Minutes of Evidence p.1401-1509 - Parliament of Victoria

1417
49922. What pTopoTtion does that beaT to the number in :Melbourne and suburbs ?-I suppose that
is to say not cab proprietoTs ?
49923. Does any one belong to the union beside cab proprietors ?-Yes, drivers belong to the union;
there are 942 cabowners. ·
49924. And how many drivers ?-I could not say. I should think perhaps 1,000 drivers. I am told
there are I, 700 and oclu.
49925. That is 2,600 altogether ?-Yes.
49926. ~L\.nd in the union there are how many ?-Seven hundred and sixty-four.
49927. You were appointed at an ordinary meeting of the union ?-I have received a letter. I was
chairman of the union at the time I waited as a deputation upon you, and through that I received this notice
from the Commission.
49928. Then you had not been appointed by the union to come here ?-No, I could not be, for this was
only sent last night, and I am here to-day, so no appointment from any person could have taken place. I was
appointed formerly, months ago.
49929. Y on were appointed by the union some months ago?-Ye11.
49930. And only got your notice to attend last night?-Yes.
49931. When you were appointed, was it an ordinary meeting of the union ?-Yes, I was chairman of
the meeting.
49932. So when you speak here to-clay you give the views of the union upon the question?-Yes.
49933. What have you to say as a representative of the union upon the duty upon grain ?-As far as
the union ancl the whole body of cabs is concern!3d, the duty upon grain is very oppressive to us, inasmuch as
we are a body of men that are very heavily taxed by the corporations.
49934. Do not go into that, we have nothing to do with it here ?-I only want to point out to you where
it falls heavily upon us. Upon bakers, butchers, and grocers, and those people that purchase their commodity
from merchants, it does not press so heavily, because they can raise their commodities according to the price of
the market. Now, we as a body of men, cannot raise our fares.
49935. Let me ask can a baker raise the price o:i' his loaf if his horse feed is higher ?-Yes, be
can.
49936. No, surely he cannot?-Yes, of course it is a question of supply and demand.
4:9937. the :flour out of which he makes his bread rises in price, then he can mise the price of
bread ?-Yes, certainly, that is what I am stating, that is his commodity.
'
49938. You keep your horse to do your business with, do not you ?-Yes.
4:9939. And the baker keeps a horse to do his business, does not be?-Yes.
49940. If the price of horw feed rises and the baker has to pay a few shillings a week more for the
feed of his horse, he does not raise the price of his loaf because of that, does he ?-No, I suppose not.
49941. If the price of flour rises ?-Then he rises; but if the price of horse feed rises, we cannot rise
our fares.
49942. Neither can he rise the price of his bread ?-He might, or he might not. I think he might;
but we cannot increase, because by law we are only allowed to charge a certain fare. For instance, if flour
is £20 a ton in the market, a baker can raise his loaf in proportion; but if maize goes up 10s. a bushel, the
cabman cannot raise his fare, be is tied clown by law. We, as a body of men, do not go in for the wholesale
taking off of all duties right off from maize, we wish the farmer to live as well as the cabman; but we consider
that paying 2s. a cen~al on maize is too much, for tl1e farmer cannot produce it here in sufficient
quantity to give to the cabman if he wanted it.
49943. 1Vhat do you propose-a reduction to one-half ?-A reduction to one-half or the whole of
the duty taken off maize, because maize is a thing that cannot he well produced here except in Gippsland,
and the Gippsland maize is of not so good a quality as the Sydney maize, and it is not so hard or so meally
in substance.
49944. And the duty upon oats should be reduced the same ?-Certainly; only the duty upon maize
might be taken off entirely, and still keep the duty upon oats. I cannot see why the farmer asks for a duty
upon ma1ze whrm he cannot produce the article here. ·
49945. That raises the whole question. They say that they can ?~All I can say is that they do
not. I am as strong a protectionist as ::\fr. Mirams is, but I cannot deal in inconsistencies at any time. I
do not think that things that cannot be produced here we should pay over our noses for.
49946. Your evidence is that you wish the duty upon oats to be reduced one-half, and the duty upon
maize to be reduced the whole if possible, and, if not, you will be satisfied with half being taken off?-We
shall be satisfied with anything we can get.
49947. Anything further to aucl ?-Nothing further than we are heavily taxed.
49948. And when oats rise in the market can you tell me what difference it makes in the weekly
expenditure of a cabman who has a cab and only two horses ?~That depends upon the price of the article.
We were paying 7s. 6d. for maize last year, and now it is 4s. 6c1.
49949. How many bushels do you require for two horses in a week ?-At least six bushels.
49950. ~L\.ncl if the duty is ls. a bushel, that is equivalent to 6s. a week?-Yes.
49951. Do you prefer maize to oats for feed?-Yes, in winter time; and I most certainly concur with
a gentleman who gave evidence here upon .Kew Zealand oats, that the New Zealand oats are far superior to
the Victorian oats. .
49952. Even for feeding purposes ?-Even for feeding purposes, as well as for milling purposes ; if
the substance is in the oat, it is as good for the horse aa it is for the miller to take it out and make it into
meal, because the fattening and strengthening substance certainly must be in the meal.
The witness withdrew.
Edward Vale,
continutd,
8\llliiD.;ylS&:l.
William Harris sworn and examined:.
49953. By tl