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1973. Do I understand you to say that you have rough country in your run?— Yes. 1973 a. How much rough country have you ?—About five or six hundred acres. 1974. Have you a certificate now ?—No, I have not; but I expect to get one. 1975. You say you were " pulled up " and fined?—l knew nothing of the case going on. I was in Hawke's Bay at the time. When I got home I found the warrant. 1976. Were you never served with a summons?— Yes; and after I was served I sent down a telegram. 1977. Did it not reach?— They told me they did not receive it until after the case was heard. Drummond also said that he never got my letter. He was not at home; he was at some racemeeting, or some other place. 1978. Did you think you would have a defence to the action ?—Yes, I thought I should; and that the fine could have been reduced to half. 1979. Why were you fined 6d. a head?— The Inspector complained that I had not taken sufficient steps. I explained that it was impossible where my shed was; that I had only about seventy acres ; that I had to cross a river, and could not possibly get the sheep up without slinging them; that it was impossible I could get them up until the weather became fine. The Besident Magistrate told me I ought to " bridge it " (the river) at a cost of £600 or £700. 1980. Hon. Captain Fraser.) Did you pay the fine? —Yes. 1981. Hon. the Chairman.) What was the name of the creek?— The Te Nui. 1982. What was the amount of the fine?—lt cost me altogether between £27 and £29. 1933. Is there any other point you wish to draw attention to ? —Had the Inspector compelled the adjoining runs to muster, I am certain ho would have found scab there—in one in particular. 1984. You are speaking now of what you believe to be the case? —He did not take the sheep out and look at them. Also the adjoining flock to that property; these were people whose sheep were never inspected. I was unfortnnate to have bad weather, and I got fined. 1985. Is not the Mataikuna Bun clean now ?—Yes ; all the runs have a clean certificate barring Mr. Leverton. 1986. For the whole of their flocks ?—Yes. 1987. Then, your neighbourhood is virtually clean ?—No. 1988. What flocks are not clean ? —Mr. Leverton's, Mr. Andrew's, and my own. 1989. There is lea, but that is some distance ? —lt is only seven miles from Te Nui. 1990. Hon. Mr. Williamson!) You say the Inspector discovered a scabby sheep in your place? —Yes. 1991. When you examined it you saw that at the time as well as he did?— Yes. 1991 a. And you told him that it belonged to a certain person ? —Yes. 1992. Did you tell him to whom it belonged? —Yes.. 1993. You say, then, that the Inspector did not give that person any notice to muster, and did not say anything about it ?—No. 1994. Hon. Mr. Waterhouse.) Were any of your own sheep at the same time scabby?— Yes; there was one, but nothing like the state that that was in. 1995. Did you inform the Inspector that you received no notice of scab on the adjoining runs? —Yes. 1996. Why did you not take action yourself: the Mataikuna flock was some seven miles from you?—lt was not the flock that was declared infected, only a portion of the flock that was declared infected. 1997. Are there more shearing-places at Mataikuna than one ? —No. 1998. All go through the same yards?— Yes. 1999. Are all managed from the one homestead ? —Yes. I should state that it was impossible for a lamb to have got through. The lambs were docked : if this sheep had gone through the shed we must have seen it. 2000. How long did the Mataikuna remain infected after it lost the certificate ?—I think it was twelve months. 2001. Was there any information laid against the proprietor?—No ; he got them dipped, but the time was up, I think. 2002. Captain Russell.) You said that if the Inspector had chosen he might have followed up the information which you gave him where the scab was : the ear-mark would prove where it came from ?—lt proved that the sheep was on the adjoining run, but at the same time it came out of the clean portion of the flock. 2003. If you had the ear-mark that would be the proof ? —Yes; but it had not the scab-brand. 2004. May there not have been some mistake in supposing it to have belonged to the Mataikuna Bun ?—No; it belonged to the flock that was supposed to be clean. 2005. Then, do you wish to say that the Inspector did not do his duty ?—I think the Act was not worked as it should have been in this case. According to the Act, when a part of a flock is infected the whole should be declare infected. 2006. Hon. Captain Fraser.) How long do you think this sheep was in your flock ?—lt must have been there I should say about three months. 2007. Would that scabby sheep have imparted scab to the others ?—Yes ; no doubt the few of mine that were found with scab came from that sheep. 2008. Why dd'you say so?— Because the scab on the lamb was.much older than it was on tho other sheep in the yard. 2009. Hon. Mr. Robinson.) Your sheep were in paddocks : how often do you see your sheep, for, if you had looked to your sheep, how could it happen that it was three months before you discovered this scabby sheep? —I had the whole of my sheep through the yard in the latter end of January. 2010. Did you not go amongst them in the paddock ?—They were not in a paddock, they were on the run. Had the sheep gone through my shed it would have been shorn. I know that every