I.—lb

16

216. Mr. Valentine.] Why was the mine conveyed to you at all; was it made over to you ?—lt was made over to me for two purposes. 217. When you made that agreement for the purchase of the mine you were a party to whatever took place. If Sir Eobert Stout did something wrong, as you allege, you did something wrong too ? —No ;my wages were at stake, and a considerable amount of other wages; and Sir Eobert Stout told me that if I did not have it done I would be the means of losing my own wages and those of the other men. 218. This agreement of transfer and sale, according to your statement, was for the purpose of evading payment of creditors ? —No; it was not that, on my part. Sir Eobert Stout wanted Mr. J. Toomey to take it. 219. You became a party to an improper action ? —No ; I did not know. 220. You signed the agreement ?—Yes ; I made no secret of it. 221. You signed the agreement to become owner of the property to defraud someone of their own?— There was no fraud on my part. I took it to save the wages. If the Corporation then put in a claim we would all share alike. 222. When Mr. Toomey would not take it, Sir Bobert Stout came to you and asked you if you would take it, and you agreed to become the purchaser ?—Yes ; on condition that I was to hold it on trust for these w-ages from Sir Bobert Stout. He understood that. 223. That was the reason why you became nominal owner? —Yes.

Wednesday, 13th September, 1893. John Hamill examined. 1. Mr. Macgregor.] Your name is John Hamill?—Yes. 2. You are a platelayer? —Yes. 3. For some years you were in charge of the Fernhill Branch Bailway ?—Yes, keeping it in repair and so forth. 4. You worked on the railway since its construction in 1881 or 1882 ?—Yes. 5. There was an interval of a few months in which you were away ?—Yes. 6. I understand you to say that you always worked for the Fernhill Company ? —Yes. 7. The management has changed several times ?—Yes. 8. Did you get your wages paid up when you left ? —No. 9. Have you got an account of the amount owing to you?— Yes. 10. Will you produce it ?— Yes, here it is. [Account produced and put in.] 11. The total amount is £181 13s. 10d., made up of old account £85 Is. 7d. and new account £96 12s. 3d. What is the meaning of " old account"? —That is the amount that was standing before Mr. A. H. Logan failed. 12. And the " new account " is for the balance of the wages accruing to you since that time? Yes. 13. This amount of £181 13s. lOd. is still due to you?— Yes. 14. How did you allow this company to owe you so much money. How did you allow your wages to get so far behind? —The company was struggling, and I have been letting it run on. I am a single man, and did not want to be nasty with them if it could be possibly avoided, and that was simply how it came about. 15. You got occasional payments when you wanted money ?—Yes. 16. You remember the time when Mr. Logan went bankrupt in 1889? —Yes. 17. Do you remember him going out to the mine and having a talk to you about your wages before his bankruptcy ?—Yes. Gray was there also. 18. Just tell me as nearly as you can the substance of what he told you ?—I understood him to say that Mr. Gray was to take over the property, and that there was £65 or £66 to be put into a Mr. Hodge's hands preferentially for me. As things were not going well at that time I thought that if I could get £65 I would be satisfied, so I allowed it to go on. 19. Did he tell you he would have to go bankrupt ?—Yes, I understood that. 20. Did he say anything about getting his discharge from bankruptcy ?—Yes ; he mentioned that it was better to do it in that way, because it would interfere with his discharge if there was an item of wages standing. 21. Who is this Mr. Hodge?—l understood him to be a brother-in-law of Mr. Logan. 22. He was then a solicitor in Dunedin ?—I cannot say. 23. Did you ever get this £65 ?—No. 24. You did not prove in Mr. Logan's estate ?—No. ■ 25. Mr. Logan became bankrupt, and, as you have heard, the property was transferred to Gray ? —Yes. 26. Well, after that, was there any change made in the management of the mine ?—Not that I was aware of. 27. Who managed the coal-mine part of the affair?— Mr. Gray. 28. Just as before? —Yes. 29. You continued to look after the railway just as before?—-Yes. 30. Who looked after the books in town? —Mr. Logan. 31. In the same way as before the transfer ?—Yes. 32. Before the transfer to Gray, who did you stick up for your wages?—A. H. Logan. 33. Did you get the payments on account from him from time to time?— Yes. 34. To whom did you apply after the transfer? —To Mr. Logan. 35. Did you get payments on account after the transfer?— Yes, in the same way as before. 36. Gray has told us that he was in a similar position to you : his wages were in arrear ?—Yes.