SHARE-MILKING DISPUTE

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue LXVIII, 14 October 1914, Page 6

SHARE-MILKING DISPUTE

tintied the examination of h£ S" nessee. . - * Wlt"

i , 'Reynolds, carrier, Otakeho deposedUhat he knew the propertf of Mr Patterson, where Mr Fergusson lTX hf' eA- miik?i?> ¥ Q Wn * prSw ly, worked on the farm. Witness left the rarm about 18 months before Mr fergusson went on to the place, when there were a few patches in gorse, but since then the goi_e had Extended considerably. Witness estimated that it would cost £10) to grub the gorS Witness gave evidence as to the general condition of the fences, some of which were m a good state of repair, while some were not. Hugh Paton, farmer, also gave eviofX7 a th refe^ cc *° *he condition ot the- farm. Witness related a cohversatron he had with Mr Fergusson, Si° + l d "^^ed him that he had to keep the land clear of gorse. John Daley deposed, that he was a share-milker for Mr Patterson on the farm recently worked by Mr Fergusson. When witness Wok over the farm the water race was leaking and the intake was blocked up while the race was also I i rse' U would take a*>out £15 1?«* the race in good working order agairi. There was a lot of gorse on the land, and the boxthorn hedges some of which were 12ft through, had apparently never been grubbed Some or the gorse had been cut with a slasher, but had not been grubbed James Daley, brother of the previous witness, gave practically corroborative evidence. .T. McPhillips, farmer, stated that ne went over the farm recently, when he saw a quantity of gorse. on the pro^ perty—about two-thirds of it had grown during the past eight years. \ Witness could not estimate what it would cost to grub the gorse, because there was a lot of it in the boxthorn hedges which would first have to be grubbed. i

•s'" -H^inpe, who was at on© time with Mr Fergusson, testified that the land contained a good deal of gorse, whereas previously there was very little, and a lot of this had been grubbed by witness.

Further evidence as to the increase Or the gorse on the property was given by ¥.. Powdrell and W. T.'Wells, who estimated the cost of clearing the land they had seen at .£IOO and at between £40 and £50 respectively. Mr Wells considered that it would cost from £100 to £150 to grub the boxthorn fences.

When the Court rose at 4.15 o'clock the case was not concluded, and the hearing will be resumed next Tuesday. •;