engage in forward commitments to increase its
portfolio's financial exposure to the types of securities in which it
invests. Leveraging the portfolio in this manner will increase the Fund's
exposure to changes in interest rates and will increase the volatility of
its returns. The Fund will segregate permissible liquid assets at least
equal at all times to the amount of the Fund's purchase commitments. At no
time will the Fund have more than 33-1/3% of its assets committed to
purchase securities on a forward commitment basis.

Securities purchased on a forward commitment or when-issued basis are
subject to changes in value (generally changing in the same way, i.e.,
appreciating when interest rates decline and depreciating when interest
rates rise) based upon the public's perception of the creditworthiness of
the issuer and changes, real or anticipated, in the level of interest rates.
Securities purchased on a forward commitment or when-issued basis may expose
the Fund to risks because they may experience such fluctuations prior to
their actual delivery. Purchasing securities on a when-issued basis can
involve the additional risk that the yield available in the market when the
delivery takes place actually may be higher than that obtained in the
transaction itself. Purchasing securities on a forward commitment or when-
issued basis when the Fund is fully or almost fully invested may result in
greater potential fluctuation in the value of the Fund's net assets and its
net asset value per share.

Forward Roll Transactions. To enhance current income, the Fund may
enter into forward roll transactions with respect to mortgage-related
securities. In a forward roll transaction, the Fund sells a
mortgage-related security to a financial institution, such as a bank or
broker-dealer, and simultaneously agrees to purchase a similar security from
the institution at a later date at an agreed upon price. The securities
that are purchased will bear the same interest rate as those sold, but
generally will be collateralized by different pools of mortgages with
different pre-payment histories than those sold. During the period between
the sale and purchase, the Fund will not be entitled to receive interest and
principal payments on the securities sold. Proceeds of the sale typically
will be invested in short-term instruments, particularly repurchase
agreements, and the income from these investments, together with any
additional fee income received on the sale will be expected to generate
income for the Fund exceeding the yield on the securities sold. Forward
roll transactions involve the risk that the market value of the securities
sold by the Fund may decline below the purchase price of those securities.
The Fund will segregate permissible liquid assets at least equal to the
amount of the repurchase price (including accrued interest).

Investment Company Securities. The Fund may invest in securities
issued by other investment companies which principally invest in securities
of the type in which the Fund invests. Under the 1940 Act, the Fund's total
investments in such securities, subject to certain exceptions, currently are
limited to (i) 3% of the total voting stock of any one investment company,
(ii) 5% of the Fund's total assets with respect to any one investment
company and (iii) 10% of the Fund's total assets in the aggregate.
Investments in the securities of other investment companies may involve
duplication of advisory fees and certain other expenses.

Investment Considerations and Risks

Equity Securities. Equity securities fluctuate in value, often based
on factors unrelated to the value of the issuer of the securities, and such
fluctuations can be pronounced. Changes in the value of the Fund's
investments will result in changes in the value of its shares and thus the
Fund's total return to investors.

The Fund may purchase securities of smaller capitalization companies,
the prices of which may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market
movements than larger, more established companies, because these securities
typically are traded in lower volume and the issuers typically are more
subject to changes in earnings and prospects.

Fixed-Income Securities. Even though interest-bearing securities are
investments which promise a stable stream of income, the prices of such
securities are inversely affected by changes in interest rates and,
therefore, are subject to the risk of market price fluctuations. Certain
securities that may be purchased by the Fund, such as those with interest
rates that fluctuate directly or indirectly based on multiples of a stated
index, are designed to be highly sensitive to changes in interest rates and
can subject the holders thereof to extreme reductions of yield and possibly
loss of principal. The values of fixed-income securities also may be
affected by changes in the credit rating or financial condition of the
issuer. Certain securities purchased by the Fund, such as those rated Baa
or lower by Moody's and BBB or lower by S&P, Fitch and Duff, may be subject
to such risk with respect to the issuing entity and to greater market
fluctuations than certain lower yielding, higher rated fixed-income
securities. Once the rating of a portfolio security has been changed, the
Fund will consider all circumstances deemed relevant in determining whether
to continue to hold the security. See "Lower Rated Securities" below and
the Appendix.

Mortgage-Related Securities. Mortgage-related securities are complex
derivative instruments, subject to both credit and prepayment risk, and may
be more volatile and less liquid that more traditional debt securities.
Although certain mortgage-related securities are guaranteed by a third party
(such as a U.S. Government agency or instrumentality with respect to
government-related mortgage-backed securities) or otherwise similarly
secured, the market value of these securities, which may fluctuate, is not
secured. If a mortgage-related security is purchased at a premium, all or
part of the premium may be lost if there is a decline in the market value of
the security, whether resulting from changes in interest rates or
prepayments on the underlying mortgage collateral. Mortgage-related
securities are subject to credit risks associated with the performance of
the underlying mortgage properties. Adverse changes in economic conditions
and circumstances are more likely to have an adverse impact on mortgage-
related securities secured by loans on certain types of commercial
properties than on those secured by loans on residential properties. In
addition, these securities are subject to prepayment risk, although
commercial mortgages typically have shorter maturities than residential
mortgages and prepayment protection features. Some mortgage-related
securities have structures that make their reactions to interest rate
changes and other factors difficult to predict, making their value highly
volatile.

Foreign Securities. Foreign securities markets generally are not as
developed or efficient as those in the United States. Securities of some
foreign issuers are less liquid and more volatile than securities of
comparable U.S. issuers. Similarly, volume and liquidity in most foreign
securities markets are less than in the United States and, at times,
volatility of price can be greater than in the United States.

Because evidences of ownership of foreign securities usually are held
outside the United States, the Fund will be subject to additional risks
which include: possible adverse political and economic developments,
seizure or nationalization of foreign deposits and adoption of governmental
restrictions which might adversely affect or restrict the payment of
principal and interest on the foreign securities to investors located
outside the country of the issuer, whether from currency blockage or
otherwise.

Developing countries have economic structures that are generally less
diverse and mature, and political systems that are less stable, than those
of developed countries. The markets of developing countries may be more
volatile than the markets of more mature economies; however, such markets
may provide higher rates of return to investors. Many developing countries
providing investment opportunities for the Fund have experienced
substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation for many
years. Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation rates have had and may
continue to have adverse effects on the economies and securities markets of
certain of these countries.

Since foreign securities often are purchased with and payable in
currencies of foreign countries, the value of these assets as measured in
U.S. dollars may be affected favorably or unfavorably by changes in currency
rates and exchange control regulations.

Lower Rated Securities. The Fund may invest up to 35% of its net
assets in higher yielding (and, therefore, higher risk) debt securities such
as those rated Ba by Moody's or BB by S&P, Fitch or Duff or as low as the
lowest rating assigned by the Rating Agencies (commonly known as junk
bonds). They may be subject to certain risks with respect to the issuing
entity and to greater market fluctuations than certain lower yielding,
higher rated fixed-income securities. See the Appendix for a general
description of the Rating Agencies' ratings of fixed-income securities. The
retail secondary market for these securities may be less liquid than that of
higher rated securities; adverse conditions could make it difficult at times
for the Fund to sell certain securities or could result in lower prices than
those used in calculating the Fund's net asset value. Although ratings may
be useful in evaluating the safety of interest and principal payments, they
do not evaluate the market value risk of these securities. The Fund will
rely on the Manager's judgment, analysis and experience in evaluating the
creditworthiness of an issuer.

You should be aware that the market values of many of these securities
tend to be more sensitive to economic conditions than are higher rated
securities and will fluctuate over time. These securities generally are
considered by the Rating Agencies to be, on balance, predominantly
speculative with respect to capacity to pay interest and repay principal in
accordance with the terms of the obligation and generally will involve more
credit risk than securities in the higher rating categories.

Companies that issue certain of these securities often are highly
leveraged and may not have available to them more traditional methods of
financing. Therefore, the risk associated with acquiring the securities of
such issuers generally is greater than is the case with the higher rated
securities. For example, during an economic downturn or a sustained period
of rising interest rates, highly leveraged issuers of these securities may
not have sufficient revenues to meet their interest payment obligations.
The issuer's ability to service its debt obligations also may be affected
adversely by specific corporate developments, forecasts, or the
unavailability of additional financing. The risk of loss because of default
by the issuer is significantly greater for the holders of these securities
because such securities generally are unsecured and often are subordinated
to other creditors of the issuer.

Because there is no established retail secondary market for many of
these securities, the Fund anticipates that such securities could be sold
only to a limited number of dealers or institutional investors. To the
extent a secondary trading market for these securities does exist, it
generally is not as liquid as the secondary market for higher rated
securities. The lack of a liquid secondary market may have an adverse
impact on market price and yield and the Fund's ability to dispose of
particular issues when necessary to meet the Fund's liquidity needs or in
response to a specific economic event such as a deterioration in the
creditworthiness of the issuer. The lack of a liquid secondary market for
certain securities also may make it more difficult for the Fund to obtain
accurate market quotations for purposes of valuing the Fund's portfolio and
calculating its net asset value. Adverse publicity and investor
perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the
values and liquidity of these securities. In such cases, judgment may play
a greater role in valuation because less reliable, objective data may be
available.

These securities may be particularly susceptible to economic downturns.
It is likely that an economic recession would disrupt severely the market
for such securities and may have an adverse impact on the value of such
securities, and could adversely affect the ability of the issuers of such
securities to repay principal and pay interest thereon which would increase
the incidence of default for such securities.

The Fund may acquire these securities during an initial offering. Such
securities may involve special risks because they are new issues. The Fund
has no arrangement with any person concerning the acquisition of such
securities, and the Manager will review carefully the credit and other
characteristics pertinent to such new issues.

The credit risk factors pertaining to lower rated securities also apply
to lower rated zero coupon securities and pay-in-kind bonds, in which the
Fund may invest up to 5% of its total assets. Pay-in-kind bonds pay
interest through the issuance of additional securities. Zero coupon
securities and pay-in-kind bonds carry an additional risk in that, unlike
bonds which pay interest throughout the period to maturity, the Fund will
realize no cash until the cash payment date unless a portion of such
securities are sold and, if the issuer defaults, the Fund may obtain no
return at all on its investment.

