46

[S. FISHIiK.

C—l 4.

49. You say the estimate is an underestimate, if anything?- —Yes. 50. Can you state whether your brothers' land was seriously or in any way affected by Hoods prior to 1907 / No, it was not. 51. You have been in occupation of this land for seventeen years / -Yes, about that. 52. Mr. MeVeagh.] When did you start to supply the factor} I 1 supplied Mr. Spragg first, about eight or nine years ago. That was before the company was formed. I started to supply when the Netherton creamery was established. 53. Are the drains in the land fitted with flood-gates?— No. 54. How many drains have you got through your property?—l have two main drains running east and west through my property. 55. What is the length of those drains/ —1 think that one drain is about 1)0 chains, and the other is about 80 chains. They are large drains—one is about Oft. deep and 9 ft. at the fop — not all the way —and the other is 7 ft. on top and about 4 ft. deep. 50. Have you any smaller drains? —A lot of small drains. 57. What "length?— About 18 chains long, running from one main drain to another. 58. Your brothers, I suppose, have many drains?— Yes, many miles. There are three of 80 chains, and a very large number of smaller drains. 59. I think when you and your brothers took this property it consisted of kahikatea forest ? Not all of it. 00. It was very wet, and you found it necessary to drain the land? —Yes. 01. Where did that water come from when you started to drain it?— From the heavens. 62. Did not that water extend a good way back? —Yes, for many miles. 63. How far back did it extend?— Right up to Mm riusville. 04. From the Awaiti Stream towards Netherton there is a fall, is there not/ —Yes. 65. The Chairman,] Do you mean to say that there is a fall from the Awaiti Stream all the way to your land? Do you mean to say that the Awaiti is at the top of a hill?—No; it is all flat country, but there is a general fall from east to north. The watershed is about 50 chains from the Awaiti River. 66. Mr. MeVeagh.] Have you been further up the river than the flax-mill? —No. 07. Not far enough to see"whether the waters of the Waihou came across?— No. 08. Do you know anything of the waters of the Piako coming across country to the back of the Netherton district? —No; I should think such waters would go out to sea. 09. Do you know whether water flows from Waikaka to the Awaiti River?—! do not know. 70. Mr. Mueller.] As regards these drains that have been mentioned : you say that you have two main drains through your property, and your brothers have three main drains. Those main drains, 1 presume, go into the Waihou River across your property? —Yes. 71. You drain your land into the Waihou? —Yes. 72. At the time of the big flood of 1907 did the water come on to your laml from those drains or from the back country?—The water ran off our land into the Over. # 73. Does the tide affect the Awaiti Creek? —No. 74. Mr. Mitchelson.] Mr. Bagnall said in his evidence that after the 1901 Hood they put up a stop-bank, and that stop-bank prevented the water gelling on to Iheir land in the 1910 flood. You say the water was over your property in September of last year for a week?— Yes. John Morrison examined. (No. 18.) 1. Mr. Mueller.] Your name is John Morrison, and you are a farmer residing near Hikutaia? Yes. 2. You own 150 acres, part of the Kaimanawa Block?— Yes. 3. Your land is not affected particularly by the floods?— No. 4. Have you got a river frontage?— Yes, 22 chains. 5. You have been on the river for about forty years/ — Yes. (1. You know the river from Puriri to Paeroa?—Yes. 7. You have been on the river almost daily ever since/ I had 1,, do all my business by the river for the first ten years. There were no roads then. 8. In later years you have been supplying milk to the Netherton factory?— Yes, since il was made a co-operative company. 1 joined it then. 9. During that time you used a launch on the river? —Yes; I had the fust launch thai ever was on the river. 10. Previous to that you had pulling-boats? —Yes. 11. What is the carrying-capacity of your milk-launch/ —About 2| or •"> tons. 12. What did the launch draw?—At full speed she would draw 3i ft., at half-speed she would 11 raw less. 13. You were daily on the river at all stages of the tide/—^es. 14. When first you started your launch on the river, how long ago was that /- -I think it was eight years ago. 15. During the first few years of that time did you find any difficulty in navigating the river with your launch ?—None whatever. 10. Have you noticed any difficulty since?—! have stopped running for twelve months. I could not go at low water now, especially in February and March, when there are less freshes in the river. During the last three years they have got worse and worse up to twelve months ago.