|H. NEHA.

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Havveka, Tuesday, 28m May, 1912 Hineone Neha sworn and examined. (No. 33.) 1.-Mr. Bell.] You are a daughter of Neha Kipa? —Yes. 2. How old are you ?—Fourteen. 3. Have you been to school? —Yes. 4. What standard are you in?— The Third Standard. 5. What do you do now?— Milk the cows. 6. On your father's farm? —Yes. 7. How many cows do you milk? —Sometimes six and sometimes seven. 8. Who milks the other cows? —My brothers. 9. Do you help in other ways on the farm? —Yes. Mr. Welsh: No questions. Tamaka Awarua sworn and examined. (No. 34.) t. Mr. Bell.} Where do you live ? —At Taiporohenui. 2. Have you any land there? —Yes, 61 acres. 3. Do you hold it under occupation license? —Yes. 4. What rent do you pay for the license? —1 am not quite sure, but I think £l\ or more. 5. Arc you the owner of any land leased under the West Coast Settlement Act? —Yes. "6. Do you know whether it'is under the 1881 Act or L 892 Act?— Under both. 7. What do you do with the Gl acres?—l am dairying on it. I own fifty cows altogether, but I do not milk them all on that section; they are on some other'lands about a mile or more away from the 61 acres. 8. Do you hold that land also under occupation license? —Yes. 9. How many acres have you there? —I have 43 acres. That land belongs to my mother and younger brothers. I applied to have the occupation license issued to them. 10. To what factory do you send your milk?—Tawhiti. 11. What amount of money do you receive from (he factory?- —1 have a statement of the amount given to me by the secretary of the company. [Statement put in, Exhibit B.] 12. Do you own any shares in the factory.? —Yes, seventy-one shares. 13. Did you ever farm before you started milking?— Yes, I was supplying Newton King's factory at Tawhiti prior to supplying the present factory. 14. Did you continue milking right on from then till now?—No, 1 only milked for one year, and then ceased. 15. Why did you cease?—We were advised by our elders not to milk —that we should go to Parihaka. 16. When did you start milking again ! —ln 1904. 17. But Te Whiti was not dead then? —No. 18. Why did you start milking before Te Whiti was dead?—l found that my elders were so wrapped up with Te Whiti that they would obey him in everything. If he had said "All swim into the tide," they w 7 ould have done it, and this made me think that it was not satisfactory for me to be one that might at any time be sent into the tide at the word of the chief. 19. What did you do with your cows?—l sold them, or some of them, to pay for a house for my sister at Parihaka. 20. How. did }'ou get money to start milking again?—By applying to my pakeha friends, who supplied me with money and stock. 21. Had you any cows of your own then? —Yes, I had not sold them all. 22. Did you give the pakeha an order on the factory money?— Yes. He agreed that I should allow him to Teceive half the milk cheque, but in my anxiety to wipe off the indebtedness as early as possible I sometimes gave him the whole of it. 23. When you started milking the second time were there any noxious weeds on the place?— Yes. There was gorse and fern and trees. 24. Have those been cleared off now?— Yes. I did some of it myself, and on some occasions 1 employed others and paid them'for their work. 25. Have you any family?— Yes, I have nine living. 26. How old is the eldest?— About eighteen years oi more. The eldest is a daughter. 27. Did your three eldest sons help you to work the place at one time? —Yes. 28. What has happened to those three?— The eldest girl is married, the second son is with me, and one is dead; but the younger children assist me when they are home from, school. -29. Do you 'employ an}* pakeha help?— Yes. 30. Do you pay them, or do they milk on shares? —One I employed and paid for a year, and there are others I pay so-much a week to. 31. D 6 you employ any Maoris? —Yes. I pay some by the week. 32. Do any of the Maoris milk on shares?— Yes. v - 33.'How many Maoris are you employing now?— One of them is managing one of my sheds, and he has a share in the milk. At the other shed one is working at so-much per week, assisting my son, because I attend to the outside work. 34. Do you cultivate your farm at all? —Yes, I grow potatoes, corn, carrots, turnips, and hay. That is what I had under cultivation this year, but I had a greater amount under "cultivation prior to that. 35. Cross-examined by Mr. Welsh.} Are you a member of the union?— Yes. 36. Can you tell me what your interests are under the Act of 1881—what .lands?—l haveinterests in land at Fraser Road. I have 5 acres in one block with my family. ' My'mother and brothers have other areas.

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