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close to this wing in front of No. 1 Block as he says; it turned round to the right in front of No. 1, and went down a gully, almost in front of the centre block. There was very deep ground there. There is a good deal of filling up now; but it was very deep then. 1912. Do you think that if the footings had been drained at the time that they were put in— that is, if proper drains had been put round the footings, would the slippings have been stopped ?— Mr. Brindley kept that part as well drained as it was possible to do. 1913. There are no proper drains running round the bases of the footings?— Not that lam aware of. I saw that foundation put in ; at least I think so. [Ambulatory No. 2 (north)]. 1914. Mr. Mount/ort.] There are a good many windows in the building, consequently a largo amount of glass has been used?—A great quantity, indeed. 1915. Are you aware whether the specification as to the kind of glass was adhered to or abandoned ? —lt was not adhered to. 1916. Not what ? —You are alluding now, I presume, to the thickness of the glass? 1917. Yes.—Well, it could not be got here. 1918. However, it was not used. Was there any deduction made for that ?—I cannot say. There was some score of deductions; every possible tiling that could be deducted was deducted, even the air-flues in the brick-walls were deducted. 1919. The Chairman.] Your reply to that is that the glass was not put in because it could not bo procured in the market ? —lt is not imported. 1920. It is 240z. ?—Yes. That is not imported here. It is 160z., 18oz., 210z., 260z., and 28oz. that is imported. 1921. Mr. Mount/art.] You had a long time in which to do the work ; could you not have imported the glass ?—You would have had to give a special order to get it made. 1922. But you had a long time in which to do the work: sufficient time to have got the glass from England?—l do not think that any question was ever raised about it. There was never any dispute about that. 1923. It was a tolerably large item ? —Now that you have called attention to it, I remember the circumstance, but I do not think it has ever been called in question. 1924. Mr. Skinner.] I suppose that 21oz. was used in the place of the other ?—Yes. 1925. Mr. Mountfort.] You could not get 20oz. glass then ? —I do not think so. It is 21oz. The glass was sent up in cases, in the original packages. 1926. Mr. Blair.] You said just now that Mr. Brindley kept the footings as well drained as it was possible to do ?—I believe he attended to that part the same as he did to any other part of the building : but I cannot speak positively. 1927. Did he have men on to do it? —No, it was done by my own men. 1928. Did he say that you were to keep it drained? —He never spoke to me particularly, but I noticed the drain. 1929. Did you charge that as an extra?— No. 1930. Then it is part of your contract ?—No. 1931. If you do not charge for it ?—I did not charge for every little thing we did. Contractors are not so bad as you try to make them out. 1932. There was one other remark made by you, and that was in reference to the footings. You led us to understand that they were left out because it was difficult to get them in, owing to the ground being bad ? — So far as I remember I said I thought that that was the reason Mr. Brindley had for it. 1933. The difficulty of getting them in?—On account of the ground above slipping into them. Ido not know that that was his motive, but I have some recollection of him saying so. I would not, however, be positive about that. Mr. Blair : I will put in the final certificate [document No. 17], and, if the Commissioners refer to it, they will find that there are sheets of deductions : but I cannot say if this glass has been deducted. Mr. Gore : There is one large deduction, which does not appear there. It is a deduction of £500. The Chairman : What for ? Mr. Gore : Money I consider I was robbed of. The Chairman : Have you only just recollected that ? Mr. Gore : No. But if Mr. Blair is putting in an exhibit showing deductions, it should be mentioned that there is one deduction of £500 that has been omitted. 1934. Mr. Laivson.] We have it in evidence, as you know—it is the evidence of Mr. Hay on this point—that at the northern angle of No. 2, northern ambulatory, the building has slipped in 16|in., corresponding, or nearly corresponding, with the movement apparent in front of the same wing?— You mean to say, taking a straight line, that it is down 16-|in. at the present time. 1935. Beyond what it was when you gave up the building ? Wo have had that in evidence.— I have heard it. 1936. You have sworn that it was straight when you left it The Chairman : It is his opinion. Mr. Laivson : Ido not think it is an opinion; it is evidence. The Chairman : It was by his eyesight. I did not catch the whole of Mr. Hay's evidence, because he spoke in a low tone ; but I did not understand him to say that this part was 16$ in, out of line with the corridor. 1937. Mr. Laiuson: If, as you say, this wall from end to end was built straight, while the am-bulatory-wall 1938. The Chairman.] But does Mr. Gore swear that it was perfectly straight ?—I cannot swear within a Jin. or -Jin. in a particular door-jamb in the corridor. But I have repeatedly looked along the corridor and remarked how remarkably straight it was. I knew that Mr. Brindley prided him-
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