expensive. While we were there it rained off and on every other week through the summer. A little after Christmas we cleared half an acre and put potatoes and cabbages into it. We dug the potatoes in May and they were as big as my two fists. Cabbages grow marvellously well down there.That country is adapted for growing lots of things if it can be cleared. It is very heavily timbered, there being not only large timber but heavy undergrowth as well. The tap-root of the native lilac goes down feet into the ground, and it is like wire to cut. Down there I think the karri land is better still than the karri and red gum. A lot of what we call the plains is adapted for growing anything, but it is very scrubby and tussocky, with blackboys. I do not know of anyone who has made a success of growing on those plains. It is similar to a lot of land roundabout Albany and Denmark. In these wet seasons potato growing would be a failure down there. The cleared country down there grows up very rapidly again. We sowed some cocksfoot and rye and other English grasses, but the scrub came up and chocked them out.

9811. To Mr. PAYNTER: Generally speaking the land laws are satisfactory, but I think too much is being charged for some of the land.Land in this locality 12 years ago was 10s. an acre, and was afterwards raised to 11s. I do not think it is worth 10s. in its virgin state.

9812. To Mr. CLARKSON: I think this district is well adapted for dairying. If the dairy farmer would grow maize and millet in the summer time, he would be in a fair way to success. I used to go in for dairying in those days on the natural grasses, but we found the butter went rancid; I think it was due to the blackboy. Artificial grasses would overcome the difficulty.

9813. By Mr. CLARKSON: Have you any suggestions to make for the betterment of the industry or encouragement of land settlement?—A railway should be run from somewhere about here to join the line running from Bridgetown to Denmark. It would open up hundreds of thousands of acres well adapted to dairying and other purposes. There is a good bit of settlement down there already. On the Frankland River I have had an average of 40 bushels of wheat with only sheep and stockyard manure. We manure only every second year. That was 60 miles from the mouth of the Frankland River. Many of the people in this district, fairly well established, require still a little more capital to continue their development. It is very discouraging to people who have spent hundreds of pounds of their own money on their holdings. A good reliable man ought to be encouraged to remain on the land.

(The witness retired)

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HUBERT NEVILLE CUSS,Farmer, Gordon River via Cranbrook,sworn and examined:

9814. To Mr. CLARKSON: I have been here five years. I had previous experience on the land in England. I hold 2,306 acres, about 200 of which has poison all over it. I have pulled the box for five years and it still comes. Other poisons are prickly and white gum. I have 45 acres cleared and ten in orchard. The district is very wet. My land is in two holdings. Of the first holding of 1,276 acres half is under flood. I have 400 sheep and five horses. Last year I lost 34 sheep. I think it was due to the poor quality of the land. It would take ten acres to a sheep, and the Department is charging me 11s. 6d. an acre. The sheep I lost were not on poison. I think it was dry bible that killed them. I have to go about in old boots with no socks and my trousers turned up over the knee. The fruit trees are doing very well. I have not yet sold any fruit.

9815. To Mr. PAYNTER: I have not received any assistance from the experts or officials of the Agricultural Department. I think the prices of land altogether too high. The land I have at 11s. 6d. is not worth more than 5s. It will not carry any stock. We cannot grow chaff to cart into Cranbrook. Horses, bags and manure would swallow up the price. Our only hope is sheep, but the land is too dear for sheep. Last summer I got two and a half tons of potatoes from three-quarters of an acre. This year I got seven cwt. from one acre. They simply rotted in the ground. I am giving up potatoes. All the money goes in manure and seed. I went on my block on the advice of my father-in-law, Mr. Pope,who has 1,200 or more sheep on about 9,000 acres. I grew rape this year. It did not do very well because of the excessive rain. The draining of the district would be too great an expense even for the Government. The river overflows all over the flats. The ground is so boggy that one cannot ride a horse. If my rent was reduced to 4s. or 5s. an acre I could make a do of it with the sheep. To attempt to grow crops would be madness. There are nine or ten settlers out in my locality.

9816. By Mr. Clarkson: Have you any suggestions to make for the betterment of the farming industry or the encouragement of land settlement?—Five years' exemption from rent would allow the settler to put his money into clearing. The improved land will carny ten times the number of sheep, but clearing is so costly. I am single-handed with the sheep, and so I can do but very little clearing. I sent a cheque to the Lands Department three weeks ago and have had no acknowledgment yet. The cheque followed three letters of mine, none of which has been acknowledged.

(The witness retired)

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WILLIAM ARTHUR VERNON,Farmer,Slab Hut Brook, Cranbrook,sworn and examined:

9817. To Mr. CLARKSON: I have been nearly ten years in this district. I hold 1,300 acres with only a little prickly poison on it. I have cleared 50 acres. I have partially cropped it with oats, which do only fairly; I get 15cwt. to the acre. I am carrying no stock at present. I shall have about 150 sheep, but the place would carry 200 comfortably. The question of finance has prevented me from making further improvements. I have about an acre of orchard; the trees do fairly well. I have had no returns from the orchard yet. My sheep return about 80 per cent profit. My land is priced at 7s. and 8s. I am satisfied with that price.