25

I.—4a

580. Mr. Taylor was not engaged on the survey ?—He was with us on the survey, and insisted upon having notes. 581. But the plan itself on which you acted you did not make yourself directly responsible for : you acted entirely on the plan furnished to you by Mr. Twining ?—Not entirely. 582. But you say that was what finally decided you? —Yes. 583. Did it not occur to you that, in taking so serious a step, it would have been better to have laid the whole of this indictment before him ? —I was not aware of any indictment. 584. Would it not have been more prudent to have forwarded him a plan?—No; he had notes. 585. How do you know what correspondence there was between any notes Mr. Taylor had and that plan : you did not make yourself responsible for the plan ? —No. 586. You do not know that it corresponds with Twining's notes, or Taylor's notes, or any one else's?—No. 587. Did you know that the step you were taking in writing that letter would probably result in closing up these works ? —Yes ; the submarine workings. 588. Did it not occur to you that you ought to have forwarded a copy of tracing and plan to Mr. Williams ? —I did not do so. I forwarded it to Government. 589. When did you forward it to Government ? —I think it is annexed to my report of the 20th March; but it has been mutilated since I came here. The first page has been lost. 590. I want to fix the date whentyou forwarded a tracing to Government ? —I cannot say. The first portion of the report has been lost. 591. Forwarding the tracing to the Government was cotemporaneous with forwarding the report to the Government, was it ?—Yes. 592. Did you, in the usual way, get a letter acknowledging the receipt of that report ?—I sent it to Mr. Maitiand. I think I handed it to him. 593. That was a report to the General Government ?—No; it was a report to Mr. Maitiand. 594. It was not to the General Government ?—-I did not say it was to the General Government; I said "to Government." He represents the Government to us. 595. I should like to get the date?—l may say that the bulk of this report was written at the end of February ; but it is dated the 2,oth March, 1883. 596. You could restore the portion lost ? —lf necessary I could. 597. Then, Mr. Taylor and Mr. Kenyon had challenged the accuracy of the field-books on one occasion ?—Yes. 598. Did it never occur to you that the accuracy of that plan might have been challenged ?— The accuracy of any plan might be challenged. 599. Did it not occur to you that if you had forwarded a copy of that plan to Mr. Williams he might have challenged it ?—No; it did not. 600. Did it not occur to you, as a desirable thing, that he should have the opportunity, immediately he had asked for it, of challenging it?—No; it did not. 601. When did he ask for it: was it six months afterwards ?—No; I will answer for myself, if you will allow me. It was the 22nd September, 1883. 602. That is, more than six months afterwards ? —Yes. If he had asked for it before he might have had it. 603. You saw Mr. Williams on the 12th February, before this final determination was come to at the end of February. After that, was he permitted to work in the mine ? —He was permitted. 604. For what length of time?—Until the 19th March. 605. What number of men would that permission involve?—l am not sure; about half a dozen. 606. Pumping would require several?—Yes.. 606a. Four men ?—Not at once. 607. Were the men permitted to work ?—Yes. 608. How many headings were working ?—About four. 609. That would involve how many men : about' three times that number?—About twelve. 610. Some men would be required for drawing the trucks as well ?—Yes; it would be about twelve. 611. So that it was not a matter of momentary or hourly risk P—lt was a matter that occasioned me great anxiety. I should not like to go through the same again. It was a matter that kept me in hourly terror. 612. Well, you permitted them to work?—Yes. 613. During that time you reported?—To whom? 614. To the Government. You were preparing a report after the men were in?—Yes. 615. Is it in that report or in some portion of the correspondence that you wished an inquiry ? —It is not in the report that lam aware of. 616. Where is it?—l do not know what it is you mean. 617. Is there not a reference somewhere in your correspondence to an inquiry?—Yes. 618. Would you be good enough to show me that ?—I know there was a suggestion of an inquiry long after the mine was closed. As to the expression used by myself, I believe I told Mr. Eich that I should be only too glad to have an inquiry, because it would relieve me from such great responsibility. I told Mr. Eich that. I will tell you when tho date was. It was in July, 1883. It was tho day I prosecuted the company. 619. Mr. Macandrew.] You say you prosecuted the company?—lt was the day that I had a case against them. Mr. Eich showed me a letter from Mr. Williams, which was forwarded to the Minister of Mines, asking for inquiry. I said I would be delighted to have an inquiry; nothing would please me more. 620. Did you know that you were undertaking a great responsiblity in closing this mine, not only so far as the owners were concerned, but as far as the people of the district were concerned ?—- I was not closing the mine then.