safe overdrafts, 6 per cent. as a minimum. Most safe overdrafts are now carrying 6½ per cent. and 7 per cent. interest. Of the overseas interest, Western Australia's share will be higher than its exportable surplus apportionment, but this is owing to the fact that we got in a very much larger proportion of the earlier shipments than we should have done, and this correspondingly reduced our local overdraft. While I have worked up on my own due date, until this is sent in to the Australian Wheat board, together with the due dates of the other States, properly certified to by the different States' auditors, the Australian Wheat Board will not be in a position to state definitely what is the actual due date for all four States, and, therefore, will not be able to arrive at each State's net proportion of the interest just mentioned for some little time. I may say that the amount allocated to us, however, on our exportable surplus only, would be approximately £29,000, but it is likely that through our early receipt of payments we will have to pay a further considerable amount. Premiums—Prior to its being definitely arranged to apportion the net interest of the net premiums to the different States, according to the exportable surplus, it was intended to apportion the premium against the States by crediting the estimated flat rate that would be received against the 27s. 6d. exchange charged on the undrawn shipments. The rate fixed was 6s. 2d. per cent., and it thus reduced the exchange to 21s. 4d. The item shown in the statement of accounts of £16,857 18s. 1d., less exchange reduction account £3,780 5s. 1d., represents respectively 27s. 6d. and 6s. 2d. Premiums—With regard to the different moneys which have been paid to the Australian Wheat board, from whom premiums have been received, these are totalled as follows:—On account of the £11,000,000 loan moneys the total premiums received amount to £35,328 2s. The total premium received on Contract 115 was £40,040, of which there was allotted to the 1915-16 Pool, as its share under the apportionment scheme, £16,740 1s. 6d., making the total 1915-16 premium on the whole Pool £52,032 3s. 6d. Of this amount, which is apportioned on the exportable surplus between the different States, the share of Western Australia amounts to £4,886 3s. 3d. Our proportion of the 1916-17 premium made upon Contract 115 will probably amount to about £2,000 out of the £23,000 odd, which has gone to the 1916-17 General Pool. Additional apportionment—It was found during the period immediately following the 31st December, 1916, that considerable amounts were received from shipments over and above the 4s. 0d. per bushel, at which price the wheat (under Contract 115) had been allocated to the 1915-16 Pool. The Australian Wheat Board decided that one half of this excess price realised should be written back to the 1915-16 Pool, so that no injustice should be done to it by its not sharing in this excess price realised. The amount of this excess in all States was £347,598 11s. 2d. One half of this is £173,799 5s. 7d., and of this the Western Australian proportion was £16,661 6s. 6d. Finalisation of accounts—The London accounts show the actual clean up of all shipments made, both in connection with any adjustments as to wheat price, freight rates, etc., and also as regards any shortage or increase of outturn. The interim figures for shipments shown in the statement of the various items are only interim but there is sufficient knowledge of the 1915-16 shipments now in possession of the Australian Wheat Board to know approximately the general price that will be realised and distributed to the various States. Shipments cards—The Australian Wheat Board was kept in touch with the shipments of the different States by means of shipping cards which are forwarded after each shipment goes. It sets these up in its accounts, an account being allotted to each vessel. As final invoices arrive from the London Committee the adjustments on each item are shown in details in the accounts and finally we get the net result of the shipments. It is these total net results that will be apportioned between the States. Separation of 1916-17 and 1917-18 Pools—Lately considerable attention has been given by the Australian Wheat Board to the appointment of income as from the 1st January last between these two Pools. It was deemed desirable to effect some decision so that, should there be failure to effect a direct sale of the crop, some method should be laid down to determine that course of action. It has been practically decided to credit half the proceeds of sales as from the 1st January last between the two different Pools. This looks rather simple on the face of it, but as we are here gristing our wheat and selling flour, bran, and pollard, it is not going to be quite as easy as it looks. Local overdraft interest apportionment—The Pool operates upon three bank accounts which are really one account with two minor divissons for the easier grouping of entries. Independently of the different pools these accounts only operate so that in them are all the moneys received or paid by the Scheme. The interest is charged on the total balance at the rate of 5 per cent. and it becomes evident that an apportionment of the total amount of interest charged is necessary. Up to the 30th June the interest on the local overdraft charged by the banks amounted to £39,666 17s. 3d. and there was £4,190 5s. 4d. charged on account of a loan from the Treasury. This interest is apportioned between 1915-16 and 1916-17 Pools up to the 31st December last in the following manner: The whole of the interest up to the 31st December, 1916, was of course against the 1915-16 Pool, no other operations having taken place at that time on the 1916-17 Pool. During 1917 the operations on the bank accounts were analysed and the weekly balance of each Pool was ascertained and balanced off with the weekly total bank balance. Products were worked on these balances so that at the end of the year each Pool had a certain amount of products against it and the interest for the year was apportioned according to the proportion of the products for that year. At the 31st December it will be ascertained what credit balance was at the bank on account of the 1915-16 Pool and the 1915-16 Pool will receive credit interest on that balance with various alterations according to the way payments are made, as for example the fifth payment now current. The interest herein referred to is, of course, only the overdraft interest. The interest on the uncashed certificates is a direct charge against the pool concerned. The principle of the adjustment of bank interest is that one pool shall act as banker for all other pools, as it would be impossible at the time the various monies are being received to say definitely what pool they always belong to. Frequently it is months later before we can allot the moneys to a certain pool, and in connection with the separation of the 1916-17 and 1917-18 pools it will be some very considerable time before it is definitely decided as to the actual means of bringing these two pools to account, and until this is decided the bank interest cannot be definitely apportioned, neither of course can the monies that are received. As stated by the acting Prime Minister on several occasions recently, the transactions between the different pools are now becoming very intricate; but in all cases the whole of the information is being fully kept in the books, and as soon as any method is decided upon with regard to apportionment the apportionment can be accurately made. If, after one decision has been received at it was later decided to re-adjust matters, the readjustment could be made and could be repeated to any number of times desired, for the books are so kept that the figures which would form the basis for any decided method of apportionment are always available. The above statement of the separation of the pools seems to me to give a definite statement of the main features of the apportionment, but, of course, in actually making the apportionment details crop up continually which make it more intricate than may appear from the above; but the principles set out cover the various detailed complications that crop up, and I am most definitely of the opinion that the apportionment is on a fair basis and is accurately made. As stated previously, the apportionment may be made some time after the actual transactions take place, but this does not alter the fact of the accuracy, and in the nature of things cannot be avoided. For the information of the Commission, I hand in herewith a copy of the weekly bank statements which the banks render to the Scheme. These have been altered once or twice during the currency of the Scheme, but these forms I put in some few months ago give us a definite and sample form all the information regarding the makeup of the payments that we desire. I may say that there has never been an trouble in connection with them, and there has always been every cordiality manifested between the banks and the accounts branch of the Scheme.