Wheat (1) - Part 3

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shown on the certificate has to be delivered at the terminal elevator, and as the Government will probably be running that elevator, they will find themselves in difficulties if they allow the private people to run the country elevators, because the man grading in the interior might grade in favour of the farmer. 4404. Then, if the country elevator was controlled by the Farmer's Co-operative Society you, as a wheat buyer, would be dubious about buying a certificate?—Yes, rather. 4405. By Mr. HARRISON: Suppose the Co-operative Society did their own exporting?—Then there would be nobody else to export. 4406. Then they would have to make good according to valuation of their own servants at the farmer to do it all through the Co-operative Society and there would be no competition for his wheat. Another matter: Mr Murray expressed the opinion that strikes at the receiving depots were caused by our not allowing the farmer's wheat to be trucked ex stack, because we insisted upon trucking direct. During the strikes we were in communication with the Farmers and Settler's Association, who had assured us that they could get plenty of farmers to take on the work. However, the replies of the farmers were disappointing. Some farmers told us that they were not going to backleg. The Farmers and Settler's Association desired us to pay the fares of the farmers to come down and handle their own wheat at the schedule rate of wages. Mr Greig, M.L.C., who was acting secretary of the Farmers and Settler's Association at the time, said that he would not do anything further in the matter, if we would not pay the farmers fares, and asked me what we would do then. I said that we would go along as we were going. I mention this merely that the Commission might realised that the farmers are not quite so interested in looking after their own goods as some people think. 4407. By the CHAIRMAN: Mr Murray, remarking that it was all very well to say that a man was earning 16s. a day, declared that there were hours during the day when the man could not do any work at all?—He was then referring to labour at country sidings. 4408. He went on to say he had no doubt that was one of the causes of the strike the men at all the depots?—At the time of the strike the men at all the depots except Geraldton were being fully employed. We had wheat on demurrage for a day or two prior to the strike. 4409. Strikes as a rule are not brought about on the spur of the moment?—The men first went on strike at Midland Junction. They took motor cars from there and went to Spencer's Brook, where they also got the men out on strike. The strike then spread to Narrogin. The first reason given for the strike at Midland Junction was that we were employing some national workers there, and that the men would not work with them. Later on in the day the officer in charge informed me by telephone that they wanted 2s. 6d. an hour. Later on still I was told that the reason for the strike was that the men were not earning full money on account of broken time. 4410. You have noticed that Mr Murray said the strike was good thing for the Westralian Farmers?—We would not allow them to double handle the wheat at the expense of the farmers. Mr. Murray stated that as the men were not continuously employed, and were frequently standing about for an hour or two when they were not as a rule paid. This refers to men working country stacks. I have never known these men to be paid an hourly rate. As a rule, they are paid either a contract rate, or a weekly or daily wage. The men would not work under that system. 4411. I will read you the answer to question 2964 (evidence read) ?—I cannot see the connection between Mr. Murray's remarks. He says that the men were going on strike because we would not let them truck direct. Then he says the strike saved the situation, because the men put the wheat into stacks. 4412. Mr Murray infers that the trucks were available but that no wheat was coming in?—How did that save the situation? 4413. Because the men were idle, although they had wheat there which they could truck?—We would not permit them to truck it even after the strike, until very much later on in the season when the deliveries had eased off. I cannot see how the strike saved the situation. 4414. By Mr HARRISON: The farmers might not have been able to cart their wheat. There was wheat in the stacks and empty trucks at the siding. Your regulation would not allow them to truck from the stacks, and as no wheat was coming in these men would idle?—We still did not allow them to put wheat into the trucks from the stack. In January or February all the wheat sent in to the depots should come direct ex farmer's wagon. The railways can bring all that we can handle. The trucks can stand at country sidings for five or six days. It is better for them stand empty if there is no farmer's wheat coming in, because if wheat were put into trucks it might become wet. Take the case isolated sidings where there are only two trains a week. Ten trucks might be dropped at one of these places on Monday. It would be no advantage to have these trucks loaded up before the following Thursday, When the next train would come along. But the local agent might start to load the trucks on the Monday, and when the farmers brought their wheat in on the following day there might be no accommodation left for it in the trucks. The wheat would then have to be transferred from the wagons into the stack instead of into the trucks. There is ample wheat coming in direct from the farmers in January and February to keep the trucks going. 4415. Providing the rains do not upset the conditions?—It is very rare to have rains so bad that it is impossible to cart in the summer time. This regulation confers no advantage on the Scheme officials, but the more wheat that is trucked direct from the wagon the money is saved to the farmer. 4416.They wanted to truck direct?—No; they wanted to take it from the farmer and put it into the stack, and then, in order to get more commission, take it out of the stack and put it into the truck. In that way they would get a bigger profit on the handling. 4417. Would there not be more profit in loading direct from the farmer's wagon?—No. It is more profitable to take the wheat from the wagon and put it into the stack and then load the truck from the stack, and receive 1d. per bushel for it, than to take it from the farmer's wagon and only get a half-penny per bushel for it. When you have men on a daily wages you naturally want to get as much commission as possible. It is therefore better to do the double handling and get more commission. 4418. By the CHAIRMAN: You say that owing to the train service in the country districts the fact of the trucks being kept waiting makes no difference to the Scheme?—None. 4419. By Mr HARRISON: It was not at the request of the Westralian Farmers that it was decided that trucking should be taken from certain sidings and stacking continued at certain stations?—No. Early in the season I told the Westralian Farmers that if at certain sidings there was a scarcity of stacking space, they could concentrate the whole of the available truck supply from round about those sidings on that particular siding, and that at adjacent sidings, where there might be plenty of stacking space, they might stack. 4420 That emanated from the Scheme, and not from the Westralian Farmers?—The Westralian Farmers might have mentioned it to me, but it was long prior to the instructions that they should truck direct. I think it came up over the site at Badjaling. A great deal has been said about dual control. I will just set out the services as they are. The acquiring of the wheat this season was done by the Westralian Farmers. The storing and shipping of wheat was done by Dalgety & Co. The local sales to mills, or sales of wheat under the gristing arrangement, are made by the Scheme, or the wheat is supplied under the Scheme's instructions. Work in connection with the Imperial Government Commission, such as reports on weevils, earmarking stacks, looking after the Imperial Government's flour, and so on, was done by the Scheme. Construction of sheds has been done by the