potato crops and in the matter of Irish blight. I was making a good living before the department stepped in. Three years ago Irish blight occurred and Mr. Bratby, the potato expert, advised that it was necessary to root up the crop, spray the land, and not crop that land again for another three years. I did this, but one of my neighbours refused to do it and he did well. I destroyed about £300 worth of potatoes. Dr. Stoward came along afterwards and advised that the instructions we had received from Mr. Bratby were all rot, and that it was not necessary to destroy the crops. Some potatoes which were left in the ground, germinated and gave me a good crop.

(The witness retired.)

JOHN CHARLES HENRY EWERT, Market Gardener, Torbay Junction, sworn and examined:

11608. To the CHAIRMAN : I have been on the land in my district for nine years. I have 90 acres. This is freehold; it is three-quarters of a mile from the railway station for cartage purposes. I have 40 acres cleared, 50 acres fenced. I have a house of two rooms. I am a widower. I have a shed, two head of cattle, two horses, five sheep, and one goat. I started with £50 capital and my liabilities amount to £550, my principal creditor being the National Bank. I have not been able to make a living for the past three or four years. My sons used to help me but the youngest died in Queensland recently and another son was killed at the landing of Gallipoli. Both these boys used to send me money. I bought the land without any improvements on it for about £450. In 1910 I got very little crop and in 1911 I had 17 acres in and took off £380 worth of produce. In 1912, off 15 acres, I took £360 worth of produce.

11609. Why cannot you make a living now ? —In 1913 I was flooded out, and the Government estimate that I lost £500. I lost 11 acres of potatoes and two acres of cabbages on one occasion.

11610. And since then ?—The drainage was done in 1913, when the flood gates were put in. This is what caused the loss. The water is run past my land and the water deposits minerals on the land. Until the first rains we cannot grow anything.

11611. What drainage district are you in ?—The Torbay-Grassmere drainage scheme. This is the scheme put in by Messrs. Oldham and Arney. The water gets away so badly from my land now that I cannot make a living on it. We have about a 3ft. fall in five miles to the sea. There is a south drain but, owing to the failure of the scheme in providing a permanent outlet to the sea, the settlers refused to pay their rates and the then Minister (Mr. Johnson) disbanded the board and took over the responsibility. Since then they have tried to get a board formed, but without success. Before the scheme was put in we could open the bar for £20. Last year it cost £150. This year it has cost £60 so far. Our rates that we should pay on the scheme —£2,500—would be actually less than it costs to open the inlet. I refuse to pay any rates now because my land is damaged to such an extent that it is worth nothing. I should like you to see the land, in order that you can see how the land, which I had previously cleared, has grown up. Since 1913 I have tried to cultivate it but nothing will grow. For the last three years the water has been off it but nothing will grow on account of the mineralisation of the soil.

11612. By Mr. VENN : Before this you used to grow good crops ?—I have grown cabbages 25 to 30 lbs. in weight. They will not grow at all now.

11613. To Mr. PAYNTER: I have approached the government time and again. Mr. Mitchell came here 12 months ago last January and if he had been Minister now I am sure we should have had something done. Mr. Mitchell inspected the property and, being a practical man, he advised me that we were done for growing anything. He told us to get water couch and since then I have got it growing remarkably well, even in the mineralised land. It will take a long time before it will spread but when it does we can keep stock. Mr. Mitchell wiped off the £2,500 but when he went out of office they started to send us the rate accounts again. They sent down Mr. Oldham and tried to get us to take over the scheme but we will not do so as long as the scheme is there. If the south drain was cleaned out it would cost about £300, and this would relieve the trouble. I should then be able to make some use of my land. I hope that you gentlemen will recommend that the south drain should be cleaned out immediately.

11614. You are not able to do anything yourself, I suppose ? —I am not in a position to put in even a small flume. A wide flume is necessary with a curve into the sea, so that the waves will not drive the sea sand into the flume. This, of course, would be in addition to the south flume which now exists.

11615. By Mr. VENN : Do you consider that the land will regain its fertility? —If the south drain is stopped for a time and the water allowed to run over the land, and subsequently released, it will take the minerals off the soil and then, when open, with the addition of the second flume I have referred to, I should not be flooded out again.

(The witness retired.)

HENRY CHARLES SIMS, Farmer and President of the District Farmers' Association, sworn and examined:

11616. By the CHAIRMAN : You came here I believe, Mr. Sims, for the purpose of specifically laying before the Commission certain matters. I think it would be as well if you made a statement ? —In regard to railway construction, I may say that I am a civil engineer. The manner in which spur lines are constructed by the Railway Department is absolutely useless. The policy should be to lay down lines parallel with one another capable of serving the country 20 miles on either side of the line. If these parallel lines were constructed instead of the absurd spur lines, it would be of great assistance to land settlement, and subsequently to the farmers' advantage. The next matter I wish to touch upon is in regard to the English immigrant. You will understand my property is freehold and I am not making any representations on behalf of myself. This immigrant is placed on the land without a means of consulting anyone. He has, say, £400. He puts up a fence of four or five wires and a good house and then starts to clear his land. Then after a few months he is at the end of his resources. His procedure has been wrong from the start. Why can