6738. By the CHAIRMAN : Was that stack in new South Wales put into a shed with a temporary roof ? —It was nearly all covered with tarpaulins. It was put in thoroughly dry.

6739. By Mr. HARRISON : What were the climatic conditions up there ? —Quite dry.

6740. It was not wetted at all ? —No.

6741. Those would be ideal conditions ? —Certainly.

6742. What were the climatic conditions at Warragul in Gippsland ? —Moist.

6743. Have you had experience of wheat storage in any part of Western Australia except Bunbury ? —Yes, I have been right through the State.

6744. Have you noticed weevil in any other part of the State ? —Yes, as bad as Quairading as at any other part.

6745. Was that stack at Quairading dry from the time it left the harvester ? —No; it had a lot of moisture through bad dunnage.

6746. Then the whole crux of the business is in keeping the wheat dry ? —That is the whole point. Keep the wheat dry and keep the dunnage off the ground a foot, and make that dunnage so that the wheat cannot get down through it, and the wheat will keep indefinitely if the bags are good.

6747. The moisture affects the jutes also ? —Yes. The life of a jute is not nearly as long, being subjected to moisture. There is a lot of stiffening in the jutes of to-day, and that gets washed out.

6748. What kind of roof would you suggest ? —The uprights ought to be built in the stack. Put in the carriers at every 14-bag section. The stack should be roofed as you go along. Again, never put on a roof unless you give it a 2ft. projection right round.

6749. If a stack is thoroughly covered there would not be so much cost for maintenance ? —No. One inspector could attend to pretty well the whole lot. Of course that is for temporary stacks. It is a cheaper roof, because no holding down wires are required.

6750. By the CHAIRMAN : You have had a good deal of experience in this State ? —Not in this State, but in Australia, yes. I was employed by Darling's and by Dalgety's over in Victoria.

6751. What is your opinion of the proposition to erect sheds at sidings, and put the wheat in direct instead of sending it to depôt ? —You know pretty well what the local mills grist. Such should never be sent to depôt. It is as safe there as in the depôt, and it saves double handling and avoids the danger of wetting in transit. A great deal of trouble has been caused through so many agents being at small sidings, in consequence of which they will take anything. At Korrelocking a farmer had 3,000 bags of wheat which he brought to me. I was acting for Darling, and I rejected the wheat as being below f.a.q. He simply took his load to a rival firm and they accepted the whole lot. At least 2,000 bags of that wheat should have been docked 4d. a bushel for barley. I have seen scores of similar cases. I believe in the zone system, under which the agents would take greater care. Another thing you require is clean sites. On one of the sites here there was previously two feet of old wheat which had not been cleaned.

6752. By Mr. BROWN : How much does Forrest take from you ? —Eight hundred bags per week.

6753. Is he working three shifts ? —Yes.

6754. Where does his surplus flour go ? —To Perth. He is gristing for the Imperial Government.

6755. Is most of his offal sold locally ? —I have not seen a great deal of it trucked away to Perth.

6756. By Hon. J. F. ALLEN : Have you seen his flour sent away ? —Yes.

6757. By Mr. BROWN : What staff have you caretaking ? —Three permanent men. The award is 2s. per hour for lumping. I pay them 1s. 9d. per hour right through all round for lumping and general work.

6758. Who appointed you to your present position ? —The Wheat Scheme, through Mr. Keys.

(The witness retired.)

—————————————

ROBERT FORREST, Miller, Bunbury, sworn and examined :

6759. By the CHAIRMAN : We have been informed that you are under conditions different from those of most of the millers ? —Yes.

6760. Most of them are on the gristing charge ? —That is so.

6761. What system is adopted in your mill ? —I take delivery of the wheat f.a.q. at 4s. 9d. per bushel. I grist that, and the Scheme takes over all the flour I can give them, and the settlements are made up every week. If there is a balance in their favour the cheque is sent; if the balance is in my favour it stands over till the following Monday. So far I have been treated fairly well because I have made clear to Mt. Watson the arrangements I am on, and so he does not give me anything but f.a.q. wheat.

6762. You do not grist weevily wheat at all ? —No. Of course there are weevils on the bags occasionally, but no very weevily wheat is sent to me.

6763. Do you sell flour to the local people ? —Yes. Any flour I hand over to the Scheme at the end of the week is taken from the wheat and the difference is made up in cash.

6764. They do not allow you any commission on the flour you sell ? —No. That is my own sale. The bran and pollard is mine, but it is sold at the prices fixed by the Federal Commissioner. The price of the flour is £10 15s.

6765. By Mr. BROWN : Are you selling local flour to local buyers at £10 15s. ? —Yes.

6766. And the Perth people are paying 5s. more ? —Mr. Rae pointed out to me that as long as I did not exced the price I could sell the flour at what I liked.

6767. But if you paid more for the wheat you would require more for the flour ? —Yes.

6768. By the CHAIRMAN : On this list bran is £4 12s. 6d. ? —Yes; the 2s. 6d. extra is put in with the same for cartage. All the offal is sold locally. We could not sell all the flour locally.

6769. What price does the Scheme pay for your flour ? —I get £10 18s. 6d. Fremantle. I pay the freights, amounting to 7s. 9d. or 8s.

6770. Then you are in a position similar to that you occupied before the Pool ? —As regards the prices, yes. The difference is that I buy the wheat from the Scheme instead of from the farmer.

6771. I suppose you have taken an interest in the stacking of the wheat here ? —I can see what is going on, but it does not do to say anything. This has all been stacked for over twelve months. The whole thing is in a nutshell —the stackers were inexperienced.

6772. There is a lot of weevily wheat in the Harbour Trusts shed. Can you tell us whether that shed was used for clean wheat in the first instance ? —I could not.

6773. Do you prefer the present system of the Scheme instead of the gristing charges the same as the other mills ? —It suits me better.

6774. Do you have much trouble with weevil in respect of the flour ? —No.

6775. Do you get any complaints from customers as to weevil in flour ? —No serious complaints.

6776. Mr. Piesse, of Katanning, said his customers complained of weevil in the flour, the weevils having got in on the railway trucks. You do not get anything of the sort ? —No; my trade is local.

6777. By Mr. BROWN : Has this price of £10 15s. for flour any discount ? —No; it is absolutely net. I do not always get cash, but my prices are all net. Some of the wheat in the stack over here got fright fully wet before being put in.

6778. By the CHAIRMAN : Is it your opinion that the most important factor in the handling of the wheat is the keeping of it dry ? —Absolutely.

6779. It has been suggested that sheds with a permanent roof should be built for the receiving of the wheat direct from the farmer, instead of sending it along to the depôt. That would preclude the possibility of its getting wet in transit ? —I should say it would be a very good system. Keep the wheat dry and it will keep in good condition a long time. It is the damp that brings the weevil.

(The witness retired.)

The Commission adjourned.