BANKRUPTCY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXV, Issue 123, 26 May 1903, Page 2

BANKRUPTCY.

- -»■ W. M, WOODHBADS KBTATE.

A first general meeting of creditors in the tsiato of WilMam -Miller Wocdhouse, till recently secretary of thSiwmillerb' Association, was h-H in the office cf iho D.O.A. at 11.30 on M.m----d ij'. The bit.krup*'. was in atter.dat.cunder a writ of habetes corpus. Thtr* iwuro pn s :, rit : .Messrs J. S. Medley, D.O.A. (cbaiimat-), Green (Mor-he.d Nursery Co), Eving (Smart' Brof.) Itsader, Alue-, Spenee ("aranikiSiw i millers' Association), Snowball (min ag»r cf Si'h and Doar Oj.), T. S.j Wes'on (r preserving T, S. junior), and Mr Mil me, watching p:o----ceiinga for the binkrup\ The bmknipt-lnndel in the fallowing statement. : f a't<ivat> my present position (1) To iev. rj and almost fatal )llnes3 in Augus" liHt when my brai' b c-.mo pualyseJ, aiid for s-m > time I lost all mental power (2) To tho actiocf tho Sawoille s' Ass cia'ioa inOO f . and November last forbiddtrg my baing interested in any business save their own and the Stratfjrd E'ectr'c L ; uh Co. This di-privrd mn of fome £3OO <• r £4OO per annum. Th> outside business I had really enter.-d upon -iththe sole view of paying c-ff what I owed them. I was therefora working in their interests, which cf course they did not know, and at the time I c.uld not expl-iia ; (3) To my defa'ci'ions to the Associaion. Ketl> must h.va been itisuffic.'eu'ly it.formal of my position wh n he arijud cited nu a binkiup 1 -, and said I was irrevccibly insolvent at that time. This I deny In Court I w..s revir aska.l, nfithr was any statement made of my affairs, My statement shows liabili ies some £4OOO, and a«sots rarniog by my own bus : ness, rot including any outtiie busiopss, £743 per annum. I hive e.i'erid more ful'y into matte s in my stat»mtn', wbxh I shall avk p»rrn : ssioa to read in Court. This is a stVemmt cf ray atl'rrs on Miich 18, as I believo it. I have no accounts, books, or anything nsw to guido me. What has h lppsncd I know not; neither am I ro<p liable.

The D.O.A. Nad tho above statement, and stated he had g >ne to Sswtforl and taken possession tf the b.-nk-tupVd hous3 and furni ure, und h\d placed a tenani in tin house. Th« bankiupt had a statement, which he desired to read.

Mr Sper:ce said it was important to have a balance sheit before the meetin j». Thi-y must h ivo a list of creditors and debtors; they should have the pjtiiioncf afl'airs first. Mr Wtston thought bmkrupt should be put on oath and some questions aske<, which wculJ eulighfc.:n taeuiceV ing in the kfiVrs of the istite. The D.O.A. tail bankrupt wante! to lead a statem.nt, which was in the form of a narrative.

Mr Sp nc* eaid the meeting wanted the lis j of cieiiora ar.d deb'ois, and this should havj been filed within three days. Tha D.O.A, poin'ed oub th\t bankrupt stated he coal 1 cot m k i cu 1 ; a baljcca-shac-t boo meh> had nofcacciss to b-'s books.

Mr Milone sv.d bankrupt was not fighting his creditors. He was willing to m ke out a s'atmant if he hid lecess to his boiks. He had only bien adjulicatel a bank'upt oi Wid lis", and had no time to make a statement. If b'nk-upt had acce-stoli* bo-ks he would be ablo tomtkeouia stitcm'n^.

The DO A, thin sa'ei In would swar the bankrupt, and allow him to read the narrative he hid prtpired, and a!g) to allow questions being asked of him.

