introduced now. In my opinion the best methods under which the land has been settled have been rotten. In the past the boom was created and people went temporarily insane and got out into the dry areas and were indifferent as to their farm methods. I heard Mr. Mitchell make the statement that we were only to "tickle" the soil and we would get a harvest. The new settlers put in their crops indifferently. Consequently the crops were indifferent. Later on they learned that the proper thing was fallow, and the further they go the further they get behind. I do not think the land is worth anything at all until it produced a living wage for the farmer. It takes five years, in my experience, to attain that. After five years, in my case, the land is not productive, yet at the same time we have not worked our land to the best advantage. If it is on a fallow basis the land the land is more productive, but that is not altogether our fault, but we were misled as to the rainfall and other things, and we adopted wrong methods. If we were to start again with out past mistakes behind us it would be one's own fault if one did not make good in five years, but it would be a great help now if we were granted five years' exemption from the payment of rent.

7195. By Mr. VENN: Why have you not got sheep?—We came here without much capital and when I got things going I got an advance for horses. We were told there was a good rainfall and we hoped to get sheep in a few years. The first season I cleared myself and the second I was well into debt. The third year I was still further into debt and this year I shall be in the same position as I was at the end of last year. If the Government were to supply breeding ewes on extended terms it would help us through our troubles. I have 3,000 acres altogether, but I think the maximum carrying capacity would be about 10 acres to the sheep so that the land should carry 300 sheep, but I do not think we could rear lambs on it, but with a good deal of stubble it might be a standby. Sheep do well here and are a profitable investment. For instance, it cost me £20 a year for meat alone.

7196. By the CHAIRMAN: Did you inspect it before you took up your land?—No, but my partner had a conversation with the surveyor. Wild game abounded at the time and there was water in all the creeks, but I have nothing against the land itself; it is the rainfall that I complain about. We protested to the Government for having misled us with regard to the rainfall. The Government gave it as 14in. The Weather Bureau said it was 11½in. over 13 years. The record was taken at Mount View. The department said at the time the land was thrown open that the records were not available.

7197. What has been the wheat growing average since Ajana started?—My average has been 6 ⅖ bushels, and of course I was affected worse than anyone last year with rust. That was when I got the six bushels.

7198. By Mr. VENN: Are the rabbits increasing?—Yes, and there are more on this side of the fence than on the other side. In fact this is the side that we trap them on.

7199. By the CHAIRMAN: Have any of the settlers abandoned their holdings?—One man has not been back here for two or three years, but I cannot say that he has gone for good.

7200. How was the Agricultural Bank money expended by you?—I cleared 300 acres and fenced and had a stock loan for horses and £50 for machinery. I had 250 acres done by contract, but I did all the fencing myself. The I.A.B. assistance was for horse feed, for putting in the crop, and super and bags. I had my own seed wheat and stores. My gross returns for three years were £360. I struck water at 11ft. and I built a house, in fact I built two houses, also stables. The first were blown down. I burnt off 38 acres in addition to the 50 I cleared, and I have put in crops for others. I have 60 acres on shares with another man, but it is hardly worth stripping.

7201. Have you any requests to make?—I have a series of five recommendations which we unanimously agreed upon at a meeting held within the past month of the local settlers. (See Appendix.)

(The witness retired.)

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Subsequently the Commission visited Mr. Houghton who was working in the field and could not attend to give evidence. He stated that he had been in the district for six years and his average yield for the whole time was six bushels. He expects the same return this year. He complained of certain acts of misrepresentation on the part of the department. He averred that when the bank undertook to advance money for work done they only sent a portion of the advance, about one-half. The consequence is that contractors will not undertake to work for a farmer because they are never sure of getting the whole of the money they earn and have to wait indefinitely for the balance. He considered that the least holding a man should possess in the district should be 3,000 acres, and no man could succeed with wheat only. Sheep were indispensable. The capacity of the land was about 20 acres to the sheep. He himself had had 300 sheep, but lost one-half of them from starvation. He had been told that grass was plentiful and also water, but stated that fallow was sine qua non in this district. The Commission subsequently visited Mrs. Murray's farm which is conducted by her two sons who were at work at the time. They stated they had been resident for six years on the holding, which cost them £1 an acre. It had been surveyed by Mr. Hope and was called first class land. The area was 916 acres, but it was full of stones. They obtained 21 bushels three years ago per acre on 60 acres with fallow. They had 270 acres of land cleared, but complained that they had not had a rainfall yet, 11in. being the heaviest annual fall up to date. Their experience was that it was useless to crop unless it was put in with the first rains. Actually there were 500 to 600 acres of good land, but even so it was a mass of stoned, while the balance was rock on which nothing would grow, not even trees. There is land situated adjoining them which is worth about 2s. 6d. an acre for grazing and they desired to obtain some of it, but the Agricultural Bank would not make an advance on it. If they could secure some of this land, say, 2,000 acres, they would be in a position to run sheep, in all about 500. They were prepared to pay £4 per thousand acres. For the two or three vacant blocks in their vicinity the department was demanding 13s. to 16s. an acre. The cost of clearing their holding was over 30s. an acre. The Commission also inspected the holdings of W. Ainsworth, P. Atkinson, and W. C. McCorkhill