Simultaneous Investments. Investment decisions for the Fund are made
independently from those of other investment companies advised by the
Manager. If, however, such other investment companies desire to invest in,
or dispose of, the same securities as the Fund, available investments or
opportunities for sales will be allocated equitably to each investment
company. In some cases, this procedure may adversely affect the size of the
position obtained for or disposed of by the Fund or the price paid or
received by the Fund.

Investment Restrictions

The Fund's investment objective is a fundamental policy, which cannot
be changed without approval by the holders of a majority (as defined in the
1940 Act) of the Fund's outstanding voting shares. The Fund has adopted
investment restrictions numbered 1 through 8 as fundamental policies.
Investment restrictions numbered 9 through 14 are not fundamental policies
and may be changed by a vote of a majority of the Fund's Board members at
any time. The Fund may not:

1. Invest in commodities, except that the Fund may purchase and sell
options, forward contracts, futures contracts, including those relating to
indices, and options on futures contracts or indices.

2. Purchase, hold or deal in real estate, or oil, gas or other
mineral leases or exploration or development programs, but the Fund may
purchase and sell securities that are secured by real estate or issued by
companies that invest or deal in real estate.

3. Borrow money, except to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act
(which currently limits borrowing to no more than 33-1/3% of the value of
the Fund's total assets). For purposes of this investment restriction, the
entry into options, forward contracts, futures contracts, including those
relating to indices, and options on futures contracts or indices shall not
constitute borrowing.

4. Make loans to others, except through the purchase of debt
obligations and the entry into repurchase agreements. However, the Fund may
lend its portfolio securities in an amount not to exceed 33-1/3% of the
value of its total assets. Any loans of portfolio securities will be made
according to guidelines established by the Securities and Exchange
Commission and the Fund's Board.

5. Act as an underwriter of securities of other issuers, except to
the extent the Fund may be deemed an underwriter under the Securities Act of
1933, as amended, by virtue of disposing of portfolio securities.

6. Invest more than 25% of the value of its assets in the securities
of issuers in any single industry, provided that, there shall be no
limitation on the purchase of obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S.
Government, its agencies or instrumentalities.

7. Issue any senior security (as such term is defined in Section
18(f) of the 1940 Act), except to the extent the activities permitted in
Investment Restriction Nos. 1, 3, 10 and 11 may be deemed to give rise to a
senior security.

8. Purchase securities on margin, but the Fund may make margin
deposits in connection with transactions in options, forward contracts,
futures contracts, including those relating to indices, and options on
futures contracts or indices.

9. Invest in the securities of a company for the purpose of
exercising management or control, but the Fund will vote the securities it
owns in its portfolio as a shareholder in accordance with its views.

10. Pledge, mortgage or hypothecate its assets, except to the extent
necessary to secure permitted borrowings and to the extent related to the
purchase of securities on a when-issued or forward commitment basis and the
deposit of assets in escrow in connection with writing covered put and call
options and collateral and initial or variation margin arrangements with
respect to options, forward contracts, futures contracts, including those
relating to indices, and options on futures contracts or indices.

11. Purchase, sell or write puts, calls or combinations thereof,
except as may be described in the Fund's Prospectus and this Statement of
Additional Information.

12. Purchase securities of any company having less than three years'
continuous operations (including operations of any predecessors) if such
purchase would cause the value of the Fund's investments in all such
companies to exceed 5% of the value of its total assets.

13. Enter into repurchase agreements providing for settlement in more
than seven days after notice or purchase securities which are illiquid, if,
in the aggregate, more than 15% of the value of the Fund's net assets would
be so invested.

14. Purchase securities of other investment companies, except to the
extent permitted under the 1940 Act.

The Fund may invest, notwithstanding any other investment restriction
(whether or not fundamental), all of its assets in the securities of a
single open-end management investment company with substantially the same
fundamental investment objective, policies and restrictions as the Fund.

If a percentage restriction is adhered to at the time of investment, a
later change in percentage resulting from a change in values or assets will
not constitute a violation of such restriction.

MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND

The Fund's Board is responsible for the management and supervision of
the Fund. The Board approves all significant agreements between the Fund
and those companies that furnish services to the Fund. These companies are
as follows:

The Dreyfus Corporation Investment Adviser
Premier Mutual Fund Services, Inc. Distributor
Dreyfus Transfer, Inc. Transfer Agent
Mellon Bank, N.A. Custodian

Board members and officers of the Fund, together with information as to
their principal business occupations during at least the last five years,
are shown below.

Board Members of the Fund

JOSEPH S. DiMARTINO, Chairman of the Board. Since January 1995, Chairman of
the Board of various funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds. He also is
a director of The Noel Group, Inc., a venture capital company (for
which, from February 1995 until November 1997, he was Chairman of the
Board), The Muscular Dystrophy Association, HealthPlan Services
Corporation, a provider of marketing, administrative and risk
management services to health and other benefit programs, Carlyle
Industries, Inc. (formerly, Belding Heminway Company, Inc.), a button
packager and distributor, Career Blazers, Inc. (formerly, Staffing
Resources, Inc.), a temporary placement agency, and Century Business
Services, Inc. (formerly, International Alliance Services, Inc.), a
provider of various outsourcing functions for small and medium sized
companies. For more than five years prior to January 1995, he was
President, a director and, until August 1994, Chief Operating Officer
of the Manager and Executive Vice President and a director of Dreyfus
Service Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Manager and,
until August 24, 1994, the Fund's distributor. From August 1994 until
December 31, 1994, he was a director of Mellon Bank Corporation. He is
55 years old and his address is 200 Park Avenue, New York, New York
10166.

LUCY WILSON BENSON, Board Member. President of Benson and Associates,
consultants to business and government. Mrs. Benson is a director of
COMSAT Corporation and Logistics Management Institute. She is also a
trustee of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Vice Chairman of the Board
of Trustees of Lafayette College, Vice Chairman of the Citizens Network
for Foreign Affairs and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
From 1980 to 1994, Mrs. Benson was a director of The Grumman
Corporation and of the General RE Corporation from 1990 to 1998. Mrs.
Benson served as a consultant to the U.S. Department of State and to
SRI International from 1980 to 1981. From 1977 to 1980, she was Under
Secretary of State for Security Assistance, Science and Technology.
She is 71 years old and her address is 46 Sunset Avenue, Amherst,
Massachusetts 01002.

DAVID W. BURKE, Board Member. Board member of various funds in the Dreyfus
Family of Funds. Chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, an
independent board within the United States Information Agency, from
August 1994 to November 1998. From August 1994 to December 1994, Mr.
Burke was a Consultant to the Manager, and from October 1990 to August
1994, he was Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of the
Manager. From 1977 to 1990, Mr. Burke was involved in the management
of national television news, as Vice President and Executive Vice
President of ABC News, and subsequently as President of CBS News. He
is 63 years old and his address is Box 654, Eastham, Massachusetts
02642.

MARTIN D. FIFE, Board Member. Chairman of the Board of Magar, Inc., a
company specializing in financial products and developing early stage
companies. In addition, Mr. Fife is Chairman of the Board and Chief
Executive Officer of Skysat Communications Network Corporation, a
company developing telecommunications systems. Mr. Fife also serves on
the boards of various other companies. He is 72 years old and his
address is 405 Lexington Avenue, New York, New York 10174.

WHITNEY I. GERARD, Board Member. Partner of the New York City law firm of
Chadbourne & Parke. He is 64 years old and his address is 30
Rockefeller Plaza, New York, New York 10112.

ROBERT R. GLAUBER, Board Member. Research Fellow, Center for Business and
Government at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard
University, since January 1992. Mr. Glauber was Under Secretary of the
Treasury for Finance at the U.S. Treasury Department from May 1989 to
January 1992. For more than 5 years prior thereto, he was a Professor
of Finance at the Graduate School of Business Administration of Harvard
University and, from 1985 to 1989, Chairman of its Advanced Management
Program. He is also a director of Mid Ocean Reinsurance Co. Ltd. and
Cooke Bieler, Inc., investment counselors, NASD Regulations, Inc. and
the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. He is 60 years old and his address
is 79 John F. Kennedy Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138.

ARTHUR A. HARTMAN, Board Member. Senior consultant with APCO Associates
Inc. From 1981 to 1987, he was United States Ambassador to the former
Soviet Union. He is a director of the ITT Hartford Insurance Group,
Ford Meter Box Corporation and Lawter International and a member of the
advisory councils of several other companies, research institutes and
foundations. Ambassador Hartman is Chairman of the First NIS Regional
Fund (ING/Barings Management). He is a former President of the Harvard
Board of Overseers. He is 73 years old and his address is 2738
McKinley Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20015.

GEORGE L. PERRY, Board Member. An economist and Senior Fellow at the
Brookings Institution since 1969. He is co-director of the Brookings
Panel on Economic Activity and editor of its journal, The Brookings
Papers. He is also a director of the State Farm Mutual Automobile
Association, State Farm Life Insurance Company and Federal Realty
Investment Trust. He is 65 years old and his address is 1775
Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036.

PAUL D. WOLFOWITZ, Board Member. Dean of The Paul H. Nitze School of
Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. From 1989
to 1993, he was Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. From 1986 to
1989, he was the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Indonesia. From
1982 to 1986, he was Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and
Pacific Affairs of the Department of State. He is 53 years old and his
address is 1740 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036.

For so long as the Fund plan described in the section captioned
"Shareholder Services Plan" remains in effect, the Board members of the Fund
who are not "interested persons" of the Fund, as defined in the 1940 Act,
will be selected and nominated by the Board members who are not "interested
persons" of the Fund.