DANKttUPr's STATEME.VT. I came to Stratf rJ i i Apiil, 189(5, to manage a Co-opera'ive Siwmi'lrs' Ass<viann on their lines, tut after a fjw months they agreed to alopt my system. Tho present priMof tiraS>r U ia groat measure attnbutiHle to that system, a ri-e of 3s per 100 h.v'.ng aken place during tint p riod, moaning an inori used p:otitto tin sawtiii'lers cf XI 8,000 per annum. lowed money, when I came to Stratford, rivers s aad illness in \Yoliiig'OD, and to pressure for payment of his 1 attribute my fist wrong do'ng. [ went into outside speculation to mak-< money to enable restitution of my defioits and I should hive accomplished my purpose had not the Asiooia'ion forbidden me doing business outside i heir own and that of the S'ratford Electric Light Oompiny. They did not know and I could not cxp'ain Gh« I was working in their interests. 1 think my s'at-ment prov s tint but foillness and thesawmidirs' veto Isbouli have repaid them and all credi ors iu full. I was-arning stristly in m; own brsi'iess at that time snrai .£6OO to £703 a year, aud in 1892 mule over £BOO. Through overwork and worry my health gave wjy in August, my brain becoiatng p irthlly paralis d. I obtained leave of but could go awiy and rest with my defalcations bdbind. At that t'me I b.lievod I owed the Associatioa X7OO and I b >rrowed that amount to rr piy it and a fO|iv smaller creditors, and went aw.iy. b.'liecing I was a char man. I understand the stwmillers sta'e that ro payments were made by mo at that time. Lot ihem take the iot.il ra Lvay and , public works accounts debits oa Ist August, 1902, aadtb.it owiag at the I time of my bankruptcy and lot them ! g*t a return from the G jveroment of all remittances to the Assoc : ation after August Island that witl tell them who spejki the truth. After my return from the holiday little money was looming from th 6 Government and whit did come was the most recant invoice?. It dawned on me that foraathing was wrong and that, and the sawmilleis veto, drove me ill ajj-n'o. That money must hive been piid and I suppose

gone through me, but where it ins gone I have no knowledge or remembrance. I have neither given know-1 ingly or sowed aw.iy ono panpy, and yet i 1; appears thit darin<; three y. ars I have spent some £4200. I hivj speat money fre.Jy, hut tot r Ct<!e : sly or extravagantly. My houai allowance w.is £2 10s a wok, I paying extra for lighting and firewjod. Beyond ai occasional present of apxind or so to my wife tint is my total househo'd expenditure. Duting my married 1 f» ray wife has not cjst ma £lO in dross or any extravagance beyond a short holiday. If I had had any idea of insolvency or criminal proceedings in last I hid £7OO ia my pocke; and could diave gone io Hong Ivong or elsewhere, but I s'nyoi u-ni diJ my best to piy all 1 owed, which I could t havß done if ltffc a'one. Sj confident < was I of this, that last Sop'etnbar I re- 1 signed my situa'ion as from April ' 30, hj, fully expecting by t ; ia f . time toi' havorealised mid p*id them up. How-'. f'V.-r my ovn c.irifn-sioi. unablx . i to beat' %l\p. wti'ftin a ; nl my. sentence s;oppsd that, It ia hupo?*i!>le', < for irie io my present position to make' (

fin abfio'utdy exa:t Ktateaei.t <f my nff irs up to cU'e, 1 u' I have appsi ded a stit m >r.t up to Mar:h I.B'. How matters have gone Biuoa I luve no means of ascertaining. Juigo Ke'ilf said is wis obvium I was bavkrupt in March last, I distinctly d"ny that I was then irrov<cibly b:nknip\ Th sta'ement app-ided is about ly tnie as fir ns I can toll. I append ihaieti ray explanations. If m/ ere'i'.'its aitnot Raiffi d trey cm quest'on m" much as'htiy plojfo. I'll t the, Asso ciatioii did nut ao."pt £BOO j-mian etil 'thin teams fo mo liks a fix d detorrui >a'ion on thi-i:' part to rui i me, bu h j, il my health is spared my time will con:e 'yov. I bi:-,r no ill-wil abut my rcn tence, which I deserved, but (.hi* eub s quent persecution which is draggin im and my affiirs again bef re th public ii cowardly, conterap'ible, and aripardonabli under ths c : rcuimtince!< Tjd batkiupt 'hnn rad (he f >!lowin; statemant of as-its and liabilities: Lia'TilitifP.—Bawmilk-ts' As ociatioi £1500; Malonn, McVeigh ard Ander am, siy, £SO ; T. S. Weiton, junr., art' : interest, .£735; Simrt N.J. Ki-p, £52; W, Livett, £l9; .Stc-wnri (Wellington), £25 ; Mo'sbo>r< N'urs ry Co, £l2; A. Woodlsmd, £100; ha f overdraft liuik of New Z inland (Wii:i>»mflon and Co., £1250 , £625 ; hilf Hima on Koru propetty (£1000), ! £500; Str.itford Building S.ciety, £270. ! I'o-ai, £3959.

