370. They could tell us who is paid?—No one can tell you accurately about figures spread over years, but the books will show. Mr . Sutton would know up to a certain point.

371. There was not much done in your time in regard to bulk handing?—No, all that happened in my time was that when I was in Melbourne I discussed the matter with Metcalf & Co, and I had a look at the plans they were preparing for New South Wales. Funds were not available in my time to do anything.

372. There is one statement which you made just now, you suggested in reply to Mr . Harrison that silos should be erected at country stations, but that they would not be necessary at the ports?—No, I did not say that , I said that it is not necessary to put in the elevator at Fremantle now. What I said was that the £300,000 should be devoted to providing storage for the wheat at the country stations.

373. How will they handle it then at the ship's side?—It will be some years before we get to that stage. The great question now is, that there is available £300,000 and if we use that for the erection of an elevator at Fremantle there would be nothing left for the storage of the wheat. It would be better to devote that money to the erection of silos in country districts.

374. What do you think of the suggestion which has been made that farmers should be assisted to erect silos on their own holdings?—I do not think that is a practical scheme at all. It would be better to erect silos and re-bag the wheat than have the bag rot and then have to re-bag the wheat.

375.You do not think then it would be advisable to grant assistance to farmers to build silos on their own farms?—No. That would not be part of the elevator scheme.

376. By Hon. J. F ALLEN: Did you ever discuss that in your time?—I have favoured the building of silos for ensilage, and small bins for holding seed wheat and so on.

377. Mr . Sutton recommended that the farmers should have advances made to them under the scheme so that they might erect their own silos?—Such a proposal would not be useful to the farmers. Take a farm of 640 acres which would not be spread over a mile and a half by three- quarters of a mile. You would have to harvest into bags.

378. Not necessarily; they would harvest into tanks?—You might shoot the grain harvested into a tank, but you would have to cart the yank all over the place. It would be necessary to use bags. Farmers would use strong bags which last several years. In Russia they use bags which last 10 years in connection with balk handling .

379. Did the proposal come under your notice?—I never dealt with it.

380. By Mr . HARRISON: do you think it would be a good plan to build silos at the railway station?—That would be a idea.

381. It would be preferable to assist a number of farmers at a centre like Doodlakine to erect a silo to be extended over a number of years?—Yes.

382. By Hon J> F. ALLEN: Even if the wheat had to be re-bagged?—Yes, it has to be re-bagged in any case.

383. By Mr . HARRISON: Has your attention been drawn to the loss which takes place in transit?—Yes. A good deal of the wheat has had as much as seven inches of rain on it in the country before bring trucked. As a matter of fact I think it dries in the truck.

384. If an expert has said that he thought there was a bigger danger from what he had seen in Western Australia from carrying wheat in trucks, than anywhere else, would that be correct?—I know that bags do not rot in the trucks. I have seen bags black with exposure and those bags had not been in trucks. The damage had occurred at a station where the wheat was not covered and not properly stacked until a few weeks ago. The damage was done in the temporary stacks.

385 By Hon R. G. ARDAGH.: That wheat would be practically useless?—I did not have the opportunity of seeing the wheat inside the bags but the loss would not be as great one would imagine.

386. With regard to financing and looking after the accounts, do you think it possible to have a continuous audit?—No one can object to an audit

387. We have had evidence to the effect that that has been the weakest part of the scheme. Were the books regularly audited in your time?—They were periodically audited by Auditor General, but what the people want is an outside and continuous audit. (The witness retired) The Commission adjourned.