The Fund typically pays its Board members an annual retainer and a per
meeting fee and reimburses them for their expenses. The Chairman of the
Board receives an additional 25% of such compensation. Emeritus Board
members are entitled to receive an annual retainer and a per meeting fee of
one-half of the amount paid to them as Board members. The aggregate amount
of compensation paid to each Board member by the Fund for the fiscal year
ended April 30, 1999, and by all funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds for
which such person was a Board member (the numbers of which is set forth in
parenthesis next to each Board member's total compensation)* during the year
ended December 31, 1998, was as follows:
Total Compensation
Aggregate from Fund and Fund
Name of Board Compensation from Complex Paid to
Member Fund** Board Members

Joseph S. DiMartino $ 3,125 $619,660 (187)

Lucy Wilson Benson $ 2,500 $77,168 (24)

David W. Burke $ 2,500 $233,500 (62)

Martin D. Fife $ 2,500 $ 56,000 (15)

Whitney I. Gerard $ 2,500 $ 60,250 (15)

Robert R. Glauber $ 2,000 $ 88,250 (41)

Arthur A. Hartman $ 2,250 $ 55,750 (15)

George L. Perry $ 2,000 $ 51,750 (15)

Paul D. Wolfowitz $ 2,250 $ 49,500 (14)

_______________________
* Represents the number of separate portfolios comprising the investment
companies in the Fund Complex, including the Fund, for which the Board
member serves.

** Amount does not include reimbursed expenses for attending Board
meetings, which amounted to $858 for all Board members as a group.

Officers of the Fund

MARIE E. CONNOLLY, President and Treasurer. President, Chief Executive
Officer, Chief Compliance Officer and a director of the Distributor and
Funds Distributor, Inc., the ultimate parent of which is Boston
Institutional Group, Inc., and an officer of other investment companies
advised or administered by the Manager. She is 41 years old.

MARGARET W. CHAMBERS, Vice President and Secretary. Senior Vice President
and General Counsel of Funds Distributor, Inc., and an officer of other
investment companies advised or administered by the Manager. From
August 1996 to March 1998, she was Vice President and Assistant General
Counsel for Loomis, Sayles & Company, L.P. From January 1986 to July
1996, she was an associate with the law firm of Ropes & Gray. She is
39 years old.

*FREDERICK C. DEY, Vice President and Assistant Treasurer and Assistant
Secretary. Vice President, New Business Development of Funds
Distributor, Inc., since September 1994, and an officer of other
investment companies advised or administered by the Manager. He is 37
years old.

STEPHANIE D. PIERCE, Vice President, Assistant Secretary and Assistant
Treasurer. Vice President of the Distributor and Funds Distributor,
Inc., and an officer of other investment companies advised or
administered by the Manager. From April 1997 to March 1998, she was
employed as a Relationship Manager with Citibank, N.A. From August
1995 to April 1997, she was an Assistant Vice President with Hudson
Valley Bank, and from September 1990 to August 1995, she was Second
Vice President with Chase Manhattan Bank. She is 30 years old.

*JOHN P. COVINO, Vice President and Assistant Treasurer. Vice President and
Treasury Group Manager of Treasury Servicing and Administration of
Funds Distributor, Inc., since December 1998. From December 1995 to
November 1998, he was employed by Fidelity Investments where he held
multiple positions in their Institutional Brokerage Group. Prior to
joining Fidelity, he was employed by SunGard Brokerage systems where he
was responsible for the technology and development of the accounting
product group. He is 35 years old.

MARY A. NELSON, Vice President and Assistant Treasurer. Vice President of
the Distributor and Funds Distributor, Inc., and an officer of other
investment companies advised or administered by the Manager. She is 34
years old.

*GEORGE A. RIO, Vice President and Assistant Treasurer. Executive Vice
President and Client Service Director of Funds Distributor, Inc., and
an officer of other investment companies advised or administered by the
Manager. From June 1995 to March 1998, he was Senior Vice President
and Senior Key Account Manager for Putnam Mutual Funds. From May 1994
to June 1995, he was Director of Business Development for First Data
Corporation. He is 44 years old.

JOSEPH F. TOWER, III, Vice President and Assistant Treasurer. Senior Vice
President, Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer and a director of the
Distributor and Funds Distributor, Inc., and an officer of other
investment companies advised or administered by the Manager. From July
1988 to August 1994, he was employed by The Boston Company, Inc. where
he held various management positions in the Corporate Finance and
Treasury areas. He is 36 years old.

DOUGLAS C. CONROY, Vice President and Assistant Secretary. Assistant Vice
President of Funds Distributor, Inc., and an officer of other
investment companies advised or administered by the Manager. From
April 1993 to January 1995, he was a Senior Fund Accountant for
Investors Bank & Trust Company. He is 30 years old.

*KAREN JACOPPO-WOOD, Vice President and Assistant Secretary. Vice President
and Senior Counsel of Funds Distributor, Inc., since February 1997, and
an officer of other investment companies advised or administered by the
Manager. From June 1994 to January 1996, she was Manager of SEC
Registration at Scudder, Stevens & Clark, Inc. She is 32 years old.

CHRISTOPHER J. KELLEY, Vice President and Assistant Secretary. Vice
President and Senior Associate General Counsel of Funds Distributor,
Inc., and an officer of other investment companies advised or
administered by the Manager. From April 1994 to July 1996, he was
Assistant Counsel at Forum Financial Group. From October 1992 to March
1994, he was employed by Putnam Investments in legal and compliance
capacities. He is 34 years old.

KATHLEEN K. MORRISEY, Vice President and Assistant Secretary. Manager of
Treasury Services Administration of Funds Distributor, Inc., and an
officer of other investment companies advised or administered by the
Manager. From July 1994 to November 1995, she was a Fund Accountant
for Investors Bank & Trust Company. She is 26 years old.

ELBA VASQUEZ, Vice President and Assistant Secretary. Assistant Vice
President of Funds Distributor, Inc., and an officer of other
investment companies advised or administered by the Manager. From
March 1990 to May 1996, she was employed by U.S. Trust Company of New
York where she held various sales and marketing positions. She is 37
years old.

The address of each officer of the Fund is 200 Park Avenue, New York,
New York 10166, except those officers indicated by an (*), whose address is
60 State Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02109.

The Fund's Board members and officers, as a group, owned less than 1%
of the Fund's voting securities outstanding on August 16, 1999.

MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS

Investment Adviser. The Manager is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mellon
Bank, N.A., which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mellon Bank Corporation
("Mellon"). Mellon is a publicly owned multibank holding company
incorporated under Pennsylvania law in 1971 and registered under the Federal
Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended. Mellon provides a
comprehensive range of financial products and services in domestic and
selected international markets. Mellon is among the twenty-five largest
bank holding companies in the United States based on total assets.

The Manager provides management services pursuant to the Management
Agreement (the "Agreement") dated August 24, 1994 with the Fund, which is
subject to annual approval by (i) the Fund's Board or (ii) vote of a
majority (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund's outstanding voting
securities, provided that in either event the continuance also is approved
by a majority of the Board members who are not "interested persons" (as
defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund or the Manager, by vote cast in person
at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. The
Agreement was approved by shareholders on August 4, 1994, and was last
approved by the Fund's Board, including a majority of the Board members who
are not "interested persons" of any party to the Agreement, at a meeting
held on August 12, 1999. The Agreement is terminable without penalty, on 60
days' notice, by the Fund's Board or by vote of the holders of a majority of
the Fund's shares, or, on not less than 90 days' notice, by the Manager.
The Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment
(as defined in the 1940 Act).

The following persons are officers and/or directors of the Manager:
Christopher M. Condron, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer;
Stephen E. Canter, President, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Investment
Officer and a director; Lawrence S. Kash, Vice Chairman and a director; J.
David Officer, Vice Chairman and a director; Thomas F. Eggers, Vice Chairman-
- -Institutional and a director; Ronald P. O'Hanley III, Vice Chairman;
William T. Sandalls, Jr., Executive Vice President; Mark N. Jacobs, Vice
President, General Counsel and Secretary; Diane P. Durnin, Vice President--
Product Development; Patrice M. Kozlowski, Vice President--Corporate
Communications; Mary Beth Leibig, Vice President--Human Resources; Andrew S.
Wasser, Vice President--Information Systems; Theodore A. Schachar, Vice
President; Wendy Strutt, Vice President; Richard Terres, Vice President;
William H. Maresca, Controller; James Bitetto, Assistant Secretary; Steven
F. Newman, Assistant Secretary; and Mandell L. Berman, Burton C. Borgelt,
Steven G. Elliot, Martin C. McGuinn, Richard W. Sabo and Richard F. Syron,
directors.

The Manager manages the Fund's investments in accordance with the
stated policies of the Fund, subject to the approval of the Fund's Board.
The Manager is responsible for investment decisions, and provides the Fund
with portfolio managers who are authorized by the Board to execute purchases
and sales of securities. The Fund's portfolio managers are Steven A. Falci,
Timothy Ghriskey, Michael Hoeh and Gerald Thunelius. The Manager also
maintains a research department with a professional staff of portfolio
managers and securities analysts who provide research services for the Fund
and for other funds advised by the Manager.

The Manager has a personal securities trading policy (the
"Policy") which restricts the personal securities transactions of its
employees. Its primary purpose is to ensure that personal trading by the
Manager's employees does not disadvantage any fund managed by the Manager.
Under the Policy, the Manager's employees must preclear personal
transactions in securities not exempt under the Policy. In addition, the
Manager's employees must report their personal securities transactions and
holdings, which are reviewed for compliance with the Policy. In that
regard, the Manager's portfolio managers and other investment personnel also
are subject to the oversight of Mellon's Investment Ethics Committee.
Portfolio managers and other investment personnel of the Manager who comply
with the Policy's preclearance and disclosure procedures and the
requirements of the Committee may be permitted to purchase, sell or hold
securities which also may be or are held in fund(s) they manage or for which
they otherwise provide investment advice.

