The school is half a mile away. I have a galvanised iron house, bush stable and shed, a set of implements, four working horses, cow and calf, three pigs, and poultry. I had £280 capital when I came here and the Agricultural Bank have advanced £560. I owe £643 to the Industries Assistance Board, including all creditors.

8036. By Mr. PAYNTER : How many acres have you in crop this year ? - Three hundred and it will average 9 ½ bushels. I employ no labour beyond myself and my son. Some of the crop was summer ploughed 3in. deep. The early varieties of seed are preferable, especially Gluyas, of which I sow from 45 to 50lbs., and an equal quantity of super. The highest average I had was last year, namely, 12 bushels. I should have done better if I had been earlier, but I was delayed by the board in forwarding me an implement, and by the merchants through the delay of the super. I did not start seeding until the 9th June, when I got Federation and lott's. IT takes 12 bushels to pay the cost of putting in and taking off a crop. Bags and implements are far too costly. Bulk handling would be a good thing and could be applied by means of tanks fixed on wagons. The employment of a larger plant means, of course, the use of a larger number of horses, and would be unsuitable for a man like myself who is in a small way, I pickle but do not grade my wheat. I have noticed that the vegetables have failed just when they are most wanted. The want failed just when they are most wanted. The want of rain last September was the cause of the destruction of a large quantity of pumpkins that I was growing. In this district a man requires at least 1,000 acres, and he should be easily able to handle 250 to 300 acres a year. Co - operation should be a good thing and I have heard it mooted at Bruce Rock. In my opinion the present land laws do not encourage settlement. For instance, I had to come here from Doodlakine, a distance of 50 miles, when there was no water in the dam here, and I had to go every day to Emu Hill, 11 miles away, to cart it. A man should clear 250 acres before he can get a loan from the Bank. Dam sites should be selected on each man's block. Several settlers have sunk dams that will not hold water. Water conservation should be the first thing attempted and dams should be wire - netted in. Otherwise, I think the price of the land is reasonable.

8037. By Mr. VENN : Are rabbits troublesome ? - They have greatly increased and sometimes we can hear dingoes. I was 15 years on the tramways in Perth. On the whole I like this life and my wife and son like it, If we can only make headway. WE are struggling to keep going, but we went backwards £40 in our grocery bill through devoting everything to clearing the land and putting in the crop. I have 300 acres cleared and have asked for another loan, but they only allow 75 per cent. of the cost, otherwise I should have 600 acres cleared. My son, who is 20 years of age, works for no wages at all, and the Agricultural Bank would not allow him any, which I consider a very great hardship.

                                     ( The witness retired )

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ARTHUR BURGIN ( Burgin & Yeomans ) , Farmer, Graball, East Wadderin, sworn and examined :

8038. By the CHAIRMAN : How long have you been here ? - I came here in 1913 and had previously been on the canefields in Queensland, and afterwards was cutting wood at Merredin for the pump. I have a partner named Yeomans. We have 1,630 acres, priced at 16s. and 12s. 6d. ; 900 acres is first class, 300 second, and the remainder third class. The nearest railway is 27 miles distant and it is 16 miles from Emu Hill, which is the nearest point we can ever have a railway. The lands Department advised us to take up the land and showed us the proposed route of the railway, which was to hit Graball on the road to Merredin. We have no fencing erected, but we have 440 acres cleared. Our water supply is a dam 1,000 yards and 8 feet deep. We could get deeper but were short of feed at the time. We excavated it during the drought. There is 2ft. 6in. of water in it now. I am a married man, with two children, one of school age. The school is 12 miles distant and our nearest neighbour is 6½ miles away. The nearest doctor is 60 miles away, at Kellerberrin. We have a hessian house, bush stables, and a shed, a set of implements, five working horses, 13 pigs, and fowls. When we came on the land we had about £200. We owe the Agricultural Bank £517 and the Industries Assistance Board, I think, about £600, but we have no other creditors. The crop this year was 350 acres and went to 13 bushels.

8039. By MR. PAYNTER : Had you any fallow ? - No. We had no plough with which to fallow. We use 50lbs. of seed to the acre and 70lbs. of super. Gluyas and Federation are our favourite wheats. I consider that the tariff bears heavily upon us. Bulk handling would be saving to the farmer, and we would have to have specially constructed tanks for the conveyance of grain. This would effect a great saving in bags. We have had no disease in our crops. We pickle our wheat and put it through the winnower twice. We use stripper winnower, but would prefer a harvester, which we hope to have next year. We had no trouble in taking off the crop but winnowing means a lot of work. A man who has 600 acres cleared coild make a decent living by fallowing half of it. He should hold 1,000 acres and should, single - handed, account for 300 acres every year. Settlers should be provided with land on the conditions that they work it for a number of years, and if they did not work according to the conditions they should be put off it. We ourselves have not been off land since we have been here. We have no railway. We are satisfied as regards the quality of the land, If we can only get railway facilities. We have been granted £1 an acre for clearing, but it is actually worth 27s. 6d. Rabbits have not done much damage as yet but they have been greatly on the increase during the past 12 months. Dingoes, however, are plentiful. They are at the dam every night. We are the furthest out settlers and yet they trouble us the most. The annual average rainfall is from 11 to 12 in.; last year it was 15in.

                                                                                ( The witness retired )
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