EDITORIAL PAGE — Well-deserved honor

It came as absolutely no surprise that Dia Met Minerals’ Charles Fipke was crowned Prospector of the Year at the annual convention of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada. He was the heir apparent.

In fact, were it not for Mr. Fipke and his diamond find in the Northwest Territories, the convention just past might have been a dreary affair. But the air was thick with talk of ilmenites and kimberlites and eclogites and peridotites, Kirkland Lake’s C-14 pipe, the Jarvi diamond, bedded kimberlites and on and on.

Two years ago few conventioneers would have understood the terminology. But two years ago, few conventioneers would even have dreamed that a diamond property in Canada would spark the biggest staking rush in the country’s history.

Congratulations Mr. Fipke. You richly deserve all the accolades that come your way.