All expenses incurred in the operation of the Fund are borne by the
Fund, except to the extent specifically assumed by the Manager. The
expenses borne by the Fund include: taxes, interest, loan commitment fees,
interest and distributions paid on securities sold short, brokerage fees and
commissions, if any, fees of Board members who are not officers, directors,
employees or holders of 5% or more of the outstanding voting securities of
the Manager, Securities and Exchange Commission fees, state Blue Sky
qualification fees, advisory fees, charges of custodians, transfer and
dividend disbursing agents' fees, certain insurance premiums, industry
association fees, outside auditing and legal expenses, costs of maintaining
the Fund's existence, costs of independent pricing services, costs
attributable to investor services (including, without limitation, telephone
and personnel expenses), costs of shareholders' reports and meetings, costs
of preparing and printing prospectuses and statements of additional
information for regulatory purposes and for distribution to existing
shareholders and any extraordinary expenses. In addition, Fund shares are
subject to an annual service fee. See "Shareholder Services Plan."

The Manager maintains office facilities on behalf of the Fund, and
furnishes statistical and research data, clerical help, accounting, data
processing, bookkeeping and internal auditing and certain other required
services to the Fund. The Manager may pay the Distributor for shareholder
services from the Manager's own assets, including past profits but not
including the management fee paid by the Fund. The Distributor may use part
or all of such payments to pay Service Agents (as defined below) in respect
of these services. The Manager also may make such advertising and
promotional expenditures, using its own resources, as it from time to time
deems appropriate.

As compensation for its services, the Fund has agreed to pay the
Manager a monthly management fee at the annual rate of .75% of the value of
the Fund's average daily net assets. For the fiscal years ended April 30,
1997, 1998 and 1999, the management fees payable to the Manager amounted to
$451,732, $586,043 and $587,804, respectively.

The Manager has agreed that if in any fiscal year the aggregate
expenses of the Fund, exclusive of taxes, brokerage, interest on borrowings
and (with the prior written consent of the necessary state securities
commissions) extraordinary expenses, but including the management fee,
exceed the expense limitation of any state having jurisdiction over the
Fund, the Fund may deduct from the payment to be made to the Manager under
the Agreement, or the Manager will bear, such excess expense to the extent
required by state law. Such deduction or payment, if any, will be estimated
daily, and reconciled and effected or paid, as the case may be, on a monthly
basis.

The aggregate of the fees payable to the Manager is not subject to
reduction as the value of the Fund's net assets increases.

Distributor. The Distributor, located at 60 State Street, Boston,
Massachusetts 02109, serves as the Fund's distributor on a best efforts
basis pursuant to an agreement which is renewable annually.

The Distributor may pay dealers a fee based on the amount invested
through such dealers in Fund shares by employees participating in qualified
or non-qualified employee benefit plans or other programs where (i) the
employers or affiliated employers maintaining such plans or programs have a
minimum of 250 employees eligible for participation in such plans or
programs, or (ii) such plan's or program's aggregate investment in the
Dreyfus Family or Funds or certain other products made available by the
Distributor to such plan or programs exceeds $1,000,000 ("Eligible Benefit
Plans"). Generally, the fee paid to dealers will not exceed 1% of the
amount invested through such dealers. The Distributor, however, may pay
dealers a higher fee and reserves the right to cease paying these fees at
any time. The Distributor will pay such fees from its own funds, other than
amounts received from the Fund, including past profits or any other source
available to it.

Transfer and Dividend Disbursing Agent and Custodian. Dreyfus
Transfer, Inc. (the "Transfer Agent"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the
Manager, P.O. Box 9671, Providence, Rhode Island 02940-9671, is the Fund's
transfer and dividend disbursing agent. Under a transfer agency agreement
with the Fund, the Transfer Agent arranges for the maintenance of
shareholder account records for the Fund, the handling of certain
communications between shareholders and the Fund and the payment of
dividends and distributions payable by the Fund. For these services, the
Transfer Agent receives a monthly fee computed on the basis of the number of
shareholder accounts it maintains for the Fund during the month, and is
reimbursed for certain out-of-pocket expenses.

Mellon Bank, N.A. (the "Custodian"), One Mellon Bank Center,
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15258, is the Fund's custodian. Under a custody
agreement with the Fund, the Custodian holds the Fund's securities and keeps
all necessary accounts and records. For its custody services, the Custodian
receives a monthly fee based on the market value of the Fund's assets held
in custody and receives certain securities transactions charges.

HOW TO BUY SHARES

General. Fund shares are sold without a sales charge. You may be
charged a fee if you effect transactions in Fund shares through a securities
dealer, bank or other financial institution. Stock certificates are issued
only upon your written request. No certificates are issued for fractional
shares. The Fund reserves the right to reject any purchase order.

The minimum initial investment is $2,500, or $1,000 if you are a client
of a securities dealer, bank or other financial institution which maintains
an omnibus account in the Fund and has made an aggregate minimum initial
purchase for its customers of $2,500. Subsequent investments must be at
least $100. However, the minimum initial investment is $750 for Dreyfus-
sponsored Keogh Plans, IRAs (including regular IRAs, spousal IRAs for a non-
working spouse, Roth IRAs, IRAs set up under a Simplified Employee Pension
Plan ("SEP-IRAs") and rollover IRAs) and 403(b)(7) Plans with only one
participant and $500 for Dreyfus-sponsored Education IRAs, with no minimum
for subsequent purchases. Subsequent investments in a spousal IRA must be
at least $250. The initial investment must be accompanied by the Account
Application. For full-time or part-time employees of the Manager or any of
its affiliates or subsidiaries, directors of the Manager, Board members of a
fund advised by the Manager, including members of the Fund's Board, or the
spouse or minor child of any of the foregoing, the minimum initial
investment is $1,000. For full-time or part-time employees of the Manager
or any of its affiliates or subsidiaries who elect to have a portion of
their pay directly deposited into their Fund accounts, the minimum initial
investment is $50. The Fund reserves the right to offer Fund shares without
regard to minimum purchase requirements to employees participating in
certain qualified or non-qualified employee benefit plans or other programs
where contributions or account information can be transmitted in a manner
and form acceptable to the Fund. The Fund reserves the right to vary
further the initial and subsequent investment minimum requirements at any
time.

Fund shares also are offered without regard to the minimum initial
investment requirements through Dreyfus-Automatic Asset Builder((reg.tm.)),
Dreyfus Government Direct Deposit Privilege or Dreyfus Payroll Savings Plan
pursuant to the Dreyfus Step Program described under "Shareholder Services."
These services enable you to make regularly scheduled investments and may
provide you with a convenient way to invest for long-term financial goals.
You should be aware, however, that periodic investment plans do not guarantee
a profit and will not protect you against loss in a declining market.

Shares are sold on a continuous basis at the net asset value per share
next determined after an order in proper form is received by the Transfer
Agent or other entity authorized to receive orders on behalf of the Fund.
Net asset value per share is determined as of the close of trading on the
floor of the New York Stock Exchange (currently 4:00 p.m., New York time),
on each day the New York Stock Exchange is open for business. For purposes
of determining net asset value per share, options and futures contracts will
be valued 15 minutes after the close of trading on the floor of the New York
Stock Exchange. Net asset value per share is computed by dividing the value
of the Fund's net assets (i.e., the value of its assets less liabilities) by
the total number of shares outstanding. The Fund's investments are valued
based on market value, or where market quotations are not readily available,
based on fair value as determined in good faith by the Fund's Board. For
further information regarding the methods employed in valuing Fund
investments, see "Determination of Net Asset Value."

For certain institutions that have entered into agreements with the
Distributor, payment for the purchase of Fund shares may be transmitted, and
must be received by the Transfer Agent, within three business days after the
order is placed. If such payment is not received within three business days
after the order is placed, the order may be canceled and the institution
could be held liable for resulting fees and/or losses.

Dreyfus TeleTransfer Privilege. You may purchase shares by telephone
if you have checked the appropriate box and supplied the necessary
information on the Account Application or have filed a Shareholder Services
Form with the Transfer Agent. The proceeds will be transferred between the
bank account designated in one of these documents and your fund account.
Only a bank account maintained in a domestic financial institution which is
an Automated Clearing House ("ACH") member may be so designated.

Dreyfus TeleTransfer purchase orders may be made at any time. Purchase
orders received by 4:00 p.m., New York time, on any day the Transfer Agent
and the New York Stock Exchange are open for business will be credited to
the shareholder's Fund account on the next bank business day following such
purchase order. Purchase orders made after 4:00 p.m., New York time, on any
day the Transfer Agent and the New York Stock Exchange are open for
business, or orders made on Saturday, Sunday or any Fund holiday (e.g., when
the New York Stock Exchange is not open for business), will be credited to
the shareholder's Fund account on the second bank business day following
such purchase order. To qualify to use the Dreyfus TeleTransfer Privilege,
the initial payment for purchase of shares must be drawn on, and redemption
proceeds paid to, the same bank and account as are designated on the Account
Application or Shareholder Services Form on file. If the proceeds of a
particular redemption are to be wired to an account at any other bank, the
request must be in writing and signature-guaranteed. See How to Redeem
Shares--Dreyfus TeleTransfer Privilege."

Reopening an Account. You may reopen an account with a minimum
investment of $100 without filing a new Account Application during the
calendar year the account is closed or during the following calendar year,
provided the information on the old Account Application is still applicable.

SHAREHOLDER SERVICES PLAN

The Fund has adopted a Shareholder Services Plan, pursuant to which the
Fund pays the Distributor for the provision of certain services to the
Fund's shareholders a fee at the annual rate of .25% of the value of the
Fund's average daily net assets. The services provided may include personal
services relating to shareholder accounts, such as answering shareholder
inquiries regarding the Fund and providing reports and other information,
and services related to the maintenance of shareholder accounts. Under the
Shareholder Services Plan, the Distributor may make payments to certain
financial institutions, securities dealers and other financial industry
professionals (collectively, "Service Agents") in respect to these services.

