A CURIOUS BUSINESS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1630, 23 December 1912, Page 6

A CURIOUS BUSINESS.

; v TRADING BY POST, y £ ; : CREDITORS : WANT FULLEST .IN-' ;■■.■'.;.• .-.;■ ' QUIRT. ~, . , : I A 'meeting of the creditors of Norro'w ; and Co., in liquidation, was held before : ' the Official Assignee, ,-.3lri A. Simpson* on, The creditors expressed.a.wish '■ that the proceedings should be published ; ' as fully as possible; .'.The company car- ;.- ried on a correspondence business supplyf: ing watches, boots, and shoes,' and wear- ' iiiß apparel. . It; was formed/in ,June_.of I . this year "to acquire and -take over, as a :.' going concern and carry on the business of i. general mail order merchants carried on i by Norman M'L«od and Francis Godolpi -hin Rowe, under the style of (1) Norman I Franck and Co.. (2) The Scottish Tailors, !' (3) The British Watch Co., and_ (•]) Nori- row and'.Co., and other objects." ■ The nominal capital of the company is :. divided into 3003 shares of £\ each. ■ Tho amount'of the-capital paid urvor i.: credited as paid np.amounts t0,£2253. The : : company was incorporated on June 12, ; 1912.. .. ..■:-. .■.-.'.■ : - 'Mr. Eowc, who was present, was repre : ! tented-by-Mr. Barnett, his solicitor; he v was not'pUt'iipdtt oath and ho made no :'■'statement. ; V ~-;■■ ■ ~ V '~ : . The Official Assignee produced a bundle t>f letters,-some containing; money orders, ' which wero addressed to Norrow and Cn. ' JPhey-were of quite recent date.'He ex- : : plained to the .creditors that there was a great mass' of-such letters at the com- ■ pony's offices, Customhouse Quay.', Hβ ' described these offices as' being luxuriously ■'. furnished. He also read a number of .■■,■■' letters addressed -.to' the firm; He ..said ■ they were specimens of many more that were lying at the firm's offices'. They con- ■ tained- various complaints from clients ' concerning .'goods ..received. '• • : . Eowe, when questioned by. creditors, 1 Eaid he'came from Sydney and ho was one ; of the three shareholders'who took up , one share'in- the additional capital ot JM. ' •' The other.shareholders .who took a share :'■■-■ were George Eaton, Sydney, and Frances 1 ;Agries Abram".. Miss Abram was. now '■' '- retriry, also manageress.. Miss Abram held ; . a first debenture bond over the ■ company. Tt was,dated October,,s and . Vas secnred.on "the stock-in-trade lands i : premises works' plant' and effects both i present and future of the company." There (■■■ were no trustees. The D.I.C. hold a'bail- ;':' irioht bvnr the office furniture. There , was '■ ■ ■ b valuable desk included in the furnituroj :■ buttKis had been purchased on :the'tim<s ! -paynient. system. .'■•. .' ■'.■:■'. - : Mr. Rowe further stated-that no stock i ; tad 'been moved 'nor'va-i anj.'fctpijc' out on '. .'approval'when; stock-was taken. ■.Tho stock; was always under'lock and key... .The.; !.'money. v received was banked in . Miss j ; ; lAliram's'name.v >Miss.Abram was put in !'- as 'receiver.' ;.'■'.: " .''.' .', : : .. '■■■' '•• Questioned further by the Official As- | i.-eignee,he said that there were Tcceipts for < the ; that had passed .throuerh the. ' -banking account ivhich was ■-;-■■ (Closed , .'on November. 9;' He denied giving ':. .Instructions to the Postmaster-General not

'-. -".: to -deliver letters to the company's offices 1 ~'■[ :while the .bailiff -was in possession. Nor ;'■' V3id he boast to the bailiff that the letters ■ :,,would ; not be deliveredl'to the'..office while ~.' the'bailiff was in' possession. The com- :• a pany had its private letter box at the ;;;.: Post Office. ' ::■''• ":<-■ ,; ,-. 'Iβ answer,to a- statement- Ly- Mr. . iSamuel,' one: of the creditors, that the ■ ..public-should be placed in possession of :. the details of the., company's trading I: - methods, the' Official Assignee '.said lie'..thought that, would be-so.when Mr.- , Rowe .-■ was. examined ; by'the Court, which, so : : V: far' as -he himself, could see,, was-inevit- : : able.; With regard : to the'correspondence, .. it'had apparently vail come from, poor . : working people in the country, who wrote ;'•' thinking-they could buy -through: this: : . ; ifirm !cheap : clothes, boots, and vratche's. ,' :' The letter*.' containing" money were com- ,!- ing in at the rate of 14 or 15 a day. As '.'..■ all .contained money he wanted..to, ldipw, '■'■'. wh'atwas to:bedone about them.; . fjorrie were-in ..payment for goods or. in. the es- -. pectation'of,receiving goods. He was , glad} . -. to ''."say : that he ~was-:now- able .to . obtain : "■ from. , the,Post Office correspondence ad-

dressed to.,Norrow and Co. Some, of the people .who. had sent money_ for clothes wanted the clothes for Christmas'. , "As ppon.as I.could,-".continued Mr. Simpson, "I got .the Court to.issue'instructions for the 'appointment of. an official receiver. You.can have somo idea of the extensive character of. the business by. the voluminous correspondence'that, lias- come to mo since • I was able. to., obtain the ,cor-'

respondence during l tho.past, few-days." Mr. Samuels," representing' Rothschild: and C 0.,. then moved: "That 'the.'.Official; Liquidator take, the.- necessary steps to: have. Mr.. Rowe: examined by: the. Court,; and also take the necessary ;steps to bring Miss Abrani ■ before- : thef Court for examination." .;■ .'',' . :'■ . ■'.'■'':"■:■'■ - ' -.' ' Mr. Lewi9 "seconded this motion, .which : was carried unanimously.-. ' ',' '' Mr. ;Barnett. thought that if the Court were 'going.'to .examine Mr. Rowe there was no necessity for the Official Assignee to ask. him;, any .further questions." But the .'.Official' Assignee .further, questioned Mr. Rowe concerning the'shareholders of thecompany." ". Mr: Rowe" said that most of. the' shareholders were - in; Australia.

The. Official Assignee: But yoii have.no 'shareholders,;.. , T]iero,;avo'.only you two— [

Miss-Abram and yourself.Mr.'.'.Rbwe: There are three otter; shareholder's. We took- over tho liabilities ofNorman Frahck. "rind' Co.: and "we sold that business at 11. good profit to the. new company. .-.....■. --..-.- - ■-■■- The.OffibiaL "Assignee- Tou; transferred.

:Mr..Eowe: ."N6;:we sold.it." As manager he "was down for £0 a week, but he ■only drew -k'3.' --Miss Abram:was-, down; for S3 a'week',.but'she only drew--.£2 10s. "■To the Official -Assignee Mr. Rowe said

•Miss Abrani sighed .all cheques. ■•-. . In. conclusion, Mr.-Rowe -said that iNor-, row'a'nd'Company"carried on at a good profit at first, but latterly had been carried on at a loss. The meeting, closed after the assisnee liad undertaken to consult his solicitors about the case. . He would not tell Mr. Rowe he must not leave New Zealand in the meantime, but if he did so it would ile at his own risk.