Breach of the Bankruptcy Act.

Feilding Star, Volume XVII, Issue 37, 12 August 1895, Page 2

Breach of the Bankruptcy Act.

(Per Press Association.) "Wkli.inutom, August 10. Tlio Stipendiary Mnyistrate had cons:dei'tible difficulty to day in dealing with the ease of Thomas Dickson, charged with a broach of the B inkmpicy Act in having failed to kc'-p proper books. Dlckson hud been remanded for the l'robation officer's report and this was i'avouiable to him. Mr Martin said this was the first case of tlie kind under the Act, as in all previous cases there had been an element of fraud. The Crown I'ioscciUnr hud stated t Hit there was no nicest ion of fraud in tiie p: c ent case, but merely i^nc ranee of the proper way in which books should be kept. lie (Mr Martini h d made perto.r.il iiTjuiriea and had foi nd that there was tome truth in iho accu-cd's statement that the books of the linn in which he loirnt his trada and the books of retail grocers generally, were kept in a similar manner to his own. The difficulty was to know what he was to do with accused. The Legislature had nude no distinction betwtca fraudulent book keeping and the Djero i^noi'finca of a proDsr sj^stein. He thought the only thing to do was to bind accused in his own recognisance of £10 to come up for sentence when called upon.