than in any other district?—There are men who have pulled through, namely the men with a little money, and those men could get assistance; but it is the men who were put on the land without adequate means who were not farmers and who expected to go on the land and make money easily.

6901. Would you be surprised to know that in some cases we have investigated the worst settlers were those who went with money and wasted it, while men who were builders and tailor and plumbers went on the land without money and without experience, and it is astonishing to see what they have done. It is the man that counts all the time?— We have similar cases here, but I am only speaking generally.

6902. Can you give the names of successful men that we could call upon to study their methods and get an idea of the country?—P Ledsham has a good place, and is under the I.A.B. Last year he had doubtful crops which were swept away by the rust. Then there is R. H. McClintock, at Maralin. At Oakabella there is Clare Burges, Mrs Jackson, the Teakles at Isseka, O'Brien and Ascione, The Gill Bros. at Northampton, and the Mitchell Bros. Another thing that is keeping the district down is the shortage of stock. No farmer has any hope of succeeding unless he has sheep. They must have stock if they are going to fallow and farm properly. Speaking generally, this is good grazing country, and water is easy to get. There are no dogs and very little poison, and that in only one or two patches. Very few of our farmers among the recent settlers have yet got sheep.

6903. By Mr. VENN: Do you think if the Government were to enable selected settlers to obtain breeding ewes on extended terms that they would be availed of?—Yes, but the Government should take every care to select the right men only.

6904. By the CHAIRMAN: Mr Deane Hammond, of Kellerberrin, made a suggestion that this should be done through the stock and station farms?—The wisest plan would be to pick the men and keep them under close supervision. Growing wheat alone they might, if they were very good men indeed, make a living, but only a bare living. In any case failing to turn to account the grass and stubble and weeds is only utilising one half of the assets.

6905. Do you think the districts north of Ajana were worth opening up for agricultural purposes?—I do not like Ajana. The old settlers will tell you that that is a droughty country; they know by the vegetation. You do not want to go over the sandhills before you get to Mt View. You should stop this side of the sandhills. Mount View is the original Ajana settlement and was formerly Drage Bros place.

6906. By Mr. VENN: What do you think of the Mullewa country?—I do not like it. If there were proper methods of farming possibly something could be done with it, but you would get too many failures I am afraid. Even with fallowing it is a doubtful proposition. Pindar is of course absurd from a farming point of view. Gill and Richards had land up there. There is plenty of scrub here without going up there to look for it, and we have plenty of wheat growing land within an assured rainfall.

6907. By the CHAIRMAN: Do you think it was good policy to settle the balance of the country South of Ajana?— I do not think they need have gone so far. If they went half way up to there it would be quite far enough, that is about 15 miles North of Northampton, where there are many acres of good country undeveloped. You cannot do anything with it, but you should make the owners work it.

6908. By Mr CLARKSON: Then you would restrict development to those who are already in possession of the land?—I would not send people out to a new place unless there were reasonable prospects.

6909. Then how do you suggest that land should be provided to those who are already there?—That is a serious question, but there is a lot of good land round here: even the squatters are going in for farming it on a larger scale than the farmers themselves.

6910. But, if the land is all selected, how could the government provide land for newcomers who came here in want of it?—If there was no farming land we would not bring settlers to it. I do not know what land is vacant and what is not vacant, but if all the land is taken up within the rainfall area, then you will have to send them somewhere else.

6911. By Mr PAYNTER: Is it a safe policy to repurchase estates that are not being worked?— I should think so. Moreover, I think we have only started wheat growing in this district at present.

6912. By the CHAIRMAN: What is necessary is to define what is the safe wheat-growing country?— Exactly.

6914. By Mr CLARKSON: At Present time there are areas in the State containing very risky country, and the settlers in the extra risky country are not many. Would it not be advisable to consider some means of shifting the settlers in those areas into safer areas rather than continue to foster them in areas ascertained to be risky?— Undoubtedly, unless they have large areas with sheep, so that when the crops fail they will have something to fall back upon, but to put a man up there with 1,000 acres and expect him to make a living out of wheat-growing alone is an impossibility. You could enlarge your areas by giving each of them a larger holding and enable them to run stock in conjunction with wheat-growing, and no doubt if that were done the settlers would do well enough.

6915. By Mr VENN: You mean that you would give them more land and let them stay there?—Yes.

6916. By Mr CLARKSON: Some of the natural conditions do not lend themselves to mixed farming?—Well, they do round here.

6917. By Mr VENN: Some of the settlers near Mullewa cannot run a goat on their land. Surely you could not call that mixed farming country. Then there are some of them who could not keep a cow?—No doubt that is so.

(The witness retired.)