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1 was quite satisfied of the following facts, viz. : — (a.) That the above-named steamer was in the possession of the Bank of Scotland, and was trading under its control, and that the Poverty Bay Farmers' Meat Company had no real interest in her ; and (■b.) That the Poverty Bay Farmers' Bleat Company were not in a position to find the necessary moneys for the disbursements and current expenses of the ship if she were included in the shipping contract, and that to have so included the ship would only have caused loss, inconvenience, and annoyance to consignors and shippers. I therefore advised you that the conditions imposed by the Board and expressed in their letter of the 18th March had not been satisfied, and that the Board could not take any other step than to decline to include the steamer in the shipping contract. (4.) I understand that at a conference with the Board on the I.Bth October, 1924, Mr. Lysnar stated that the position had changed since the making of the declaration before referred to, and that he had arrived at a definite arrangement with the National Bank under which the bank had released unpaid capital of the Meat Company to the amount of about £22,000. lam satisfied that as the result of inquiries made by an officer of the Board of which I have full information that the Board was not justified in acting upon or accepting the statement so made. Wellington, 25th November, 1924. C. P. Skerrett.

APPENDIX U. COPY OF TELEGRAM RECEIVED FROM POVERTY BAY FARMERS' MEAT COMPANY (LIMITED), GISBORNE, DATED 9th OCTOBER, 1923. Prior to receipt of your telegram of to-day's date directors had passed following resolution in reference to the statement of Mr. David Jones in his capacity as Chairman of the Meat Producers' Board that " The Board were unanimously of opinion that they could raise no reasonable objection to Vestey Bros, purchasing the Poverty Bay Farmers' works if they closed and dismantled their other works some eight miles away. This they have agreed to do " : " Directors decided not to accept the Board's invitation for a conference with this company unless an assurance is first given that what is stated in Mr. Jones's remarks does not amount to a prejudgment by the Board, and a further assurance that the Board is prepared to weigh the whole matter both from the point of view of the shareholders of the company and of the meat-growers generally throughout New Zealand, and, further, that the Board and Mr. Jessep, Vice-Chairman of the Board, disclose with whom they have been communicating in the matter so that this company may know whom and what it is fighting. Failing these assurances being given and the correspondence disclosed, the directors recommend that the shareholders place the full responsibility for the right and proper thing being done in the matter upon the Government and the Meat Board, for either the legislation is to be effective or otherwise, and in adopting this course they say that neither the Government nor the Meat Board are justified in penalizing the meat-producers of this district because Vestey Bros, are operating here, as they have repeatedly asked both Parliament and the Government to stop them so operating by owning freezing-works." Subsequently the resolution was unanimously adopted at a meeting of the shareholders of the company.

APPENDIX V. EVIDENCE OF MR. R. D. DUXFIELD. Page 236. Mr. Lysnar : We have another witness here who is anxious to get away —Mr. Duxfield, representing the Farmers' Union, Auckland. It is mainly on the main question that we want him. Sir ./, Findlay : What is the main question in your opinion 1 : ' Mr. Lysnar : The public interest, how they regard it and what they think of it. Sir J. Findlay : Evidence against trusts generally. Mr. Lysnar : And the Vestey purchase. I suggest we finish the afternoon with his evidence. The Chairman : We are in some doubt as to whether we should hear evidence of this sort. However, call the witness and we will see what the evidence is. (Witness sworn.) Mr. Lysnar : Your name is Robert Dickinson Duxfield, farmer Yes.