A quarterly report of the amounts expended under the Shareholder
Services Plan, and the purposes for which such expenditures were incurred,
must be made to the Board for its review. In addition, the Shareholder
Services Plan provides that material amendments of the Shareholder Services
Plan must be approved by the Board, and by the Board members who are not
"interested persons" (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund and have no
direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Shareholder
Services Plan or in any agreements entered into in connection with the
Shareholder Services Plan, by vote cast in person at a meeting called for
the purpose of considering such amendments. The Shareholder Services Plan
is subject to annual approval by such vote of the Board members cast in
person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on the Shareholder
Services Plan. The Shareholder Services Plan was last so approved by the
Board at a meeting held on August 12, 1999. The Shareholder Services Plan
is terminable at any time by vote of a majority of the Board members who are
not "interested persons" and have no direct or indirect financial interest
in the operation of the Shareholder Services Plan or in any agreements
entered into in connection with the Shareholder Services Plan.

For the fiscal year ended April 30, 1999, the Fund was charged $195,935
pursuant to the Shareholder Services Plan.

HOW TO REDEEM SHARES

Wire Redemption Privilege. By using this Privilege, you authorize the
Transfer Agent to act on wire, telephone or letter redemption instructions
from any person representing himself or herself to be you and reasonably
believed by the Transfer Agent to be genuine. Ordinarily, the Fund will
initiate payment for shares redeemed pursuant to this Privilege on the next
business day after receipt if the Transfer Agent receives a redemption
request in proper form. Redemption proceeds ($1,000 minimum) will be
transferred by Federal Reserve wire only to the commercial bank account
specified by you on the Account Application or Shareholder Services Form, or
to a correspondent bank if your bank is not a member of the Federal Reserve
System. Fees ordinarily are imposed by such bank and borne by the investor.
Immediate notification by the correspondent bank to your bank is necessary
to avoid a delay in crediting the funds to your bank account.

If you have access to telegraphic equipment, you may wire redemption
requests to the Transfer Agent by employing the following transmittal code
which may be used for domestic or overseas transmissions:

Transfer Agent's
Transmittal Code Answer Back Sign

144295 144295 TSSG PREP

If you do not have direct access to telegraphic equipment, you may have
the wire transmitted by contacting a TRT Cables operator at 1-800-654-7171,
toll free. You should advise the operator that the above transmittal code
must be used and should also inform the operator of the Transfer Agent's
answer back sign.

To change the commercial bank or account designated to receive
redemption proceeds, a written request must be sent to the Transfer Agent.
This request must be signed by each shareholder, with each signature
guaranteed as described below under "Stock Certificates; Signatures."

Dreyfus TeleTransfer Privilege. You may request by telephone that
redemption proceeds be transferred between your Fund account and your bank
account. Only a bank account maintained in a domestic financial institution
which is an ACH member may be designated. Holders of jointly registered
fund or bank accounts may redeem through the Dreyfus TeleTransfer Privilege
for transfer to their bank account not more than $250,000 within any 30-day
period. You should be aware that if you have selected the Dreyfus
TeleTransfer Privilege, any request for a wire redemption will be effected
as a TeleTransfer transaction through the ACH system unless more prompt
transmittal specifically is requested. Redemption proceeds will be on
deposit in your account at an ACH member bank ordinarily two business days
after receipt of the redemption request. See "How to Buy Shares--Dreyfus
TeleTransfer Privilege."

Stock Certificates; Signatures. Any certificates representing Fund
shares to be redeemed must be submitted with the redemption request.
Written redemption requests must be signed by each shareholder, including
each holder of a joint account, and each signature must be guaranteed.
Signatures on endorsed certificates submitted for redemption also must be
guaranteed. The Transfer Agent has adopted standards and procedures
pursuant to which signature-guarantees in proper form generally will be
accepted from domestic banks, brokers, dealers, credit unions, national
securities exchanges, registered securities associations, clearing agencies
and savings associations, as well as from participants in the New York Stock
Exchange Medallion Signature Program, the Securities Transfer Agents
Medallion Program ("STAMP"), and the Stock Exchanges Medallion Program.
Guarantees must be signed by an authorized signatory of the guarantor and
"Signature-Guaranteed" must appear with the signature. The Transfer Agent
may request additional documentation from corporations, executors,
administrators, trustees or guardians, and may accept other suitable
verification arrangements from foreign investors, such as consular
verification. For more information with respect to signature-guarantees,
please call one of the telephone numbers listed on the cover.

Redemption Commitment. The Fund has committed itself to pay in cash
all redemption requests by any shareholder of record, limited in amount
during any 90-day period to the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the value of the
Fund's net assets at the beginning of such period. Such commitment is
irrevocable without the prior approval of the Securities and Exchange
Commission and is a fundamental policy of the Fund which may not be changed
without shareholder approval. In the case of requests for redemption in
excess of such amount, the Board reserves the right to make payments in
whole or part in securities or other assets of the Fund in case of an
emergency or any time a cash distribution would impair the liquidity of the
Fund to the detriment of the existing shareholders. In such event, the
securities would be valued in the same manner as the Fund's portfolio is
valued. If the recipient sells such securities, brokerage charges would be
incurred.

Suspension of Redemptions. The right of redemption may be suspended or
the date of payment postponed (a) during any period when the New York Stock
Exchange is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings), (b)
when trading in the markets the Fund ordinarily utilizes is restricted, or
when an emergency exists as determined by the Securities and Exchange
Commission so that disposal of the Fund's investments or determination of
its net asset value is not reasonably practicable, or (c) for such other
periods as the Securities and Exchange Commission by order may permit to
protect the Fund's shareholders.

SHAREHOLDER SERVICES

Fund Exchanges. You may purchase, in exchange for shares of the Fund,
shares of certain other funds managed or administered by the Manager, to the
extent such shares are offered for sale in your state of residence. Shares
of other funds purchased by exchange will be purchased on the basis of
relative net asset value per share, as follows:

A. Exchanges for shares of funds offered without a sales load will be
made without a sales load.

B. Shares of funds purchased without a sales load may be exchanged for
shares of other funds sold with a sales load, and the applicable
sales load will be deducted.

C. Shares of funds purchased with a sales load may be exchanged
without a sales load for shares of other funds sold without a
sales load.

D. Shares of funds purchased with a sales load, shares of funds
acquired by a previous exchange from shares purchased with a sales
load, and additional shares acquired through reinvestment of
dividends or distributions of any such funds (collectively
referred to herein as "Purchased Shares") may be exchanged for
shares of other funds sold with a sales load (referred to herein
as "Offered Shares"), but if the sales load applicable to the
Offered Shares exceeds the maximum sales load that could have been
imposed in connection with the Purchased Shares (at the time the
Purchased Shares were acquired), without giving effect to any
reduced loads, the difference will be deducted.

To accomplish an exchange, under item D above, you must notify the
Transfer Agent of your prior ownership of fund shares and your account
number.

To request an exchange, you must give exchange instructions to the
Transfer Agent in writing or by telephone. The ability to issue exchange
instructions by telephone is given to all Fund shareholders automatically,
unless you check the applicable "No" box on the Account Application,
indicating that you specifically refuse this Privilege. By using the
Telephone Exchange Privilege, you authorize the Transfer Agent to act on
telephonic instructions (including over The Dreyfus Touch((reg.tm)) automated
telephone system) from any person representing himself or herself to be you
or a representative of your Service Agent, and reasonably believed by the
Transfer Agent to be genuine. Telephone exchanges may be subject to
limitations as to the amount involved or number of telephone exchanges
permitted. Shares issued in certificate form are not eligible for telephone
exchange. No fees currently are charged shareholders directly in connection
with exchanges, although the Fund reserves the right, upon not less than 60
days' written notice, to charge shareholders a nominal administrative fee in
accordance with rules promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

To establish a personal retirement plan by exchange, shares of the fund
being exchanged must have a value of at least the minimum initial investment
required for the fund into which the exchange is being made.

Dreyfus Auto-Exchange Privilege. Dreyfus Auto-Exchange Privilege
permits you to purchase, in exchange for shares of the Fund, shares of
certain other funds in the Dreyfus Family of Funds of which you are a
shareholder. This Privilege is available only for existing accounts.
Shares will be exchanged on the basis of relative net asset value as
described above under "Fund Exchanges." Enrollment in or modification or
cancellation of this Privilege is effective three business days following
notification by you. You will be notified if your account falls below the
amount designated to be exchanged under this Privilege. In this case, your
account will fall to zero unless additional investments are made in excess
of the designated amount prior to the next Auto-Exchange transaction.
Shares held under IRA and other retirement plans are eligible for this
Privilege. Exchanges of IRA shares may be made between IRA accounts and
from regular accounts to IRA accounts, but not from IRA accounts to regular
accounts. With respect to all other retirement accounts, exchanges may be
made only among those accounts.

Shareholder Services Forms and prospectuses of the other funds may be
obtained by calling 1-800-645-6561. The Fund reserves the right to reject
any exchange request in whole or in part. Shares may be exchanged only
between accounts having identical names and other identifying designations.
The Fund Exchanges service or the Dreyfus Auto-Exchange Privilege may be
modified or terminated at any time upon notice to shareholders.

Dreyfus-Automatic Asset Builder((reg.tm)). Dreyfus-Automatic Asset Builder
permits you to purchase Fund shares (minimum of $100 and maximum of $150,000
per transaction) at regular intervals selected by you. Fund shares are
purchased by transferring funds from the bank account designated by you.

Dreyfus Government Direct Deposit Privilege. Dreyfus Government Direct
Deposit Privilege enables you to purchase Fund shares (minimum of $100 and
maximum of $50,000 per transaction) by having Federal salary, Social
Security, or certain veterans', military or other payments from the U.S.
Government automatically deposited into your Fund account. You may deposit
as much of such payments as you elect.

Dreyfus Payroll Savings Plan. Dreyfus Payroll Savings Plan permits you
to purchase Fund shares (minimum of $100 per transaction) automatically on a
regular basis. Depending upon your employer's direct deposit program, you
may have part or all of your paycheck transferred to your existing Dreyfus
account electronically through the ACH system at each pay period. To
establish a Dreyfus Payroll Savings Plan account, you must file an
authorization form with your employer's payroll department. It is the sole
responsibility of your employer to arrange for transactions under the
Dreyfus Payroll Savings Plan.

