ROTAL COMMISSION ON AOBIC0LTTKK. 



1919.] 



MB. M. D. HAXMSTKK. 1 - I 



[Conlinufd. 



6966. What ii your experience with regard to the 

 efficiency of the men you have to-day as compared 

 with pre-war efficiency ? They are not BO good. 



6889. Do you find that efficiency U falling off in th> 

 older or in the younger men? In the younger men 

 chiefly. 



6900. What is it due to indifference or what? I 

 think that during the war the younger men who 

 were exempted, and who could, of course, command 

 pretty nearly what they liked in the way of wages, 

 are somewhat suffering from the effects of K..,L.-U 

 head which the older men do not suffer from I mean 

 men from 46 to 60 and 55. They alto were getting 

 rery much higher wages and could get almost any 

 place they liked during the war, but they did not 

 suffer from the swollen head that one would expect 

 a youngster to suffer from when he gets double ih.- 

 **ges he has ever had in the past. 



6991. Mr. Lang ford : You said just now that dairy 

 farmers were buffering because milk prices were not 

 fixed and made known to them much earlier than 

 they hare been? Yes. 



5999. Is that your opinion? Yes. 



6993. Do you think the milk producer would have 

 been better off if this coming winter's price had Keen 

 fixed in May last? No; that is going a very long 

 way ahead. I should suggest by the beginning or 

 the middle of August tie farmer ought to know 

 where he U so that if he does not like his price 

 he can get out in September. 



6994. In the middle of August cake was selling at 

 a yery much lower price than it is to-day, was it 

 not? No, I should say there was not very much 

 difference, was there-' 



6995. Yes, a considerable difference. You say if 

 the prices had been fixed earlier it would have given 

 greater confidence? Yes. 



6990. Mr. Cautlev seemed to agree with you. I 

 should not regard tie middle of August as being very 



early; I thought you meant months back? No. I 



think farmers like to know by the beginning of 

 August but I think the middle of August in the 

 latest, because if they are going to sell or change 

 their operation.* they ought to know by then. 



6997. What difference would their knowing by the 

 1st August make to the winter supply of milk"? It 

 would make this difference: assuming an adequate 

 price had been fixed which would keep the farmer 

 in, it would have induced a number of farmers \> ho 

 had already decided to go out because of the doubt- 

 fulness of the position to stay in. 



I. I suggedt to you that it would not augment 

 tie supply of cows? You would not split one cow 

 into two, but yon would keep more alive. 



6999. Cows which were giving milk or approaching 

 the stage of giving milk at the beginning of August 

 would be kept for the sake of their milk in any case? 

 -No. There are many cows four or five months gone 

 in calf in meaty condition that go into the market. 

 although wo know it is again* the regulations. 



6000. I am sorry to learn that. I tiought thai 

 practice was done away with, and I am sorry ti 

 think that milk producers would resort to t:i 



of that kind to get rid of their cows? I do not sav 

 is done oy the milk producers. A man Mild hi, 

 store cows and a certain type of dealer comes in 

 and buy* anything that is meaty and it goes out of 

 the district. 



6001. I suggest to you tie later the prices fixed. 

 Particularly in the cade of milk, the better it is for 

 th farmer? Yes, if he has confidence. 



eooa. BecauM if tie prioa had be*n fixed in June 

 >r July farmers did not then know how scarce root* 

 1 tx> during the ensuing season t No. 



600S. They also did not know that hay would be 

 sorai up u, pr je and likely to go to the high price 

 that u will go to and they also did not know that 

 cak would rum in pnro from 19 a ton to 26 10s 

 K it i to-day? That is so. 



6004 TWrfore, I think th milk producer is 

 infinitely Wter off if tho price, are fixed later than 



7 '* '" rlier?-Y, if he has confidence. 



06. I agree. Mr. Green put n question to w... 

 I a OerUin farmer who had only got 100 30 



years ago and who died during the war, leaving no 

 less than 5,000 a huge fortune for a farmer 1 am 

 sure you will agree? Yes. 



OOUti. Mr. Green also put to you that that man had 

 four or five sons whom he had placed out in farms 

 of their own. I suggest to you that a farmer who 

 has four or five sons is infinitely bettor off than a 

 farmer who has no family to assist him? That is so; 

 h>- has no labour bill to pay. 



6007. I suggest to you that a son working on a farm 

 is worth as much to the farmer as a labourer at any 

 rate? More. 



6008. He does not always want to leave off work 

 after 8 hours? No. I always consider that a work- 

 ing fanner's son is worth at least one and a half 

 any paid man however good he is. 



6009. I put it to you that if a farmer has five hard 

 working and willing sons to assist him each of them 

 is north 3 a week to him anyhow? Yea, on present 

 wages. 



6010. We are speaking of the present? Certainly. 



6011. If that is so the wages need not go out and 

 as a matter of fact do not go out to those sons weekly ? 

 No. 



6012. The father's capital is, therefore, increasing 

 wed: by week and sometimes year by year and he 

 has the use of it until he sets one of those boys up 

 in farming. Is not that so? Yes. 



Mi. (iri'cn: My point was that this farmer made 

 his money apparently during the 30 years of agri- 

 cultural depression. "The sons could only have cot 

 3 a week from say 1917. 



6013. Mr. Longford : We are speaking of the future 

 now, hut if the Chairman will allow me to go int > 

 the past I would liko to do that with regard to the 



? ue* t ion of a farmer with a number of working sons, 

 submit to you that in the agricultural years of de- 

 pression those farmers who did not go into the 

 Bankruptcy Court were farmers who had large 

 families to assist them and who, therefore, had not 

 large wages bills to meet each Saturday night? Yes. 

 <)! I. If that was useful to the farmer in the past 

 it will be increasingly useful-to him now that wages 

 have gone up I will not say too much, but to a con- 

 siderable figure? Yes. 



6015. When a father sets up two or three sons in 

 farms he sets them up on money that has been saved 

 in consequence of no wages having had to go out? 



i es. 



6016. A farmer with a big family is. therefore, 

 considerably better off than & farmer who has no 

 family ."Undoubtedly. 



6017. If I had not been one of a family of 13 and 

 all hard working I certainly should not have been 

 here to-day I mean I should not have been in a 

 position which enable? me to gain the knowledge I 

 have of farming. That is the point I want to bring 

 out. 



6018. Mr. Lennard: You said in answer to Mr 

 Dallas that you did not think it wise to keep land such 



i No. 1 land in tillage. Have you the same opinion 

 about much of the heavy clay land in Sussex about 

 which Mr. Cautley questioned you? Yes, I have. i(h 

 this proviso, that if you wish to produce anything like 

 the proportion of wheat that we need in England von 

 have got to keep it in cultivation. If you are go'ing 

 to import wheat by all means let it go out of cultiva- 

 tion. 



6019. If we are to feed ourselves? If we are to feed 

 ourselves this land must bo kept in cultivation, hut 



f we nre to run the risk of importing our food stuffs 



think this land should go out of cultivation. 



6030. Your figure of nn 80s. guarantee is simply a 



igurc you think necesnry if , nre to produce all 



the wheat Matured to feed our population ? It Is a 



figure which I him- heard from various farmers that 



will keep them still growing eorn. I think thev will 



try and grow corn at SO*. It is so very much more 



than they over got in prewar d:ns that thev think 



th,.v enn do it whether thev will l, o nble to is another 



matter, but I think they will go on doing it. 



6021. They will continue cultivating land which it 

 onlv IK- worth while, cultivating if we were 

 going in for th<- policy of feeding our population on 

 home produce? Yes, 



