DEFICIT, £940.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 19146, 1 November 1927, Page 14

DEFICIT, £940.

RESTAURANT-KEEPER'S FAILURE. MEETING OF CREDITORS. A meeting of the creditors of James i Wright Fyncs, restaurant-keeper, 255 ! Worcester street, was held yesterday j morning, the Official Assignee (Mr A. JW. Watters) presiding. Mr F. D. Sar- | gent appeared for the debtor, and Mr i W. J. Sim appeared for a creditor, and I Mr W. It. Laseelles for the petitioning | creditors, W. Goss and Co. I . i Debtor's Statement. . The debts were set down at £I2S2 Os 3d"; assets £341 10s; deficiency, £D4O 10s .ocl. ; The principal unsecured creditors were: W. Goss and Co., Ltd., £389; Slater, Sargent, ami Dale, £73 10s 2d; T. D. Kcstcven £110; T. Clough. £l-; City Cash Meat. Co., £l4; Bing, Harris, -and Co., £6S; Ballantvnc and Co., £36 14s (id; Dennis Bros., £3l; A. AiVlabic £B7; Tonks, Norton, and Co., £l2 12s; J. E. Owcv-s, £2S; Christchurch City Council, £l7; A. J. ; White mid Co., £lB 6s; Mason, Struthers and Co., £lO 13s; Canterbury Co-operative Poultry Producers, £2l 3s; Cl)ctw.in Sign Co.. £23; Aitchison Steans and C'o. £ll 19s ■ A. WorsJ'old, £l2 4s ; W. Deusburv, £2S; People's .Market, £2l 2s 6d; W. Cunningham, £1o; Olliver and Andrews, £l2 10s 6d; W. Gillespie, £l3 10s.

The secured creditors were: Estate of Miss Nesbitt, £SIO (estimated value and security £1750); Miss Whitlev, £2OB 10s; Mrs C. Curry, Sydney, £400." The bankrupt in his sworn statement set out that about three years ago he purchased a property in Worcester street for £37f>. He had, he thought, in the bank, £2OO at this time and owed no debts. Ho paid £2."5. deposit on the house, and £ISO for a little restaurant business at' No. 17 Victoria street; he never thought how much ho paid for goodwill, but on consideration ho thought that the fittings and furniture would be worth £BO, the balance (£100) representing goodwill. He was a. stonemason by trade, and after purchasing thi Worcester street, property l»c began to improve it, doing a good deal of the work himself. He thought that the Victoria street business was a good one, but he made a mistake. The rent was £3 12s a week, and when he left the premises about 18 months after going into theni, he owed the landlord (Mr Aislabio) about £67 for rent; this was after £2O for fittings had been allowed. For a while he lived j in the Victoria street property, but his daughters came over from Sydney to j help in the business, and they all iived iat tluv' Worcester street property. [ While conducting the Victoria street business he must have spent about half his. time at the construction and additions to the Worcester street property, and after giving up the Victoria street business he continued to do a certain amount of work at the Worcester street property, but was hampered by want of money. The Commercial Bank arranged to allow, him an overdraft of £SOO, but with the manager's consent it went up to £6OO. Since leaving the Victoria street shop he had helped Mrs Gurry l at ' the Black Cat Tearooms, working from 7 a.m. tilL.ll p.m. He received no wages, only his food, as the business could not afford it. The only moneys he had received since giving up the Victoria street business were those received from the bank and those borrowed from Mrs Curry. Bankrupt detailed the additions and improvements he had effected to the Worcester street property. He had ijeen at th'o Black Cat for about twelve montlis. It would be'necessary .for'Mm to refer to the bank pass book to s.ay when thje.money ran out at the bank,...He backed all moneys received by, him from Mrs Curry—these wore all loan moneys. Mrs Curry paid £IOO to Mr Goas on his behalf; he thought it was her own cheque, but it might have gone through his own account. A further payment of £25 to Mr Goss also was provided by Mrs Curry. Both of these payments -were- not gifts,- but 'advanced by way of loan, with no security. There was no security at that time, but later he gave her a third mortgage over, the Worcester street property about twelve months.ago. This mortgage did, not include all the moneys she had' advanced to him up to that time. Since then Mrs Gurry had advanced him different small sums. He did not pay Mrs Curry interest on the'mortgage; instead, it was arranged that Mrs Curry and her two daughters should have the use of the upstairs flat of the Worcester* street property; bankrupt retained the downstairs portion. ,

' Worcester Street Property. Mr Sargent said that there was a likelihood of Mrs Curry agreeing to the discharge of the third mortgage (held by.'hcr) on the Worcester street property. " Mr Sim: There is no equity in it. Mr Sargent said that he thought there was. ■

_ Mr Simi Any suggestion that the creditors will benefit if Mrs Curry surrenders her mortgage is quite illusory Mr Sargent said that some time ago Messrs Jones, McCrostie, Co., Ltd., valued t.ho property at £1400; the first mortgage was for £BOO (£lO interest was owing), and the second, £2OO To Mr O'Connell (A. J. White and Co.), the debtor said that a meeting of™ creditors was held on June 22nd^ Did you then say that you would pay your creditors os in the £, and that you were :getting the money from Sydney.— No. . • You told them that you would do so! —I wish I had; it would be all the better for the creditors. Mr Harrison (Ballantyne and Co.) said that he presided at the meeting referred to which was attended by eighteen , creditors. A /motion- that Mr Fynes should file his petition was lostfive for it and six against it. A motion was agreed to accepting debtor's offer of os in the £, provided it was paid within six months.

Eeplying to Mr Watters, Mr Harrison .said that the unsecured creditors, as set out in a'list before the meeting last year-showed the amount owing to them as £1250, and assets, nil. Pressed to name the friend who had promised to find 5s in the £,' the debtor declined to disclose the name, but, ultimately wrote his name on a piece of paper and handed it to the Official Assignee. Beplying to Mr Watters he said that he had a record of all the moneys he had borrowed; it was in a small penny notebook. Debtor produced a bank pass-book. "Mr Watters','after examining it, said that it related to an account which was closed two years ago. Debtor said that he had received the letter from the Official Assignee asking ' him to produce books, but he had not noticed that request He had the other bank..pass-book, but not with him. Asked to enumerate the books he kept; debtor said that he had'kept a record of the" takings at the shop in Victoria street, and of the money paid on the house; it was a kind of a liary. The only other book mentioned was the • bank pass-book. j

"Not Played the Game." Mr Sim said that the way the matter was that there was-a-strong feofing-that Mr Fynes had not played the game with his creditors, but the