dairying again if I could. We have plenty of grass and plenty of water. I intend to go in for sheep or cattle, for cattle preferably in the meantime. If the Government supplied sheep on extended terms, I could make my farm pay. We must have stock to make a profit. Wheat will just keep a man down low. I can carry 500 sheep at the present time. There is also no poison here. With sheep there is less work than with cattle. I used to milk 40 to 50 cows every morning, but you get sick of it in time. With dairying you get your money coming in frequently, but when you are only wheat growing you get your cheque only once a year. Nowadays we have to get up very early to water the pigs and the cows before getting into the field, and I am generally at work from dawn till 10 o'clock at night. I have tried to get stock through the National Bank. I think there would be a good thing in it if a man had 10 good cows, and certainly this is the best grass growing district in Western Australia, and we ought to be able to make a large quantity of ensilage. Everyone came out here with hope, but we seem to be losing it, and we have struggled on during the best years of our lives and our wives are getting tired of the hard living. Nevertheless, I would rather make a start here than in Victoria, although my wife is getting tired of it. I am much interested to know whether the farmers' wives will have special concessions on the railways to the seaside. The time that would suit them best would be between the 1st February and the end of March. Harvest would be over then, The women up here get worn out with the life. I and my family have been living in a camp since we came here. The women sewed the bags to put around the house, and the men put in the uprights round which the bagging is stretched. The best kind of house for the district is one made of batts, with the verandah all round. They are cool in summer and warm in winter, and there is no danger of fire. The women would be quite satisfied with that, in place of the bagging or hessian and iron roof. At times we have had to get up in the middle of the night when the storms were on, dress in the dark, and try to keep ourselves dry. When we came here first we thought that clearing was the most important thing to do, and neglected to give attention to a better home. The absence of medical attendance is very severely felt at times here. For instance, I had to travel 47 miles to see a doctor some time back, and certainly we should have some consideration in this direction, because we are a valuable asset to the State. Last year I paid £50 in freight to the Railway Department. If you compare that outlay with what the city residents contribute to the railways, you will see a vast difference. The farmer is more valuable to the State than the city man. The freights are high, and fares are going up, and the workmen in Perth are calling for cheap bread. Most of us were led to believe that farming here could be carried out in a slipshod manner, and that idea has done a great deal of harm. If the Minister has issued instructions that every man should work on a system of fallow every farmer to-day would not be so deeply in debt.

6216. The present Government are starting on those lines?—They were in power at the time that I am speaking of. However, once a farmer gets well started he will be able to jog along. If a man has a farm suitable for mixed farming he should not be restricted, as he now practically is, to growing wheat only. With sheep and cattle in addition to wheat he could make a good profit. What is the life here; what is the good of living? It is a wonder we stick to it. The average rainfall here is about 15 inches, and the land in West Wongan Hills is equal to the better class land in Victoria, and is more easily cleared. I know farmers who are 25 miles out growing wheat. What is the good of that? It is stock that is wanted, and carting for 12 miles even is more than a fair day's work for a team. It is a good idea having inspectors to see that everything is being carried out properly. (The witness retired.)