UNKNOWN

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 272, 24 April 1914, Page 6

UNKNOWN

MAXAdINC lilltl ' ioi> - Oi'El ATIU..H.

SOME I'L'Cl Li.-.:'. I)Ui.V.S. London, Match i->. Tin; public enquiry held .n London ;e----fore the Registrar Jn liankrupicy as H> tlic promolio:! aim c-.:.a;i- 5 o: I!; - N.-'A Zealand Oilfields, Lid., now in I".i• sii.l-i lion, brought to light soma pro: i-i'ii: ll.*;s which will strike tin- ;i\"t-;-;i!ji; imjiiiiii ■.-r cisi.llv mindcu mini us decidedly pu-u.iai. Mr Ceo. Mii.di.'iniKl. inan:ig'ii.\' dlr.-cCr. was the only witness ixniiiinod ;it tnc v.\(juiry, but it-is |::i.-s:h:i' thai, mure will be heard of the affairs oi IhU moribund company in "anoth,r jiias-i- later on. The Jic]iiiilatiuii lucouni showed liabilities i-2.-i.17, assels valn.it at. £:;7.10.3, and a delieieney ot illiT.liti Willi regard to contributories.

Replying to tlio Official R'-ceivcr al the inijuiry. .Mr Macdonald said lit* look part ill the promotion of the New Zealand company as repr:-elit'iig <rrla.ll companies, and he acted livst as director anil subsequently as managing director. Tlic company was formed in April, 1910, with a nominal capital of £i;il),l!;;0, in shares of 2s each, lo acquire certain coi- ; cessions to .search for p-lroleitm near ; Oishorne. One of the original directors. \ was Major-Ooneral Sir Norman It. Slew- ; art, who resigned in May, lull. All the directors hold the qualifying .-hares ol i £11)0.

Mr Burgess: Are von aware that (he M.T.M. Svudicate p:iicf S'r Xoniutn.Slewart's shares! Witness'replied that he was not aware of that fact, although ;t appeared so from the company's letter book. The company was promoted bv the. M.T.M. Syndicate. L!d.. and <i.\i. i Oilfield's, Ltd. The ) .'i'.M. .Syndicate was registered in L'OS wiih a nominal capital of £IOO. to carry on linanuia! business and primarily to deal with a Mexican oil proposition, which, however. did not come into being. The CM. Oilfields, Ltd., was registered in 1000, with a nominal capital of ±2H,nOO. Witness was its managing director, a'.id was entitled to a share up to 25 p»r cent of any profits made on its promotions. THE NEW ZEALAND PROPEETi" consisted of 150,080 acres. It was introduced to witness by Mr V. (I. Clark. The property had been obtained by Jir \V. Clayton from tin: various owners and tenants. Witness paid Mr Clark £IOO for three months' option to purchasethe property for £02.00.') -..2000 cash and fiiO.OOO in Jr....' paid snares if .1 company to be lorn..' i. lie assigned til*; benefit "of the eyntr ~: t" Ur.' CM. Oilfields.

Asked why lie p. Lai '.villi the option, Mr Maedonahl pi,;::..i! out tiiat he was interested in Hie profits nude by CM. ■ Oilfields. The lat.iar c, iipviy sold their rights in the concession to the .M.T.M. Syndicate for £>i.3(Kil! in its 1 ' and shares, thus making a profit of £". I) ,(l. On th-' other hand, they si; r.' £.'.;;, iin launching the Now Zeukin.l company. The M.T.M. Syndicate in its turn sold the property to the Nvw /.clan I emiipa::y for £110,750 in cash ?-<\ .-.litres, thtf-mill-ring a profit of £2.3 V; 0. 'The'Official I\eeeivar : n,...'a , .e Ji • price paid" to the original yenaei":-■--:. es, and the pro;.".-rty was worth r L The vendors undcriy.-.mL*" subscription-. '■-:• £70,1)')(), and as the amount \\;\- over s-.'.bscribi'tl bv the public the M.T.M. .ayndi.-at: were not called upon to take any shares ii* return for their lonimissiou of £5200. The first business transaction by the New Zealand Company was to underwrite £.IOOO of the shares of Algerian Oilfields, Ltd. "GOOD BUSINESS OR 1 The Official Receiver: Tmit was not the main object for whicti the, company was formed?—Xo; but the lioard entertincd it on my recommendation. 1 knew a good deal of the Algerian possibilities, and thought it good business for the company to take up. In October, 1010, witnessed introduced to the Hoard a proposal for the company to acqui'-e the assets of the Gisborne Oil Company, Ltd., at the price of £7.300. A cheque for that amount was drawn by the secretary and signed by witness as managing director and Sir Norman Stewart as chairman. The Official Receiver: Why did yo:. send tfiat cheque to bir Nonnar. Stewart for signature';— Because he was the handiest, I suppose. Was it not because he was the least capable member of the Board? —Ko. Was he not your nominee?—No . Had .he previously signed chequ a ...n your application in the same way? —Yes, once, j What did you do with that cheque for £7.300? —I paid it into my own ac- , count.. Asked what became of that money, witness at first said that he drew £1:i.30 against it at once for the purpose of the company; but pressed on the point, acknowledged that he then had more than sufficient of the company's money in hand to cover that £l;).30, and that a , portion of the £7.300 went in payment to the Algerian Oilfields, Ltd. No part j of it went in the purchase of the Gisborne property, which was dropped upon an unfavorai'le rep. at being receive! regarding it. Witness did not hand back the £7.300 to the company, bM-ause lie thought that he might, as managing director, utilise, it in making handsome profits for the company. The Official Receiver: Do you suggest you were the banker to the company?— Xo. The directors requested him on December 20, 1911, to repay the amount, but he then had only about £IOOO lo his credit, and he could not comply with the. request. They afterwards pressed repeatedly for the money, but up to the present he had not repaid them it. A COMPLACENT CH.iIiIMAX. I He was made bankrupt in July. !!)11. i and owed the New Zealand Oilfields the : £7500. Mr Maedonahl added that arrangements were made for the canceli lation of the debt by various shares and guarantees. In December, 11)10, the board j were asked to lend £12.501) to the (i.M. I Oilfields, which was then engaged ill the flotation of a Russian company. Had that promotion been successful witness M'ould have earned a commission of j £IOO,OOO. I; The Official Receiver: Your company would have nothing to do with it?—"No; I they turned the proposition down." But in spite of the Board's refusal Maedonahl | admitted that he obtained a cheque for ' £4OOO from the secretary and got Sir f -Norman Stewart to sign for it, although the latter was at the meeting when the board refused to lend the tl-2,500. The £4OOO was repaid in March, 11)11, with interest, and meantime the company held security for the full amount of the loan. Re-examined, the witness said that the profits made by the CM. Oilfields were disclosed in the prospectus of the New Zealand company. He hud never received one penny in respect of the 25 per cent, charge of profits to which he was I entitled in the CM. Oilfields.