good stock water which is on the brackish side, but I have no other supply except wells. They are 20ft. and 40ft deep respectively. 1,440 acres of my land is fenced, or a total of 15 miles of fencing in all. I have a full farming plant, with nine working horses, also four milking cows and 11 pigs. I am a married man, with six in family. I have a four roomed weatherboard house; in fact, that was my first move when I came on to the farm. I have stable accommodation, viz., an iron shed 60ft. by 30ft., the machinery shed forming portion of the stable, but it only enables me to shelter a portion of the horses at the present time, as the machinery is taking up too much room. I did intend to put up a shed for horses separately, but found myself unable to do it. My only capital was my house, after I had put up my house I think I had only 2s. 6d. left. I therefore went out putting up by contract houses and stables, and so on, for other settlers, and took on a contract for ploughing in order to get cash for stores. In this way I made my start.

6159. Have you been able to get along without assistance from the bank?—No. I first cleared a good bit of ground, 60 or 70 acres, without assistance. I could not get stores and went to the Agricultural Bank for assistance, but found I could bot obtain money until I put in an application. As I was stuck for money I went to the Associated Banks, and they advanced all that I required. I owe about £1,200 to the National Bank, which has a branch here. I cannot say exactly what I owe for last year, but I should say about £300.

6160. Has the Department of Agriculture assisted you with advice as to the best methods to adopt?—No I have gone entirely on my own.

6161. Have you received any pamphlets or publications relating to methods of farming?—No. But Mr Sutton was here on several occasions. That is the only information I have obtained here.

6162. By Mr CLARKSON: How much have you under crop?—I have 400 acres in and 100 acres fallow. I have had fallow in previous years, and believe in nothing else but fallow, but owing to bad seasons and shortness of capital a man cannot do what he would wish. My belief is that a man should fallow one crop every three years. I believe that the district average would be five bushels more per acre if fallow was adopted. I use a bushel of seed to the acre and 100lbs of super., but I do not employ so much on the heavy land, only about 60lbs. to 70lbs. I find the early wheats satisfactory, such as Alpha, Yandilla King, but Federation has also done well with me.

6163. To Mr PAYNTER: Yandilla King for the past five years has been satisfactory on every occasion. I dropped out Baroota Wonder.

6163a. To Mr CLARKSON: My average for the past year was 18 bushels off 300 acres. A fair average yield for the district would be about 11 bushels. I have a three-furrow mouldboard plough and a eight-furrow disc and I work five horses. About six acres is a fair day's work working two teams, and keeping the plough doing during the dinner hour. I use six horses with the disc and do 10 to 12 acres a day with the one team. My drill is 13 disc. I usually do 14 acres, but I have done as much as 20 a day. I have a spring tooth cultivator, 17 discs, and do 14 acres a day, and a McKay harvester with a 7ft. 6in. comb.

6164. How many bags to the acre at, say, 10s. a bag, do you consider you would have to get in order to pay your expenses and depreciation and plant before any wages are obtainable by yourself or interest on your investment?—I am no scholar, and I had no time to go into figures. But unless I get ten bushels I make nothing for myself, that is, before I can show a profit. I think that the average farmer with bigger machinery would reduce his costs, and it was my intention to get a six-furrow mouldboard plough and do away with the three-furrows. You must have big machinery to reduce the cost of production, which is altogether too high.

6165. When you get a six-furrow mouldboard plough, get a Clarence Smith. Would bulk handling reduce your costs?—I have never studied the question, but I have read about what the South Australian farmers are doing, and many of them are in favour of the scheme. Others again of them do not advocate bulk handling at the present time, for the reason that they are too far away from the ports. There would be an elevator at Port Adelaide, perhaps, and another 100 miles away. But the majority appear to be against bulk handling there, particularly since the price of bags went up recently.

6166. How do you think the duty on machinery affects you, and should farmers' implements come in free?—I do not see that it will make much difference. Take the McKay's machine. That is competing with the outside world, but it ought to be sold at about £20 cheaper. I worked in May bros. for seven years, and I have a good idea of the cost of harvesters. No doubt it would make the difference if the duty was taken off.

6167. By the CHAIRMAN: Do you think it is better to pay the duty and so encourage Western Australia to build up its manufacturers?—I have never studied that question. 6168. By Mr PAYNTER: Have your crops ever suffered from disease?—Rust, but no other disease. I do not pickle my wheat; I grade it. Only this year I had smut. I bought some of Penney's wheat, and there was a little smut in it. I have never had rust before.

6169. Do you adopt a system of rotation of crops?—You cannot until you are properly established. What I would like to do would be to fallow one year and crop it. I hope to do so next year if I am spared. Crop, grass, fallow. I have a few fruit trees for the house, which are doing well, with a few vegetables, and I keep pigs. They are running out for six months in the year, and then I feed them on crushed wheat.

6170. Have you paid any attention to poultry raising?—Only for home use. I employ a married man for nine months on the farm at £2 10s. a week, and he gets his supplies at the lowest rate, milk at 2d. a pint, butter at 1s. alb., and he keeps himself. I am quite satisfied with the labour here, but it is inferior. Personally, I often work 16 or 17 hours a day. I think that 2,000 acres of land in this district is the minimum out of which a farmer could make a livelihood, and doing is own work and employing the best methods and fallowing, he should do from 300 to 350 acres every year. I think it would be an advantage for settlers to co-operate for the purchase of supplies, and for the disposal of their produce, as is being done by the South Australian farmers union, where they have good results. I was one of the first shareholders in