Dreyfus Step Program. Dreyfus Step Program enables you to purchase
Fund shares without regard to the Fund's minimum initial investment
requirements through Dreyfus-Automatic Asset Builder((reg.tm)), Dreyfus
Government Direct Deposit Privilege or Dreyfus Payroll Savings Plan. To
establish a Dreyfus Step Program account, you must supply the necessary
information on the Account Application and file the required authorization
form(s) with the Transfer Agent. For more information concerning this
Program, or to request the necessary authorization form(s), please call toll
free 1-800-782-6620. You may terminate your participation in this Program at
any time by discontinuing your participation in Dreyfus-Automatic Asset Builder,
Dreyfus Government Direct Deposit Privilege or Dreyfus Payroll Savings Plan, as
the case may be, as provided under the terms of such Privilege(s). The Fund may
modify or terminate this Program at any time. If you wish to purchase Fund
shares through the Dreyfus Step Program in conjunction with a Dreyfus-sponsored
retirement plan, you may do so only for IRAs, SEP-IRAs and rollover IRAs.

Dreyfus Dividend Options. Dreyfus Dividend Sweep allows you to invest
automatically your dividends or dividends and capital gain distributions, if
any, from the Fund in shares of another fund in the Dreyfus Family of Funds
of which you are a shareholder. Shares of other funds purchased pursuant to
this privilege will be purchased on the basis of relative net asset value
per share as follows:

A. Dividends and distributions paid by a fund may be invested without
imposition of a sales load in shares of other funds offered
without a sales load.

B. Dividends and distributions paid by a fund which does not charge a
sales load may be invested in shares of other funds sold with a
sales load, and the applicable sales load will be deducted.

C. Dividends and distributions paid by a fund that charges a sales
load may be invested in shares of other funds sold with a sales
load (referred to herein as "Offered Shares"), but if the sales
load applicable to the Offered Shares exceeds the maximum sales
load charged by the fund from which dividends or distributions are
being swept, (without giving effect to any reduced loads) the
difference will be deducted.

D. Dividends and distributions paid by a fund may be invested in
shares of other funds that impose a contingent deferred sales
charge ("CDSC") and the applicable CDSC, if any, will be imposed
upon redemption of such shares.

Dreyfus Dividend ACH permits you to transfer electronically dividends
or dividends and capital gain distributions, if any, from the Fund to a
designated bank account. Only an account maintained at a domestic financial
institution which is an ACH member may be so designated. Banks may charge a
fee for this service.

Automatic Withdrawal Plan. The Automatic Withdrawal Plan permits you
to request withdrawal of a specified dollar amount (minimum of $50) on
either a monthly or quarterly basis if you have a $5,000 minimum account.
Withdrawal payments are the proceeds from sales of Fund shares, not the
yield on the shares. If withdrawal payments exceed reinvested dividends and
distributions, your shares will be reduced and eventually may be depleted.
The Automatic Withdrawal Plan may be terminated at any time by you, the Fund
or the Transfer Agent. Shares for which stock certificates have been issued
may not be redeemed through the Automatic Withdrawal Plan.

Corporate Pension/Profit-Sharing and Retirement Plans. The Fund makes
available to corporations a variety of prototype pension and profit-sharing
plans, including a 401(k) Salary Reduction Plan. In addition, the Fund
makes available Keogh Plans, IRAs (including regular IRAs, spousal IRAs for
a non-working spouse, Roth IRAs, SEP-IRAs, Education IRAs and rollover IRAs)
and 403(b)(7) Plans. Plan support services also are available.

If you who wish to purchase Fund shares in conjunction with a Keogh
Plan, a 403(b)(7) Plan or an IRA, including a SEP-IRA, you may request from
the Distributor forms for adoption of such plans.

The entity acting as custodian for Keogh Plans, 403(b)(7) Plans or IRAs
may charge a fee, payment of which could require the liquidation of shares.
All fees charged are described in the appropriate form.

Shares may be purchased in connection with these plans only by direct
remittance to the entity acting as custodian. Purchases for these plans may
not be made in advance of receipt of funds.

You should read the prototype retirement plan and the appropriate form
of custodial agreement for further details on eligibility, service fees and
tax implications, and should consult a tax adviser.

DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE

Valuation of Portfolio Securities. The Fund's securities, including
covered call options written by the Fund, are valued at the last sale price
on the securities exchange or national securities market on which such
securities primarily are traded. Securities not listed on an exchange or
national securities market, or securities in which there were no
transactions, are valued at the average of the most recent bid and asked
prices, except in the case of open short positions where the asked price is
used for valuation purposes. Bid price is used when no asked price is
available. Short-term investments are carried at amortized cost, which
approximates value. Any securities or other assets for which recent market
quotations are not readily available are valued at fair value as determined
in good faith by the Fund's Board. Expenses and fees of the Fund, including
the management fee paid by the Fund and fees pursuant to the Fund's
Shareholder Services Plan, are accrued daily and taken into account for the
purpose of determining the net asset value of Fund shares.

Restricted securities, as well as securities or other assets for which
market quotations are not readily available, or are not valued by a pricing
service approved by the Board, are valued at fair value as determined in
good faith by the Board. The Board will review the method of valuation on a
current basis. In making their good faith valuation of restricted
securities, the Board members generally will take the following factors into
consideration: restricted securities which are securities of the same class
of securities for which a public market exists usually will be valued at
market value less the same percentage discount at which purchased. This
discount will be revised periodically by the Board if the Board members
believe that it no longer reflects the value of the restricted securities.
Restricted securities not of the same class as securities for which a public
market exists usually will be valued initially at cost. Any subsequent
adjustment from cost will be based upon considerations deemed relevant by
the Board.

New York Stock Exchange Closings. The holidays (as observed) on which
the New York Stock Exchange is closed currently are: New Year's Day, Martin
Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day,
Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS AND TAXES

Management of the Fund believes the Fund qualified as a "regulated
investment company" under the Code for the fiscal year ended April 30, 1999.
The Fund intends to continue to so qualify, as long as such qualification is
in the best interests of its shareholders. Qualification as a regulated
investment company relieves the Fund from any liability for Federal income
taxes to the extent its earnings are distributed in accordance with
applicable provisions of the Code. If the Fund did not qualify as a
regulated investment company, it would be treated for tax purposes as an
ordinary corporation subject to Federal income tax. The term "regulated
investment company" does not imply the supervision of management or
investment practices or policies by any government agency.

If you elect to receive dividends and distributions in cash, and your
dividend and distribution check is returned to the Fund as undeliverable or
remains uncashed for six months, the Fund reserves the right to reinvest
such dividend or distribution and all future dividends and distributions
payable to you in additional Fund shares at net asset value. No interest
will accrue on amounts represented by uncashed distribution or redemption
checks.

Any dividend or distribution paid shortly after an investor's purchase
may have the effect of reducing the net asset value of the shares below the
cost of his investment. Such a dividend or distribution would be a return
on investment in an economic sense, although taxable as stated in the
Prospectus under "Distributions and Taxes." In addition, the Code provides
that if a shareholder holds shares of the Fund for six months or less and
has received a capital gain distribution with respect to such shares, any
loss incurred on the sale of such shares will be treated as a long-term
capital loss to the extent of the capital gain distribution received.

Ordinarily, gains and losses realized from portfolio transactions will
be treated as capital gain and loss. However, a portion of the gain or loss
from the disposition of non-U.S. dollar denominated securities (including
debt instruments, certain financial forward futures and option contracts and
certain preferred stock) may be treated as ordinary income or loss under
Section 988 of the Code. In addition, all or a portion of the gain realized
from the disposition of certain market discount bonds will be treated as
ordinary income under Section 1276. Finally, all or a portion of the gain
realized from engaging in "conversion transactions" may be treated as
ordinary income under Section 1258. "Conversion transactions" are defined
to include certain forward, futures, option and straddle transactions,
transactions marketed or sold to produce capital gains, or transactions
described in Treasury regulations to be issued in the future.

Under Section 1256 of the Code, any gain or loss realized by the Fund
from certain forward contracts and options transactions (other than those
taxed under Section 988 of the Code) will be treated as 60% long-term
capital gain or loss and 40% short-term capital gain or loss. Gain or loss
will arise upon exercise or lapse of such contracts and options as well as
from closing transactions. In addition, any such contracts or options
remaining unexercised at the end of the Fund's taxable year will be treated
as sold for its then fair market value, resulting in additional gain or loss
characterized as described above.

Offsetting positions held by the Fund involving certain forward
contracts or options transactions may be considered, for tax purposes, to
constitute "straddles." "Straddles" are defined to include "offsetting
positions" in actively traded personal property. The tax treatment of
"straddles" is governed by Sections 1092 and 1258 of the Code, which, in
certain circumstances, overrides or modifies the provisions of Sections 1256
and 988 of the Code. As such, all or a portion of any short-term or long-
term capital gain from certain "straddle" transactions may be
recharacterized to ordinary income.

If the Fund were treated as entering into "straddles" by reason of its
engaging in certain forward contracts or options transactions, such
"straddles" could be characterized as "mixed straddles" if the forward
contracts or options transactions comprising a part of such "straddles" were
governed by Section 1256 of the Code. The Fund may make one or more
elections with respect to "mixed straddles." If no election is made, to the
extent the "straddle" rules apply to positions established by the Fund,
losses realized by the Fund will be deferred to the extent of unrealized
gain in the offsetting position. Moreover, as a result of the "straddle"
and conversion transaction rules, short-term capital loss on "straddle"
positions may be recharacterized as long-term capital loss, and long-term
capital gains may be treated as short-term capital gains or ordinary income.

The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 included constructive sale provisions
that generally apply if the Fund either (1) holds an appreciated financial
position with respect to stock, certain debt obligations, or partnership
interests ("appreciated financial position") and then enters into a short
sale, futures, forward, or offsetting notional principal contract
(collectively, a "Contract") respecting the same or substantially identical
property (2) holds an appreciated financial position that is a Contract and
then acquires property that is the same as, or substantially identical to,
the underlying property. In each instance, with certain exceptions, the
Fund generally will be taxed as if the appreciated financial position were
sold at its fair market value on the date the Fund enters into the financial
position or acquires the property, respectively. Transactions that are
identified hedging or straddle transactions under other provisions of the
Code can be subject to the constructive sale provisions.

