OYSTEB CULTUBE COMSIISSlOJi—MINUTES OE EVIDENCE. 
43 
1467. Were they of large size? Tea ; nice, cuppy oystera. 
1468. Are tlierc iiiauy places on the Clyde or Tuross Eivers where artificial oyster beds niiglit be formed 
and where, it oysters were laid down, they would thrive? Yes 
L1G9. Are there any of these swamps that you think would be suitable for the formatiou of artificial beds ? 
Yes, plenty of them. 
1470. If these swamps were leased tor a sufficiently long term of years to encourage the lessees to lay out 
Ii***^V them, how many acres do you think should bo comprised in one lease ? About 5 acres I 
should think, 
Mr. G. Haiser. 
’24'n^.,1876. 
^ acres cultivated in that way would give a sufficiently good living for a family: 
alter the first three or four years. j » o j 
Yes, 
—-- ^--.. .w uu luas man i/wemy or tU] 
has to be spent on these places, and a man would get nothing out of thenn iii'lcss timc tlum that. 
14/d. And yon tlnnk a lease ot thirty yeai-s would not bo loo long? 1 do. 
1474. Supposing the Government should decide upon leasing these swamps in that wav, do you think 
there arc many persons ol auihciont cniorprise who would be willing toloi.se them, and to go into the 
business r Oh yes. 
im Tliero are a great many of tho,se swamps about the Tuross ]{ivcr a.i.l tlio otlier localities you have 
mentioned, are there not ? les, a great many about the Tuross, aud a great many about the Clyde liivcr, 
as well as all the rivers I have named. o . j ? 
1476. Are these swamps pretty much of a black clay soil ? Yes, black clay. 
1477. Have you any idea of the depth of that soil ? It is very deej) ' 
1478. But still not so deep hut that a bottom could he formed by laying down shells ami stones, or other 
material; there would be no difficulty in doing that ? 
1479. Ha.s any person as far as you are aware, attempted to make oyster farms in your jiart of the couu- 
1 t'^ench into my ground, hut I was afraid of hei^^ iulerfcrcd with. 
1480. By whom ? Mr. Gibbins. ® 
1481. Then you have some land down there ? Yes. 
1482. And you think it is suitable for the cultivation of oysters? Yes 
1483. And the only ditficulh^ is the digging a trench to allow the salt water to get to your ground ? No. 
there is no difiicu ty about the trench, but Mr Templeton, a neighbour of mine, laid down some oysters 
on his land, and the lessee, 3Ir. Gibbins, claimed them as his propeil.y 
1484. Do you think that if these rivers, the Tuross aud the Clyde’ \v4rc closed for a year 
improve ? Of course they would get larger. 
1485. They were closed for some time, were they not ? No. 
148G. Not the Tuross Eiver ? No. _ I always found that the oysters will grow best the more you 
g'-o'v very thick, and when they are separated they have more room to grow. 
1487. AVhen do the oysters spawn on the Clyde ? Generally between January aud February 
1488. Do they spaini more iii January and February than in other mouths ? Yes ' 
1489. Then you would say that January and February arc the spawning mouths oii (ho Clyde P Y"cs 
1490. Do they spawn during the same months on the Tuross ? That depends upon how tho beds are 
situated. It the morning sun plays upon them they spawn much sooner than they do in beds which r 
shaded and do not get the sun till mid-day. 
1491. But, generally speaking, the spawning time is the same on the Tuross? 
little later. 
1192. Do you think that oysters spawn at the same time thoiigliout the C'olony ? 
1493. Mr. FarnrlL] You say that you have been dredging ovsters some twenty years a^^-o i es 
1494. From what rivers? From the I’uross, the Clyde, Duniss Lake, Tomago.aml Cullemlulla. 
Did you dredge these oysters for the market? Yes. 
How many men did you employ? .Sometimes five or six, sometimes less, 
flow many years were you di-edging in this way ? About fourteen years at all events. 
You were dredging the natural beds? Yes, in deep water. 
Did you over lay down^ young oysters on these natural beds ? No, not on the natural beds. 
en ? 
hero 
the beds would 
work 
ire 
Yes, about the same, or a 
1 do. 
nty years ago ? 
1495. 
1496. 
1497. 
1498. 
1499. 
1500. 
No; when 
jjiu. uvy uu tiifBu luiLurai Dcus T x> 0 , iiot Oil tlic iiatural hcds 
Tlicii did you dredge them from the natural beds and put them elsewhere to grow and fatter 
dieii the market was glutted I would dredge them and lay thorn down on any suilablo place wlie 
cultivation of oysters? 
my suilablo pin 
No. Sometimes I laid down 
Perhaps a couple of 
1 could fake them up easily for the market. 
1501. Then you have never done anything in the 
small stuff, but 1 did not make a pi*actice.of it, 
1502. How old were the oysters you laid down ? About twelve months old. 
1503. ■ How many did you lay down at a time ? That is more than 1 can remember, 
bags of culled oysters. 
1504. Then you used to cull the small oysters from those you dredged from the natural beds, and then 
lay them down ? Yes. 
1505. Where did you lay them ? On a shingly bcacli. 
1506. AVhat would the culling amount to ? About a couple of liags. 
1507. A couple of bags per day? Y^es, every evening tliat 1 had been dredging. 
1508. AYhat was tho extent of the beach ? There was a frontage of about half a mile. 
1509. By what width ? About 10 feet. 
1510. Did you occupy the whole of the ground wdth these culled oysters? No ; w^e had an understand¬ 
ing amongst ourselves that w'e should not interfere witli each other. 
1511. How many persons w'ore there, besides yourself, wdio made use of the beach ? I should 
would 1)0 fifteen or twenty in different places. Of course we kept them sepamte. 
1512. Now', do you know that at any one time this beach was ever strew'cd with oysters that liad boon 
culled? No, sir. 
1513. How long did you allow the oysters to remain there? 
market. 
say there 
Until such time as I required them for the 
1514. 1 want some definite inforipatiop as to the time you left them there? 
I can only make a guece. 
1515. 
