Fl.J-.G!'loraith, farmer, that I have returns here from my salesman for the years 1878,1879, 1880, and 1881. Now, inl880 titf'~:;:"faa3 . I bought as good seed oats as the eye <strong>of</strong> man ever looked upon at ls. 10d. a bushel, bags given in. They ·· were bought at public auction in this district. 50668. Hy lvlr. Lon,qmore.-Ancl ordinary oats at 1s. Gd.?-Yes, or less, 1s. 3d. 50669. By the Chainnan.-Were those colonial-grown'?- They were colonial-grown and by Mr. W. Grant in this district. Now I know the man that grew those must have grown them ut, a loss. 50670. That is after the duty was put on ?-It was the year after the duty wa~ put on, while the stores in Melbourne were glutted; they had not been cleared out <strong>of</strong> New Zealand oats. We did not participate in the benefit <strong>of</strong> the duties till the following year, because they shunted all their stuff into Melbourne, and the stores wero glutt.ecl, and that had to be worked <strong>of</strong>f before we got the advantage <strong>of</strong> it. In 1880 I · sold pease ~tt 2s. 2cl. a bushel, barley at ls. 7d.-Cape barley. At the end <strong>of</strong> the season they did rise to 5s. 2cl. for some English barley, but at the en,rly part <strong>of</strong> the season it was nbout 2s. 2d., and I sold later on at 4~. 6d. This account is from D. :Melville n,nd Company. In 1879, oats ranged from 3s. 2c1. to 4s. 2d.; in 1880, from 1s. 5~d. to 2s. 4d.; and in 1881 m\ts were 2s. 3!d. to 4s. I will give you the price <strong>of</strong> harlev also. In 1881 it went from 2s. 3.,!,d. to 3s. lld. 50671. What is it now ?-I sold it tl1is year, 400 or 500 bags, at 5s. 2d. I see by the papers l1ere the evidence <strong>of</strong> Mr. Clapp and other gentlemen before your Commission about oats. I sold him 795 bags <strong>of</strong>' oats at 3s. 2d. on Tuesday last ; they were a splendid sample <strong>of</strong> oats. 50672. Wlmt did he say in his evidence the price w~\S ; does that agree with his evidence ?-Yes, his evidence is fair enough as far as it goes ; but I see some evidence here from Mr. McKenzie, I think it is. He says the duty upon oats ought to be reduced ; he thought it should not be more than 6d. a bushel; at pre:;entit is 2s. tL cental. He had to buy New Zettland oats, which he dealt with in bond, exporting the oatmeal. Now, in that matter <strong>of</strong> oatmeal in bond, I believe that the Custom.s revenue <strong>of</strong> the colony has been "got at," to use a common expression, because they weigh in 40 lbs. <strong>of</strong> oats to the bushel ·am! they weigh out 40 lbs. <strong>of</strong> oatmeal, and they allow nothing for the debris, and the revenue is defrauded to that extent. 50673. By iYJ.r. Longm,ore.-Ancl the oatmeal is about only 20 lbs. to the bushel ?-They weigh in 40 lbs. and they weigh out 40 lbs. 50674. By the Chai1·nwn.-But you are not sure <strong>of</strong> that ?-I am pretty sure <strong>of</strong> it. 50675. You are only giving us a supposition ?-I have it from a gentleman who has pretty good knowledge. 50676. You cannot give second-hand evidence? -I ttm not a miller, <strong>of</strong> course. Now barley comes in 50 lbs. and goes out 40 lbs. in malt; but they should send out 50 lbs. in malt. As to malting in bond, I am decidedly opposed to 1t. 50677. Whn,t do you say <strong>of</strong> malt ?-Fifl,y lbs. comes in and 50 lbs. goes out. 50678. But there is nothing at all upon it ?-I believe they are doing it at the present time. They sell our good barley and shunt away the bad stuff. I wish to return to the oat question. I see th~tt some <strong>of</strong> the gentlemen here who gave evidence, I think it is Mr. Aitkin, said that our oats are not good enough to make oatmeal <strong>of</strong>, that the New Zealand oats are a much superior (l.rticle·to ours. 50679. For that purpose ?-For that purpose. 50680. Is that in accordance with your experience ?~In the great show <strong>of</strong> the world our oats took the premier position ~·t the Exhibition; and I see Mr. Gibson has given his evidence here, but he ha~ not said anything upon that point; but he has been in the trade for some thirty years, I think, and he told me himself that my oats grown in Lancefield (that he bought one day, through Donalcl Melville and Company, 400 or 500 bags, allCl he bougllt :Mr. J. ,J. Daly's, a neighbour <strong>of</strong> mine, whose oats took the premier position at the show) would give from 5 lbs. to 7 lbs. more ontmeal--thttt is oats from L(l.ncefield--than you could get from New Zealnncl; and he gave as his reason that ours was finer in the skin and there was less waste. It has been <strong>of</strong>ten said that we cannot grow oats for milling. That is :Mr. Gibson's evidence to myself, after having bought my oats and Mr. J. J. Daly's oats the same year. 506tsl. I think that is enough in relation to the question <strong>of</strong> oats. Now about the question <strong>of</strong> barley? -I would like to call yonr attention to this about oats. Mr. Derham: says, in his evidence, at present imported oats are worth from 2s. 6d. to 2~. Rd. in bond and tlmt ours are worth 3s. 4cl. I sold mine at 3s. 2d. "This was not," he was informed, "an oat-growing country." We can grow quite enough for our own people. 