UOYAI. t MMMl.sM.iN 'N Ac. UK 1 1. 1 1 UK. 







SIR DANIEL HALL, K.C.U., F.B.8. 



do tny that you must offer some security to the 

 fanner, in this reconstruction time in particular, 

 when we are trying to get men to start improved 

 method* ami to "have courage in dealing with their 

 land and t embark more capital in it and, mind 

 you, we are enormously in want of more capital 

 in farming at the present time. None of that 

 i>xtra capital will come, and nono.of the extra enter- 

 prise will be entered upon without confidence and a 

 idling of Mvurity. Therefore wo say, even if our 

 guarantees arc not really needed, because we have 

 reasons to believe that the course of prices will in 

 itself be such as to make farming remunerative, let 

 IK have these guarantees in order to got the con- 

 fidence of the operators. I do not believe myself 

 that farming can be permanently prosperous if it 

 has to live on tlu> prices that the State guarantees 

 to it. It can only be permanently prosperous on the 

 prices that it ran mako in the open market; but for 

 all that. Uie existent* of the guarantees may be of 

 great assistance to the industry and may be of 

 enormous assistance in starting it up at the present 

 time. 



l'J7. Do you know of any other industry where 

 good wages and good conditions prevail that has 

 suffered in any way ns the result of those, good wages 

 and good conditions? No. I am entirely a believer 

 in good wages. 



Would you favour a policy of .so many workers 

 being employed to tin- aero, taking into consideration. 

 of course, the nature of the soil? You mean of 

 laying down a condition on the occupier of the, soil 

 that he must employ so many people? 



4i!9. Yes, according to the nature of tli.v soil?---. \nrl 

 suppose he said he would not. what then? 



4;ft). I have aske<l your opinion?--! want to see 

 what follows. Y'ou can lay down this condition as 

 one of the conditions of holding the land. Supposing 

 the man says: " I cannot do it. You have told me 

 to employ four men. I can only take three " : what 

 would vou do with him!' 



4.U. If you will allow me, that question rather 

 leads up to my next, which was: Do you think with 

 proper application we can produce Millicient cereals 

 in this country to meet our own re(|uireii;-iitsr The 

 last question and that bear o-ie on ihe other? I do 

 not think we could. 1 have calculated this question 

 out at length at times. I know we. could in a sense, 

 and it is humanly possible to do so; but I rather 

 doubt, in fact, 1 more than doubt, that we can do 

 liin 10 or 16 years, or that \\e can do it 

 economically with the ma'crial we have at our 

 disposal. 



432. But, of course, you would agree that the 

 Government could take powers to see that land was 

 cultivated as it does now through its county 

 agricultural committees? Yes; we can take our 

 jK.ners lull we cannot find the men. It you will 

 guarantee me an unlimited supply of Mr. Overmans, I 

 will cultivate the country for you as you want it 

 cultivated, and grow your requirement of cereals ; 

 hut if you ask me as an administrator to turn this 

 or that farmer out if he will not employ a sufficient 

 number of men. 1 simply say that we would soon come 

 to a deadlock, because I have not the men to put in 

 their place. 



433. 1 do not think it is the experience, at UM 

 present moment that the men cannot be found? 

 I have been looking for farm managers of late, 

 because we are rapidly extending the area that is 

 being cultivated by the Board; hut they are not so 

 very abundant, men to whom you will entrust the 

 farming of a couple of thousand acres of land with 

 confidence. They have to be grown. 



434. Y'ou would agree that the county executive 

 committees did good work in that direction in seeing 

 that the land was properly cultivated? -First rate. 

 They have been a most stimulating and valuable 

 influence. 



435. And it would be a good thing to continue that 

 work? Yes. 



Chairman: Thank you very much, Sir Daniel, for 

 your most valuable evidence. 



(The Witnesi withdrew.) 



