108 



HMVAI.-i "MMI->I"\ [OM At.Klfl I. II I.I . 



24 StpUmkr, 191 .] 



MB. WILLIAM EUWARH ATTENBOBOUGII. 





12.223. That u so, but there are 02 of those days 

 whirb are Sunday*, and you do not work your horses 

 <>n Mindsys, do you? Not always. 



12.224. You estimate that out of the 300 working 

 days you can only have your horses at work 200 days? 



Un" profitable work. 



12.225. That would not apply to the other part of 

 \.nir faim, the light land, would it? No, it only 

 applies io the heavy land. 



12,220. So that these figures, as I said, only apply 

 to the nr.ofcl expensive part of your land so far us 

 the wirk-ng of it is conceined? That is a maU<t: 

 of opinion 



13.227. Ifr. Ovtrman: This 180 acres that you have 

 referred to is very heavy land indeed, is it not? 

 Yes. 



12.228. There arc only certain days of the year upon 

 which you can possibly get your horses on to do it? 

 That is so. 



12.229. You keep very accurate accounts, do you 

 not? Yes. 



12.230. How is your valuation taken- is it taken 

 by yourself or by a valuer? By a valuer to whom 

 I paid 5 guineas. 



12.231. Did he value at market prices this year 

 or at cost? At cost. 



12.232. You show a balanco sheet every year? Yes. 



12.233. You do not pay income tax on double your 

 rent, I take it? No, I do not; I pay on my profits, 

 and my return has been' accepted by the Surveyor 

 ,i CUM. 



12,334. These estimates refer to the heavy part of 

 your land, and that only? Yes. 



12.235. They are taken as accurately as you can 

 take them from your books? As accurately as they 

 can possibly be taken. 



12.236. Mr. Batchelor: How do you enter your rent 

 against this portion of your land? Is it the average 

 rent of the farm or is it a higher figure or a lower 

 figure? It is a lower figure. Out of the 180 acres 

 it is actual on 130 acres and on the 50 acres it is an 

 apportioned rent to compare with the part of the 

 heavy land. 



12.237. I presume I may take it that your estab- 

 lishment charges, such as hedging and ditching and 

 unprofitable work in wet weather which, I see, you 

 enter at i'l an aere have been wrought out by the 

 from accurate details, and that in your opinion the 

 figure you give is as near as you can possibly get at 

 it? Yes. 



12.238. The same as regards your wear and tear of 

 implements and renewals? Yes. 



12.239. Yon had before you the actual details 

 before you put these figures in? Yes. I have the 

 bills here, if you would like to see them. 



12.240. Am I right in understanding that on those 

 180 acres of land which are wrought on this particular 

 system the only dung that is applied to any crop 

 is to the oat crop? That is so. 



12.241. And that the only artificial manure is 

 sulphate, of ammonia 1 cwt. to the second wheat 



-After seeds. 



12.242. Yen. You put the straw against the dung 

 in each case? Yet. 



12.243. Is the whole of the straw from these crops 

 made into the dung which is applied to the oat crop, 

 or where does it go? That is the whole of the dung 

 that is as near as it is possible to say. I do not 

 say there is not occasionally another acre or two put 

 on to something else, but that is as near as I can 

 possibly get a 



12,241. I notice, ami should like to emphasise this, 

 th.it you have never charged anything for interest on 

 ital or for management? Nothing whatever. 



12.245. So that these are bare actual ,-,,sts? Bare 

 bottom costs, as far as I can get at them. 



12.246. You have a note with regard to your seeds, 

 '. " Assuming %ntn\ quality and got well "? Yes. 



12.247. Was that made out before the hay harvest 

 was finished? No. after. 



12.248. " Assuming good quality and got well "-- 

 would that apply to the average item 1 G. ? Yes, 

 it was got uell thin year. 



12.249. It does appfy to the average 1 5s.? Yes. 



12.250. May I tnke it. an regards the yield* of wheat 



and oats which you give here, that now the harvest 

 is finished these yields are what you still consider 

 they will be? No. they will not be so much nothing 

 like it. 



12.251. What is that caused by? That I cannot 

 say. I have been through bad yields and good yields, 

 and if you want my opinion, 1 think that probably 

 one cause was the very wet spring and the dry 

 weather afterwards. Another cause is the decrease in 

 the fertility of the land, because it has not been any- 

 thing like so well farmed since 1914. 



12.252. In other words, you have taken more out 

 of the land than you have put into it? Yes, there 

 has been very little put in. 



12.253. So that with regard to the cost of the 1!H! 

 crops and the yields you give, these yields are ieall\ 

 higher than what you expect the 1919 crops to turn 

 out? Mich higher. These yields are what I con- 

 sider the average yi -Ids over a period of years. I 

 did not think thn'. it was fair to take the excessively 

 low yield this year and put it before this Commission 

 as an average yield. 



12.254. Still, we want it noted that, in your 

 opinion, the yields this year will be lower? Yes, some 

 yields will vary from two quarters an acre- up to five, 

 in my opinion. 



12.255. In the working days of your horses, which 

 you estimate at 200 for this particular year, would 

 the fact that there was a wet spring this year have 

 the effect of making the working days probably less 

 than usual? Yes, but the estimate of the working 

 days of the horses is taken over a number of years; 

 it will probably be under that this year. 



12,2.">i. Mr. Asliby: I am afraid I am merely a 

 novico with regard to fanning and I should like to 

 know how you arrive at an estimate of what land is 

 two horse land or three horse land or four burse 

 land?- -If you put yourself in the place of the horse 

 you would soon find out. 



J2.2">7. Have you found nut? Yes. 



12,2oS. Tell me how you find out r The difference 

 between two and threo horse land!' 



12.259. Yes. Do you put two horses <m to ploughing 

 three horse land? No, you would kill them within a 

 very short time if you did. 



12.260. Do you assess it by the number of horses it 

 takes you to plough land the first time and the 

 second time or how? I know what you arc getting 

 at. You are referring to the four horses in breaking 

 up the fallows. Probably that is what you are think- 

 ing of. We plough 7 inches deep and it takes 4 horses 

 to plough the first time. On the heavy land according 

 to the. season, it might possibly take three horses 

 the second time and then two, but I have based this 

 on two for ploughing after the first. 



12.261. Will you look at your horse ration for a 

 moment. It is a pretty good horse ration for the 

 winter period, is it not? I do not call it so; it is 

 what we have given them. 



12.262. What sort of horses are they? Heavy cart 

 horses. 



12.263. What sort ol weight 16 cwts. each? I am 

 no judge ; possibly if you &ay so. 



12.264. It is a heavy ration is it not I- It is the 

 ration I use; I cannot tell you whether it is a heavy 

 ration or a light one. 



12.265. You base this statement on records, do you 

 laiuly; my corn is weighed out. 



12.266. Would it not be rather more convincing 

 as a record if yon put. down the total quantity of oats 

 and seed and hay used and the- total quantity of bran 



That is exactly what I have based that esti- 

 mate on. 



12.267. Would one iiMiidh find that if one fed 

 a certain quantity or knew the actual total quantities 

 fed it divided into an exact number of Ibs. ? 1 



do not (|llite follow 



12.268. Supposing you fed a ton of hay over a 

 in number of days in the winter and a certain 



numbers of quarters of oats over a certain number 

 of days and divided the quantities by the days would 

 they always divide exactly into Ibs.:' Mo y<m always 

 eat half a pound of beef steak for your dinner, or 

 do you vary it? 