50682. Thi,; part <strong>of</strong> the country, we quite understand, is suitable for oats ?-Yes, and so is Kyneton, and eo is B[tllarat, and so is Gippsland. Anythiug south <strong>of</strong> the Dividing range is oat-growing country. 50683. As to barley,'[ understand that you are opposed to the removttl <strong>of</strong> the duty upon barley?- I am decidedly. · 50684. Are we producing as much barley in the colony as we require for our own purposes? I believe so, and we can produce any an1otmt, for, uorzh <strong>of</strong> the DiYidiug range, .as fine barley can be grown as anywhere in the world. 50685. See:ng that we have very nearly, if not quite, overtaken our own requirements, and shall shortly have a surplus to export, is there nny purpose to he served by keeping the duty any longer ?-I call that rather a leading question, but I will answer it. I say we can grow plenty <strong>of</strong> barley if the price is good enough, if they will give us, stty, 5s. a bushel. I do not care to see it higher, ancll would not like t:o see it lower; I would go in for a sliding scale. If barley gets above that, reduce the dnty. It is a pnying price to the farmer, (l.ncl a small price will not pay him. We can grow plenty <strong>of</strong> it if they will only give us the price. 50686. B;lj Jlit·. Longmm·e.-Is that malting barley ?-Yes, malting barley. I got 5s. 2d. this year. 50687. By the Clwirman.-You approve <strong>of</strong> a sliding scale ?-I approve <strong>of</strong> a sliding scale ; they do it <strong>of</strong>ten in letth1g farms where I CIHne from. I do not think they should go 11p to fa,mine prices. But I wish to give one <strong>of</strong> my re>t80ns for opposing malting in bond. 50688. I nnderstoocl that you were going to give the reason~ why you oppose the abolition <strong>of</strong> the duty ?-The abolitiun <strong>of</strong> the duty I think I have givcu a re£Lson against, that we can gww it ourselves. But in New Zeabntl they get much henvier crop.s than we do, and they are bound, a:,; ftn as I know <strong>of</strong> the colony, to break UIJ the land to put in English grasses, and they have no market ot their own, and they are bound to send it to Ylctoria. 1500
1501 50689. Are you opposed to the malting in bond ?-Yes., entirely. 50690. Upon what grounds ?-There are various grounds. Perhaps you might rule some <strong>of</strong> them out <strong>of</strong> onler, beea11Se I cannot give them out <strong>of</strong> my own actual knowledge. Bnt I can give this out <strong>of</strong> my o>l;n actual knowledge, that they can go and buy IL few thousand bags just when the farmers are rushing and bonnd to seml to market for want <strong>of</strong> money to pay for harvesting and threshing. 50691. Wbo do this ?-The maltsters and middlemen. 50692. Go where ?-To New Zealand and buy a few thousand- bags and be independent <strong>of</strong> the <strong>Victoria</strong>n farmer. 50693. How independent ?-They buy stuff to keep them going, and supposing they do happen to sell at a litt.le loss to their <strong>Victoria</strong>n customers, it enables them Go supply those <strong>Victoria</strong>n customers foe the time b9ing, and clown comes the <strong>Victoria</strong>n marl\ et. 50694. But they cannot supply the <strong>Victoria</strong>n customers without paying the duty fiTst ?-T admit th~ - 50695. !f the bmley had to pay duty before it eame into competition with you, what harm is done to the <strong>Victoria</strong>n grower ?-It enables them to mop up all the barley. They can get at i1 low price, antl they can send out an inferior barley as being malted in bond, and they sell the best here. 50696. But it would not do you harm to send out the inferior stuff-it goes to Sydney and Adelaide? -I consider it does us harm. 50697. Do you expect that you ean secure the sale in the Sydney and Adelaide marl, {;()nlinued, 12th lllay Isaa.
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