H.—6c.

>ET.-BUEG.-CAPTAIN YOUNG.

273. Did it present the appearance of having had any disease during the time it was alive ?— No, sir. 274. Was there a proper amount of fat ?—.Yes, sir. 275. Was the colour good ? —Yes, it was. 276. Do you suppose that the meat supplied to the officers' mess was in any degree better than that you saw issued to the men ?—lt was all off the same carcase. 277. You do not believe that there was a selection for the officers ?—I know it was not the case. 278. How do you know ?—Because the meat was all passed by me both for officers and men. I do not suppose the men got the roast beef, though, as there would not be enough to go over them all. lam positive that it was all cut from the same carcase. 279. Do you think that before you were appointed to examine the meat that bad meat had been passed for consumption ?—ln that case I can only speak from rumour. I heard there were complaints about the meat. Further than that I can give no information whatever. There is one statement that I would like to make, and that is that the chief steward was most anxious that no bad meat should be supplied to the men. There was one case where the meat in the galley had been contaminated through some carelessness of the cook. It was pork. I called attention to this, and said it would not do. The value of the meat was £22, and the chief steward ordered it to be thrown overboard. He then made inquiries, and found it was bad owing to the carelessness of the cook by letting one piece fall on the floor. 280. By contamination do you mean the meat was bad?—l mean that it was not clean, as it contained particles of sawdust, or something of that sort. The finding of this piece which had been contaminated led to the chief steward ordering the whole lot to be thrown overboard. I only mention this to show that the chief steward was anxious to see that everything was right. 281. In the course of your duties in connection with the meat, did you observe the conditions of the other food that was supplied to the men —I do not mean professionally observed ?—No ; I never examined it. 282. Did it come under your observation ? —On one occasion the fish was not good at the officers' mess. 283. Why was it not good ?—lt was tainted. I did not call attention to it, but I thought it should not have been given. 284. That was on one occasion ?—That was in the saloon. 285. How often did you have n'sh ? —I could not say, sir. 286. Was it a common dish?— Yes, sir, if I remember right. 287. Was it salt fish ?—Well, I really did not pay much attention. I was perfectly satisfied with the food altogether. 288. Did you ever taste it yourself?— Yes, I tasted salt fish ; and I think we had ling fish two or three times. 289. Was it such as might be fairly put before a man for food ?—Yes, except on one occasion. 290. And you yourself ate it for choice ?—Yes. 291. You were not short of breakfast on that occasion?—No, we were never short. 292. You consider that generally the fish was of good quality ?—My opinion is that the food on board the ship was sufficient and of fairly good quality. 293. In the course of your observation in connection with the meat, what did you think of the cooks? —Well, the cooking-galley was not so large as it might have been, therefore the cooks were hampered. 294. Do you think, on the whole, that the cooks were up to the average? —As far as my observation went, sir. 295. Have you had any experience in transports ?—Yes, on four or five transports. I went from Lyttelton in the " Gymeric," and I went from Cape Town to St. Helena, and I went to England and back again, then from Lyttelton on the " Cornwall." 296. Do you believe that the meat and the food supplied on the " Britannic " was equal to that supplied on the other transports you have been on ?—lt was superior to that given on the transport " Victorian " to the Imperial troops. 297. Do you think that a man in ordinary health had anything to complain of ?—I think not. 298. Mr. Millar.} Was it before or after your departure from Albany that you started the inspection of meat ? —lt was two or three days before we got into Albany. I remember that it was two or three days before we got into any port. It was therefore bound to be two or three days before we got to Albany. 299. Well, at any time in your inspection did you permit green pieces to be trimmed off from carcases —I mean in the butcher's shop—and sent to the cooks' galley ?—No, sir, I did not; but I can tell you how that has arisen. When I took over the inspection the meat had not only to be of good quality, but I told the butcher that he must take off the trimmings, and the consequence was that every piece of meat was trimmed in the butcher's shop, not because it was unwholesome, but because it had to be trimmed before it left the butcher's shop as if it were to be sold to the public. 300. At any time from the date on which you took charge of the inspection of the meat till your arrival in New Zealand no bad meat was ever issued ?—No complaints were made about the meat as far as came under my notice. I think one day the captain on duty said there was some complaint, but it was only because a small piece of meat was not sufficiently cooked. 301. If the statement had been made on oath, Mr. Young, that green meat had been issued, it must have been prior to your taking over the inspection ?—lt must have been; but I wish to point out that perhaps they did not know what they were talking about. The men were about when the meat was being trimmed, and the men saw this being done—it was not done in secrecy —-and perhaps they thought bad pieces were being cut off.

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