Ase s. Half share Williamson and Company, Pembroke-road mill(£2800), £I4OO ; hilf share K-ru mill (£3000), £1500; housi ands'ctionat S ritford,! £6BO, shsra aero scion Pem-broke-road andMiraudi-stteet (£200), £100; 4 acre?, freeho'd, Pembrokcroid, £200; goodwill 3| acre* Juliet a reet-, Stratford, £100; office furni-tu-e. £2O; gooiwill office losobcll, £100; household furniture, £SO; shates in eocie'y, £25. Total, £4175. E> im ted surp'us £216. Butktupt submitted an rxplanatory statement as to 'ho abovo it?me, showing hov the amounts wfre arrived at. With regard lo tin amount of asset under tbe he.'ding of Koru he stated 1.0 had no legal titli to an interest ii. thai propetty and that if this it a m wae omitted there would ba a deficit: of £7Bl o- ■?. dirifcnd of 15i 6J in the£. Thouj'n hi l;»d put no money in'othi' venture it understrod he would do so late-, the partnership bung a ptivate u der„ta!idin>! to av.id the of the AsFtclati'in. As toany m rilright of ownership i'. was not for him to consider. The siwmillers had declined his (Her und-ra tiust de das they want d law, wti h they-co.ild have and woul 1 o them in that all hcrud, VVill.'atnson raigtr, and he hoped he vrou'd, k«rp the Kompnpeity, as !:e ("'aukrnpt) had giv«n Willi ims'in trouble enonjjli already. llreckoned that ufte- re left the As ociitiot his iinnuil income woul I lnvb:o!i £I3OO, and hi citcluhd as follows: - " This is tin fir.it oppjitunify I luve had during or sine; my tiialcf op uing ray mouth, and th'jopportunity to do so is d/jw tho on'y (hiog I have to th ink the sawmilhrs for, and I take this opportunity of doi' g so." At this i-tigi Sir Malone s<id th> i-tatf meut had bt>en prepared without, his concirrer.cj and was such that he would )> .vo to con-ider h ,- s positiot'. Binkrupi acd Mr M*lone then wiih-di-evand on re'uriiiog the binktupt faid he would withdiaw certaia allegations con'aiat-d in the ata'ement,

D.ibtor was then examhel at length by Mr Spence as to the tenure on which various properties were held and B8 to certain liabilities Same .£3OO hid bosn pjid by Williamson by way of royalty. B nikrupt stated be had 40 sbarea in tha E'ectric Light Company, about 20 fu'ly paid up. 'J he furniture so'd by his wife wjb entirely her own. Admitted owing G. Syme £lB, r.o"; mentioned in s'atatueQf.

The D.O.A. reported having ternporn y let the house at -Stratford. In regard to books of account, d.bt n r s»id ht had nmeof his own. Had two b?nk ace mats, 010 at Nitional and t:u->t arcuU'it at Bank of New Zealand.

A long di-c jssion ensu'd on a motion by Mr. Wp nco to adjourn '.he mee ing to Stra'.fjtd oa Monday next. Fimlly the motion was withdrawn, and a motion by Mr. T. 8. Wistinto adjourn the meeting ti 1 Monday at the oflise of the D.O. A., New Plymouth, was carritd This t'.rnn'nilcd 'lie pmnordings,