Investment by the Fund in securities issued or acquired at a discount,
or providing for deferred interest or for payment of interest in the form of
additional obligations could under special tax rules affect the amount,
timing and character of distributions to shareholders by causing the Fund to
recognize income prior to the receipt of cash payments. For example, the
Fund could be required to accrue a portion of the discount (or deemed
discount) at which the securities were issued and to distribute such income
in order to maintain its qualification as a regulated investment company.
In such case, the Fund may have to dispose of securities which it might
otherwise have continued to hold in order to generate cash to satisfy these
distribution requirements.

PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS

The Manager supervises the placement of orders on behalf of the Fund
for the purchase or sale of portfolio securities. Allocation of brokerage
transactions, including their frequency, is made in the Manager's best
judgment and in a manner deemed fair and reasonable to shareholders. The
primary consideration is prompt execution of orders at the most favorable
net price. Subject to this consideration, the brokers selected will include
those that supplement the Manager's research facilities with statistical
data, investment information, economic facts and opinions. Brokers also may
be selected based upon the sale of shares of the Fund or other funds
managed, advised or administered by the Manager or its affiliates.
Information so received is in addition to and not in lieu of services
required to be performed by the Manager and the fee of the Manager is not
reduced as a consequence of the receipt of such supplemental information.
Such information may be useful to the Manager in serving both the Fund and
other clients which it advises and, conversely, supplemental information
obtained by the placement of business of other clients may be useful to the
Manager in carrying out its obligation to the Fund. Brokers are also
selected because of their ability to handle special executions such as are
involved in large block trades or broad distributions, provided the primary
consideration is met. Large block trades may, in certain cases, result from
two or more clients the Manager might advise being engaged simultaneously in
the purchase or sale of the same security. Certain transactions in
securities of foreign issuers may not benefit from the negotiated commission
rates available to the Fund for transactions in securities of domestic
issuers. When transactions are executed in the over-the-counter market, the
Fund will deal with the primary market makers unless a more favorable price
or execution otherwise is obtainable.

For the fiscal years ended April 30, 1997, 1998 and 1999, the Fund paid
total brokerage commissions of $241,623, $429,140 and $207,304,
respectively, none of which was paid to the Distributor. For the fiscal
years ended April 30, 1997 and 1998, the Fund paid $232,985 and $100,796,
respectively, in concessions.

The aggregate amount of transactions during the last fiscal year in
securities effected on an agency basis through a broker for, among other
things, research services, and the commissions and concessions related to
such transactions were as follows:

Transaction Commissions and
Amount Concessions

$23,567,768 $22,028

PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

The Fund's average annual total return for the 1, 5 and 5.84 year
periods ended April 30, 1999 was 3.95%, 14.17% and 12.68%, respectively.
Average annual total return is calculated by determining the ending
redeemable value of an investment purchased at net asset value per share
with a hypothetical $1,000 payment made at the beginning of the period
(assuming the reinvestment of dividends and distributions), dividing by the
amount of the initial investment, taking the "n"th root of the quotient
(where "n" is the number of years in the period) and subtracting 1 from the
result.

The Fund's total return for the period July 1, 1993 (commencement of
operations) through April 30, 1999 was 100.54%. Total return is calculated
by subtracting the amount of the Fund's net asset value per share at the
beginning of a stated period from the net asset value per share at the end
of the period (after giving effect to the reinvestment of dividends and
distributions during the period), and dividing the result by the net asset
value per share at the beginning of the period.

Comparative performance information may be used from time to time in
advertising or marketing the Fund's shares, including data from Lipper
Analytical Services, Inc., Morningstar, Inc., Standard & Poor's 500 Stock
Index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Money Magazine, Moody's Bond Survey
Bond Index, Bond Buyer's 20-Bond Index, Wilshire 5000 Index and other
industry publications. From time to time, the Fund may compare its
performance against inflation with the performance of other instruments
against inflation, such as short-term Treasury Bills (which are direct
obligations of the U.S. Government) and FDIC-insured bank money market
accounts. In addition, advertising for the Fund may indicate that investors
may consider diversifying their investment portfolios in order to seek
protection of the value of their assets against inflation. From time to
time, advertising materials for the Fund may refer to or discuss then-
current or past economic or financial conditions, developments and/or
events.

From time to time, advertising materials for the Fund may refer to
Morningstar ratings and related analyses supporting such ratings.

From time to time, advertising material may refer to studies performed
by The Dreyfus Corporation or its affiliates, such as "The Dreyfus Tax
Informed Investing Study" or "The Dreyfus Gender Investment Comparison Study
(1996 & 1997)" or other such studies

INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND

Each share has one vote and, when issued and paid for in accordance
with the terms of the offering, is fully paid and non-assessable. Fund
shares are of one class and have equal rights as to dividends and in
liquidation. Shares have no preemptive, subscription or conversion rights
and are freely transferable.

Unless otherwise required by the 1940 Act, ordinarily it will not be
necessary for the Fund to hold annual meetings of shareholders. As a
result, Fund shareholders may not consider each year the election of Board
members or the appointment of auditors. However, the holders of at least 10%
of the shares outstanding and entitled to vote may require the Fund to hold
a special meeting of shareholders for purposes of removing a Board member
from office. Fund shareholders may remove a Board member by the affirmative
vote of a majority of the Fund's outstanding voting shares. In addition,
the Board will call a meeting of shareholders for the purpose of electing
Board members if, at any time, less than a majority of the Board members
then holding office have been elected by shareholders.

The Fund is intended to be a long-term investment vehicle and is not
designed to provide investors with a means of speculating on short-term
market movements. A pattern of frequent purchases and exchanges can be
disruptive to efficient portfolio management and, consequently, can be
detrimental to the Fund's performance and its shareholders. Accordingly, if
the Fund's management determines that an investor is following a market-
timing strategy or is otherwise engaging in excessive trading, the Fund,
with or without prior notice, may temporarily or permanently terminate the
availability of Fund Exchanges, or reject in whole or part any purchase or
exchange request, with respect to such investor's account. Such investors
also may be barred from purchasing other funds in the Dreyfus Family of
Funds. Generally, an investor who makes more than four exchanges out of the
Fund during any calendar year or who makes exchanges that appear to coincide
with a market-timing strategy may be deemed to be engaged in excessive
trading. Accounts under common ownership or control will be considered as
one account for purposes of determining a pattern of excessive trading. In
addition, the Fund may refuse or restrict purchase or exchange requests by
any person or group if, in the judgment of the Fund's management, the Fund
would be unable to invest the money effectively in accordance with its
investment objective and policies or could otherwise be adversely affected
or if the Fund receives or anticipates receiving simultaneous orders that
may significantly affect the Fund (e.g., amounts equal to 1% or more of the
Fund's total assets). If an exchange request is refused, the Fund will take
no other action with respect to the shares until it receives further
instructions from the investor. The Fund may delay forwarding redemption
proceeds for up to seven days if the investor redeeming shares is engaged in
excessive trading or if the amount of the redemption request otherwise would
be disruptive to efficient portfolio management or would adversely affect
the Fund. The Fund's policy on excessive trading applies to investors who
invest in the Fund directly or through financial intermediaries, but does
not apply to the Dreyfus Auto-Exchange Privilege, to any automatic
investment or withdrawal privilege described herein, or to participants in
employer-sponsored retirement plans.

During times of drastic economic or market conditions, the Fund may
suspend Fund Exchanges temporarily without notice and treat exchange
requests based on their separate components--redemption orders with a
simultaneous request to purchase the other fund's shares. In such a case,
the redemption request would be processed at the Fund's next determined net
asset value but the purchase order would be effective only at the net asset
value next determined after the fund being purchased receives the proceeds
of the redemption, which may result in the purchase being delayed.

The Fund sends annual and semi-annual financial statements to all its
shareholders.

To offset the relatively higher costs of servicing smaller accounts,
the Fund will charge regular accounts with balances below $2,000 an annual
fee of $12. The valuation of accounts and the deductions are expected to
take place during the last four months of each year. The fee will be waived
for any investor whose aggregate Dreyfus mutual fund investments total at
least $25,000, and will not apply to IRA accounts or to accounts
participating in automatic investment programs or opened through a
securities dealer, bank or other financial institution, or to other
fiduciary accounts.

COUNSEL AND INDEPENDENT AUDITORS

Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, 180 Maiden Lane, New York, New York
10038-4982, as counsel for the Fund, has rendered its opinion as to certain
legal matters regarding the due authorization and valid issuance of the
shares being sold pursuant to the Fund's Prospectus.

Ernst & Young LLP, 787 Seventh Avenue, New York, New York 10019,
independent auditors, have been selected as independent auditors of the
Fund.
APPENDIX

Description of certain ratings assigned by Standard & Poor's Ratings
Group ("S&P"), Moody's Investors Service, Inc. ("Moody's"), Fitch IBCA, Inc.
("Fitch") and Duff & Phelps Credit Rating Co. ("Duff"):

S&P

Bond Ratings

AAA

Bonds rated AAA have the highest rating assigned by S&P. Capacity to
pay interest and repay principal is extremely strong.

Bonds rated AA have a very strong capacity to pay interest and repay
principal and differ from the highest rated issues only in small degree.

Bonds rated A have a strong capacity to pay interest and repay
principal although they are somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects
of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in
higher rated categories.

BBB

Bonds rated BBB are regarded as having an adequate capacity to pay
interest and repay principal. Whereas they normally exhibit adequate
protection parameters, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances
are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity to pay interest and repay
principal for bonds in this category than for bonds in higher rated
categories.

BB, B, CCC, CC, C

Debt rated BB, B, CCC, CC and C is regarded as having predominantly
speculative characteristics with respect to capacity to pay interest and
repay principal. BB indicates the least degree of speculation and C the
highest degree of speculation. While such debt will likely have some
quality and protective characteristics, these are outweighed by large
uncertainties or major risk exposures to adverse conditions.

