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mad o to you by Boult that Mr. Daniel has on occasions settled his private accounts with his clients by deducting therefrom moneys duo to the county for rates. I cannot at present recall the names of the persons so settled with. As to certifying to accounts, I think all charges for roads and works should bo certified by the Engineer or Inspector of Works. Office supplies have always been certified by tho Clerk. All other charges should, I think, be certified or approved by the Chairman. All claims are examined by tho Finance Committee, and when passed are initialled before they are laid before the Council. Ido not find it necessary to travel as Mr. Daniel did to inspect roads. When I was first appointed Chairman I told the Council that I should not travel to inspect roads unless I was directly requested by the Council in any case to do so, but that in such cases I should expect to receive travelling-allowance. The only occasions on which I have received travelling-expenses (except for attendance at the Council), are two in number—viz., in January, 1885, when I was requested by the Council to visit Kingston to arrange with Trotter as to compensation for a roadline ; and in March, 1886, when Mr. Daniel and myself were instructed to visit Mr. Baird's property, and arrange as to the compensation to be paid him for damage to his land by drainage from the road. I do not take any steps when signing cheques to see that they are correct in amount, or are in payment of claims duly authorized by tho Council. I consider that to be the duty of the Treasurer, who is, or should bo, responsible for the finance department of the county, and for the proper management of its accounts. Since I have lived in Queenstown I have never signed cheques unless they had been previously signed by the Treasurer, mine being only a countersignature. During Mr. Boult's time I did look to the points named. From tho time when Trotter's case occurred I never signed a cheque without seeing that it agreed with the abstract intended to be paid. I know nothing as to the voucher 206, Romans and Brodie, £74 ss. 6d. Charles C. Boyes, Chairman.

No. 7. —George Henet Eomans examined, 31st January, 1887. lam a contractor residing at Arrowtown. I was the contractor, in partnership with MrRobert Brodie (since dead), George Heller, of Arrowtown, and Peter Henderson, also of Arrowtown> for the contract known as Cardrona No. 2. The amount of the contract was £1,194 11s. sd. The first two payments are credited in our pass-book with th.3 Bank of New Zealand [bank pass-book produced] at Arrowtown as—2lst April, 1884, L.G.C. vchr., £388 Bs. 2d.; 28th May, 188-1, L.G.C. vchr., £368 2s. 7d. The third payment, £437 2s. 2d., was received by Mr. Brodio in Queenstown, and the cheque was cashed by him at tho bank in Queenstown. The amount of our deposit with this contract was £61 10s. It was paid by a cheque signed by our firm, "Eomans and Heller," on the Bank of New Zealand, Arrowtown. Cheque produced, which I obtained from the bank at Arrowtown on my way here, is the cheque given by us in payment of that deposit. It was enclosed with the tender, and the tender was put into the tender-box by myself. I cannot say positively what the amount due to us for extras was on this contract. I think about £6. The sums entered in our cash-book as received on Tuesday, the 2nd September, for our share—equal to two-fourths—of the contract deposit refunded and extras was £33 16s. Our share of the deposit bsing £30 155., tho difference of £8 Is. must have represented our share of the extras. The deposit and tho sum du3 for extras was received by Mr. Brodie, who handed us £33 16s. as our share. I have now no means of ascertaining what the extras for which wo were paid consisted of, nor do I know the precise amount. The evidence afforded by my cash-book satisfies me that the amount was £6 2s. There may, however, have been a further sum of £1 14s. included in the settlement, that sum having been paid to us at the same time as the £33 16s. in refund of moneys which we (Romans and Heller) had paid to H. Honoychurch, a mason, on behalf of the partnership of Romans and Brodie. lam not prepared to swear to the exact amount of our claim for extras, but I could swear that they did not exceed £15. The voucher No. 205, for £74 ss. 6d., is signed, to tho best of my belief, in tho handwriting of tho late Mr. Brodie. I was also a partner in the contract of Peter Henderson and Co., of Arrowtown, for No. 1 Gardrona contract. My firm, Eomans and Heller, had one-third share in this contract. The other partners in tho contract were Peter Henderson and E. Pritchard. The amount of tho contract was £1,290 Is. 10d., and tho amount of the deposit was £66. There were a few extras on this contract—l think about £7 10s.; lam sure they were under £10. George Henry Eomans. This evidence was taken and signed in my presence.—H. L., 31/1/87. I remember distinctly that the amount of the deposit was £66, because each of the three partners in the contract had to provide a sum of £22. The amount of our contract deposit has been refunded to us, but I cannot say without reference to my papers when or how it was repaid. Geobge Henry Eomans. This evidence was taken and signed in my presence.—H. L., 31/1/87. Ist February, 1887. I produce cheque No. F. 116985, dated 23rd June, 1883, on Bank of New Zealand, Arrowtown, for £66. This is the cheque which was enclosed with our.tender for the contract known as No. 1 Cardrona. It is drawn by Eomans and Heller, and was paid out of their account. I also produce bank pass-book of the account of George Eomans and Co. with the Bank of New Zealand at Arrowtown. This account embodies all the transactions (receipts and payments) in connection with the contract of P. Henderson and Co. for No. 1 Cardrona, with the one exception of a sum of £80, the last sum received from the county, which sum was lodged to credit of our bank account in connection with the Contract No. 2 Macetown. The sum of £80 represented £66, the amount of our contract deposit refunded, and a sum for extras, the precise amount of which I am unable to remember, but which I believe did not exceed £7. The extras referred to consisted of six or seven small culverts, all of which I built myself with the assistance of a mason, and we used generally to complete two a day. The balance of £7 odd, making up the £80, was some small balance remain-