1.—13.

26

r E. E. STARK.

221. Now, you have told us a good deal about what goes on in the United States: do you know what has taken place in New Zealand after the introduction of electricity--do you know anything about Wellington?— Yes. 222. What is the working-capacity of the works in Wellington? —They have a station which started some twelve years ago, and they have a system which is now absolutely obsolete as regards modern practice. 223. Can you tell us what the capacity of those works is? —Somewhere about 1,400 or 1,600 electric horse-power. 224. Do you happen to know the average quantity required for lighting purposes? —I do not happen to know the average quantity, but I know the average peak of the load, which is about 500 amperes at 2,200 volts. 225. What is that in electrical horse-power? —About 1,400 or 1,500. 226. You cannot give us the average quantity used? —No, but 1 know the quantity is less than half that —the average quantity is less than half that. 227. We may take it that 600-horse power is about the average amount used day by day: is that the fact? —I would say it is less than that. It is less than half 1,400-horse power by my simple observation of the plant. 228. Then, you happen to know that that power has been available for sale to consumers for fourteen years? —I know that the system is a system under which power cannot be economically used. 229. Do you know that it is on sale at 3d. per unit, and has been available at that price for the last dozen years? —I know it is sold at 3d. a unit. 230. And do you know that for that time only 400-horse power has been supplied? —If I went to the company and asked for 1,000-horse power they could not deliver it to me, and if I asked them for 100-horse power they could not do it in one bulk —their system will not allow it. 231. According to you, less than 600 electrical horse-power is in use in Wellington on an average, and it can be produced at 3d. a unit? —Threepence a unit is £70 per annum for horsepower. Do you wonder that the people do not bite? 232. Are you not aware that, so far as fuel is concerned, coal is much dearer here than in Dunedin? —I am not aware of it. In fact, I know what the price of coal is here. 233. In your very interesting book, which I call the "red book" to distinguish it, you tell us a great many facts, and the figures or estimates throughout the book are practically based on having 4,000-horse power available for sale? —Yes. 234. You do not commit yourself to the estimates made by Mr. Duncan on 6,000-horse power? —I have not in that book. 235. You do not consider that it is reasonably likely that you will have this 6,000-horse power to dispose of? —Our present intentions and contracts are based on 2,000-horse power. It is beyond my province to say what the policy of my board may be. 236. We have a great many figures and some estimates based upon this 6,000-horse power: have you gone into the figures in regard to the cost of landing 6,000-horse power in Dunedin? — Yes. 237. You do not do it in this red book? —I may not have done it in that red book, but I have done lots of things outside the red book. 238. Can you tell us where you expect to get the 120 heads of water that Mr. Duncan spoke about? —Out of the Waipori. 239. It is not in the Waipori. According to your figures the minimum supply is eighty heads, and you would have to increase it by half. How would you do that? —With storage by dams. 240. How many dams? —A set of three, possibly. 241. Has it not been properly estimated? —We do not own the land for it yet. 242. Have you any idea as to the quantity of water you will require to store? —I have. 243. How much? —An acre-foot of water at our pressure will last us somewhere about twentyminutes. Now, it is a mere calculation of running the number of twenty minutes there are in a month and then we have the acre-feet. 244. I have already made the calculation, and 1 will put it to you and ask you to say whether it is correct: Is it not a fact that in order to supply these forty heads to make the 120 heads for twenty days you would have to' get a dam or storage for 432,000,000 gallons of water? —I cannot give the figures in gallons. I figure in acre-feet. I could, no doubt, do it if it were necessary.

• Tuesday, 23rd August, 1904. Examination of E. E. Stark continued. (No. 8.) 1. Dr. Findlay.] Mr. MacGregor asked you whether, in allowing for 6,000-horse power, you would not require to store water at the Waipori Falls? —Yes. 2. Have you fully considered that question ?--The question has been fully considered some time. 3. Have you prepared a statement showing what storage will be required for a thirty-days service?—l was asked to give it in Imperial gallons. It is our custom to figure it in acre-feet, but I have reduced that to Imperial gallons, and prepared a statement which shows the acre-feet required and the quantity in Imperial gallons also: "Given 40 heads, required the storage-capacity for a 20-day service of the third 2,000 k.w. capacity.—Let us assume that our peak load (which is the extra quantity required) above 80 heads will last 1 hour, 2 hours, 5 hours, or 10 hours.