Debt rated BB has less near-term vulnerability to default than other
speculative grade debt. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or
exposure to adverse business, financial or economic conditions which could
lead to inadequate capacity to meet timely interest and principal payments.

Debt rated B has a greater vulnerability to default but presently has
the capacity to meet interest payments and principal repayments. Adverse
business, financial or economic conditions would likely impair capacity or
willingness to pay interest and repay principal.

CCC

Debt rated CCC has a current identifiable vulnerability to default, and
is dependent upon favorable business, financial and economic conditions to
meet timely payments of principal. In the event of adverse business,
financial or economic conditions, it is not likely to have the capacity to
pay interest and repay principal.

The rating CC is typically applied to debt subordinated to senior debt
which is assigned an actual or implied CCC rating.

The rating C is typically applied to debt subordinated to senior debt
which is assigned an actual or implied CCC-debt rating.

Bonds rated D are in default, and payment of interest and/or repayment
of principal is in arrears.

Plus (+) or minus (-): The ratings from AA to CCC may be modified by
the addition of a plus or minus sign to show relative standing within the
major ratings categories.

Commercial Paper Rating

The designation A-1 by S&P indicates that the degree of safety
regarding timely payment is either overwhelming or very strong. Those
issues determined to possess overwhelming safety characteristics are denoted
with a plus sign (+) designation.

Moody's Bond Ratings

Aaa

Bonds which are rated Aaa are judged to be of the best quality. They
carry the smallest degree of investment risk and are generally referred to
as "gilt edge." Interest payments are protected by a large or by an
exceptionally stable margin and principal is secure. While the various
protective elements are likely to change, such changes as can be visualized
are most unlikely to impair the fundamentally strong position of such
issues.

Bonds which are rated Aa are judged to be of high quality by all
standards. Together with the Aaa group they comprise what generally are
known as high grade bonds. They are rated lower than the best bonds because
margins of protection may not be as large as in Aaa securities or
fluctuation of protective elements may be of greater amplitude or there may
be other elements present which make the long-term risks appear somewhat
larger than in Aaa securities.

Bonds which are rated A possess many favorable investment attributes
and are to be considered as upper medium grade obligations. Factors giving
security to principal and interest are considered adequate, but elements may
be present which suggest a susceptibility to impairment sometime in the
future.

Baa

Bonds which are rated Baa are considered as medium grade obligations,
i.e., they are neither highly protected nor poorly secured. Interest
payments and principal security appear adequate for the present but certain
protective elements may be lacking or may be characteristically unreliable
over any great length of time. Such bonds lack outstanding investment
characteristics and in fact have speculative characteristics as well.

Bonds which are rated Ba are judged to have speculative elements; their
future cannot be considered as well assured. Often the protection of
interest and principal payments may be very moderate, and therefore not well
safeguarded during both good and bad times over the future. Uncertainty of
position characterizes bonds in this class.

Bonds which are rated B generally lack characteristics of the desirable
investment. Assurance of interest and principal payments or of maintenance
of other terms of the contract over any long period of time may be small.
Caa

Bonds which are rated Caa are of poor standing. Such issues may be in
default or there may be present elements of danger with respect to principal
or interest.

Bonds which are rated Ca present obligations which are speculative in a
high degree. Such issues are often in default or have other marked
shortcomings.

Bonds which are rated C are the lowest rated class of bonds, and issues
so rated can be regarded as having extremely poor prospects of ever
attaining any real investment standing.

Moody's applies the numerical modifiers 1, 2 and 3 to show relative
standing within the major ratings categories, except in the Aaa category and
in categories below B. The modifier 1 indicates a ranking for the security
in the higher end of a rating category; the modifier 2 indicates a mid-range
ranking; and the modifier 3 indicates a ranking in the lower end of a rating
category.

Commercial Paper Rating

The rating Prime-1 (P-1) is the highest commercial paper rating
assigned by Moody's. Issuers of P-1 paper must have a superior capacity for
repayment of short-term promissory obligations, and ordinarily will be
evidenced by leading market positions in well established industries, high
rates of return on funds employed, conservative capitalization structures
with moderate reliance on debt and ample asset protection, broad margins in
earnings coverage of fixed financial charges and high internal cash
generation, and well established access to a range of financial markets and
assured sources of alternate liquidity.

Issuers (or related supporting institutions) rated Prime-2 (P-2) have a
strong capacity for repayment of short-term promissory obligations. This
will normally be evidenced by many of the characteristics cited above but to
a lesser degree. Earnings trends and coverage ratios, while sound, will be
more subject to variation. Capitalization characteristics, while still
appropriate, may be more affected by external conditions. Ample alternate
liquidity is maintained.

Fitch Bond Ratings

The ratings represent Fitch's assessment of the issuer's ability to
meet the obligations of a specific debt issue or class of debt. The ratings
take into consideration special features of the issue, its relationship to
other obligations of the issuer, the current financial condition and
operative performance of the issuer and of any guarantor, as well as the
political and economic environment that might affect the issuer's future
financial strength and credit quality.

AAA

Bonds rated AAA are considered to be investment grade and of the
highest credit quality. The obligor has an exceptionally strong ability to
pay interest and repay principal, which is unlikely to be affected by
reasonably foreseeable events.

Bonds rated AA are considered to be investment grade and of very high
credit quality. The obligor's ability to pay interest and repay principal is
very strong, although not quite as strong as bonds rated AAA. Because bonds
rated in the AAA and AA categories are not significantly vulnerable to
foreseeable future developments, short-term debt of these issuers is
generally rated F-1+.

Bonds rated A are considered to be investment grade and of high credit
quality. The obligor's ability to pay interest and repay principal is
considered to be strong, but may be more vulnerable to adverse changes in
economic conditions and circumstances than bonds with higher ratings.

BBB

Bonds rated BBB are considered to be investment grade and of
satisfactory credit quality. The obligor's ability to pay interest and
repay principal is considered to be adequate. Adverse changes in economic
conditions and circumstances, however, are more likely to have an adverse
impact on these bonds and, therefore, impair timely payment. The likelihood
that the ratings of these bonds will fall below investment grade is higher
than for bonds with higher ratings.

Bonds rated BB are considered speculative. The obligor's ability to
pay interest and repay principal may be affected over time by adverse
economic changes. However, business and financial alternatives can be
identified which could assist the obligor in satisfying its debt service
requirements.

Bonds rated B are considered highly speculative. While bonds in this
class are currently meeting debt service requirements, the probability of
continued timely payment of principal and interest reflects the obligor's
limited margin of safety and the need for reasonable business and economic
activity throughout the life of the issue.

CCC

Bonds rated CCC have certain identifiable characteristics, which, if
not remedied, may lead to default. The ability to meet obligations requires
an advantageous business and economic environment.

Bonds rated CC are minimally protected. Default payment of interest
and/or principal seems probable over time.

Bonds rated C are in imminent default in payment of interest or
principal.

DDD, DD and D

Bonds rated DDD, DD and D are in actual or imminent default of interest
and/or principal payments. Such bonds are extremely speculative and should
be valued on the basis of their ultimate recovery value in liquidation or
reorganization of the obligor. DDD represents the highest potential for
recovery on these bonds and D represents the lowest potential for recovery.

Plus (+) and minus (-) signs are used with a rating symbol to indicate
the relative position of a credit within the rating category. Plus and
minus signs, however, are not used in the AAA category covering 12-36 months
or the DDD, DD or D categories.

Short-Term Ratings

Fitch's short-term ratings apply to debt obligations that are payable
on demand or have original maturities of up to three years, including
commercial paper, certificates of deposit, medium-term notes, and municipal
and investment notes.

Although the credit analysis is similar to Fitch's bond rating
analysis, the short-term rating places greater emphasis than bond ratings on
the existence of liquidity necessary to meet the issuer's obligations in a
timely manner.

F-1+

Exceptionally Strong Credit Quality. Issues assigned this rating are
regarded as having the strongest degree of assurance for timely payment.

F-1

Very Strong Credit Quality. Issues assigned this rating reflect an
assurance of timely payment only slightly less in degree than issues rated F-
1+.
F-2

Good Credit Quality. Issues carrying this rating have a satisfactory
degree of assurance for timely payments, but the margin of safety is not as
great as the F-1+ and F-1 categories.

Duff

AAA

Bonds rated AAA are considered highest credit quality. The risk
factors are negligible, being only slightly more than for risk-free U.S.
Treasury debt.

Bonds rated AA are considered high credit quality. Protection factors
are strong. Risk is modest but may vary slightly from time to time because
of economic conditions.

Bonds rated A have protection factors which are average but adequate.
However, risk factors are more variable and greater in periods of economic
stress.

BBB

Bonds rated BBB are considered to have below average protection factors
but still considered sufficient for prudent investment. Considerable
variability in risk during economic cycles.

Bonds rated BB are below investment grade but are deemed by Duff as
likely to meet obligations when due. Present or prospective financial
protection factors fluctuate according to industry conditions or company
fortunes. Overall quality may move up or down frequently within the
category.

Bonds rated B are below investment grade and possess the risk that
obligations will not be met when due. Financial protection factors will
fluctuate widely according to economic cycles, industry conditions and/or
company fortunes. Potential exists for frequent changes in quality rating
within this category or into a higher or lower quality rating grade.

CCC

Bonds rated CCC are well below investment grade securities. Such bonds
may be in default or have considerable uncertainty as to timely payment of
interest, preferred dividends and/or principal. Protection factors are
narrow and risk can be substantial with unfavorable economic or industry
conditions and/or with unfavorable company developments.

Defaulted debt obligations. Issuer has failed to meet scheduled
principal and/or interest payments.

Plus (+) and minus (-) signs are used with a rating symbol (except AAA)
to indicate the relative position of a credit within the rating category.

Commercial Paper Rating

The rating Duff-1 is the highest commercial paper rating assigned by
Duff. Paper rated Duff-1 is regarded as having very high certainty of
timely payment with excellent liquidity factors which are supported by ample
asset protection. Risk factors are minor.