I.—6a.

thirteen hours and fifteen minutes on the Bth March ; thirteen hours and ten minutes on the 9th March; and twelve hours and forty minutes on the 10th March; and on the night of the accident I have not got the time—only for the total: eighty-four hours and five minutes. 102. Mr. Thomson.] What day of the week was the accident on ?—On the Saturday. 103. Mr. Taylor.] That eighty-four hours and five minutes was made up with your workinghours and overtime ?—Yes. 104. Mr. Morrison.] You were employed for eighty-four hours in that week ?—Yes, eightyfour hours. There is one thing lam not certain about, and that is as to what time I knocked off on the Saturday night. 105. The department paid you overtime for these hours?— Yes. 106. How much? —I could hardly say. At time and a quarter I think it is. 107. Is it not a rule amongst the drivers that they like to get a little overtime?—l do not know ; I was never ambitious for overtime. Thirteen hours and five minutes was quite enough for me. My time was finished on the Thursday night. 108. You said that in America and England drawings and instructions of every part of a brake are given to those in charge of an engine ?—Yes, they have a place rigged up on purpose for the Westinghouse brake. They take in so many, and teach them this brake before they let them take charge of them. 109. Are you speaking from your own knowledge ?—From books. 110. You have had no practical experience yourself?— No. 111. Any information you are now giving to the Committee is simply what you have read in a book ?—Yes. 112. You also said that "the petitioner has been made a scapegoat." Will you kindly give us your opinion what causes you to believe that ?—I considered that after that accident took place all concerned should have been suspended and stood their trial along with me. Instead of that I was the only one pointed at. Had they all been suspended and stood their trial as I stood mine things would have been quite different. 113. What do you mean by all ?—The stationmasters at Bakaia, at Chertsey, and at Ashburton. The weather has not been allowed for, and they could not understand the time I left Chertsey, and the same at Bakaia. Nothing of this has been taken into consideration at all, nor the report of the Springfield guard that caused No. 21 to be late. 114. When you use the word " all " you refer to these three stationmasters ?—Yes. 115. You said you had to spend £160 to show that you were not to blame for the accident ? —■ Yes. 116. How did you spend this?— The money that has been collected for me and my family has had to go towards clearing me of the charge brought against me. 117. The lawyers' fees amounted to some £70 ? —£80; £10 I paid out of my own pocket, £70 by my mates. 118. According to your own showing you have only paid £80 ?—Yes, that is for the lawyers, and the witnesses' expenses were £24. 119. That is £104 ?—Yes. The Chairman : If you have receipts for £160, hand them up to me. 120. Mr. Massey.] You said something about your experience in repairing engines, and so forth. I suppose you simply mean adjusting bearings, and such like ?—Doing any handy work like that about an engine; putting in or taking out pistons, and seeing to the spring-facing of valves: all handy work, or anything like that. I always did my own work before entering the railway service—that is, on my own engines. I used to set them for running myself when in the service. 121. Have you done anything in the way of lathe-work, for instance ? —Yes. 122. You do not claim to be a mechanic ?—No. 123. What is the object of that slotted groove in that casting there ? —I think what they have meant by that is to wear down the outside of the tires level to the tread of the wheel that is run. The only idea I can form of it is when the brake fits right across, that brake wears the tread of the wheel the same as it does on the hinges, and I think the idea for that is to bear on the outside of the tire. When the brake is a continuous one, right through the train, this brake is the best for it. In this case there was only the engine depending on the brake-power at all. We had no other brake-power but the van, and it was not a heavy one. 124. What do you mean by air-brake ?—On the guard's van you can turn a little tap and stop the train. 125. Under the control of the guard, not the engine-driver?— The guard, if he saw danger, could stop his train immediately with the continuous brake, but we have no continuous brake in this colony, although our engines are those new Baldwins, fitted up for these new brakes. 126. Was the engine which you were driving on the night of the accident one of the engines lately imported from America ?—Yes. 127. Were they fitted with the brakes ?—Yes, with the English Westinghouse brakes. 128. Before coming here ?—Yes. 129. Was the line, where the accident happened, level or down-hill?—lt was a little downhill. Before coming to the grade—it is like a dip coming up—about 800 yards from the station it dips off right down to the station. Ido not know exactly what dip it is. 130. It was therefore necessary for you to shut off steam, and apply the brake?— Yes, that night I allowed plenty of room, and could have stopped twice, if the brake had acted. 131. What experience have you had with this particular brake ?—None, beyond what I had had since their introduction. 132. How long had you been using it ? —Not quite three months. 2—l. 6a.

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