GEORGE ROBINSON CHEESEMAN.]

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I.—4a.

109. As an old miner, what is your experience of the effect of working long hours in a coalmine on a man's health?—lt affects some men differently. I have had bad headaches, and so on. 110. Do you think the health of an average coal-miner is quite equal to that of an ordinary person working on the surface ?—No, I would not think so. 111. Do you think the length of life of an average coal-miner is equal to that of a person working outside in the open air'? —l would not think so. 112. So that your opinion is that working long hours in a coal-mine has an injurious effect on a man's health? —Yes, I think so. 113. Hon. Mr. McGowan.] With regard to the average length of life, does a miner make the same money as an average man working outside, or more ?—I think he makes more. 114. Would the average miner be satisfied with the average pay received outside?—No. 115. He gets more money because it is an unhealthy occupation ?—Yes, a little more—very little more. Some weeks more and others less. 116. But taking the average ? —Yes, he gets more. 117. Did you ever work in a quartz-mine?—Not in New Zealand. 118. Anywhere ? —Yes ; in Australia, at a reef called Campbell's reef. 119. What depth were you down? —600 ft. from the surface. 120. How long did you work there?—Five or six years. 121. You have had five or six years' experience as a quartz-miner?—Yes. 122. What was the custom when you were working at Campbell's reef? —Eight hours a day. 123. Have you ever worked in a coal-mine in which there was a travelling-way that did not interfere at all with the trucking or the hauling-engine ? —No. 124. You know that there are coal-mines that have travelling-ways in which the men are not in any danger to life or limb ?—Not to my knowledge. 125. Mr. J. Allen.] At your mine does the deputy have to inspect the faces at every change of shift before the men go in—l do not mean the first one ?—Before every shift. 126. He goes in and inspects each face before the new shift comes in ? —Yes. 127. How long does that take him in your mine?—About an hour. 128. And no man can go in until the deputy has done that ? —That is so. 129. Therefore there is the loss of an hour ? —He goes in before the miners. 130. How many hours does the deputy work?—Eight hours. 131. Mr. Guinness.] When you were speaking of working for five or six years at Campbell's reef in Victoria, how many years ago did you refer to ?—About thirty-two years ago. 132. Mr. R. McKenzie.] How long have you been working in the Brunner Mine ?—About twenty-five years, off and on. 133. Mr. Bennet.] What would be the average earnings of the miners at the mine you are working in at the present time ?—I should think, from 12s. to 15s. a day at the present time ; but they are doing extra well now. 134. Mr. R. McKenzie.] Take the Brunner Mine for the last five years: How much a year would the average earnings of a miner be?—l speak for myself, from £2 10s. to £3 a week, on an average. 135. It would not be 12s. or 15s. a day on an average ?—Oh, no. 136. Mr. Guinness.] You say that from 12s. to 15s. a day is the rate the miners are making at the present time at the Brunner Mine : are they able to work full time ? —Yes ; they are working full time—six days a week, not five —forty-eight hours. 137. You are working full time now: has that been for any length of time?—No, only these last few months. 138. Mr. J. Allen.] You say that the men are working forty-eight hours? —That is, six days a week. 139. You work forty-eight hours in a week ?—Yes, 140. How much a day is that ?—Eight hours each day, including Saturday. 141. You work eight hours on Saturday ?—Yes, at the Brunner Mine. 142. Do you know what the law is—that you are working against the law ? —No, we are not working against the law. 143. By law there is a half-holiday ?—We do not get any there. 144. No holiday on Saturday at the Brunner Mine at all?—No. Geoegb Robinson Cheeseman examined. (No. 6.) 145. The Chairman.] What is your name? —George Robinson Cheeseman. 146. Where do you live ? —At Dunedin. 147. What is your occupation ?—I am general manager of the Lovell's Flat Coal Company. 148. Mr. J. Allen.] Have you read Mr. Guinness's Bill?—I have. 149. What would be the effect of the Bill if it were passed ?—The effect to us and, in fact, to the majority of the coal-owners in Otago would be to shorten the hours, decrease our output, and therefore increase our cost of production to the extent of about —well, it depends on the time the men take for meals, but, reckoning that at about half an hour, it would pan out at about oneseventh. In our own case (the Lovell's Flat Company) we can put out only a certain quantity per day, and if we take half an hour per day off it will decrease our output very considerably— by from 10 to 17 tons a day —and therefore will increase our on-cost by about the same percentage. 150. Will you explain to us why it will increase your on-cost ? —lt is a matter of haulage. Our mine having a shaft, we can only run up a certain number of boxes per hour. If you are working the haulage eight hours a day you run out 80 tons in a day, and if you take an hour off the eight you will do only 70 tons.