A BANKRUPT DOCTOR.

Taranaki Daily News, 1 May 1920, Page 9

A BANKRUPT DOCTOR.

dogged by misfortune. The meeting of creditors in the Mnkrupt estate of Dr. James Collii a, medical practitioner, of Wellington, formerly of Invercargill, l'a tc-a and Waipukurau, which was convened by the Ofiiciul Assignee (Mr. S. Tansley) of Wellington, , last week, lapsed for want of a quorum. 1 Mr, Tarasley was in thq. chair, and Mr. * H. F. O'Leary represented the bankrupt. 8 . Only two creditors were present. In his stati ment tiled with the Assignee ® bankrupt stated that he -commenced practice in Invercargill, in February, 1912, with no capital, and indebted to j J his father tothe extent of between £501) and £OOO, at the rate of ti per cent, compound interest. In addition to purchasing furniture, books, instruments, and a motor car, he had to pay £l2 10s ;i month rent to his father. Within the first year of liis practice his wife contracted an illness which confined her to bed for fourteen months. This illness necessitated the employment of a nurse, ! and subsequent treatment of Mrs. Collins in a privaite hospital. In his second year of practice bankrupt himself was laid aside with illness for over a month, which necessitated his recuperation for seven weeks in Rotorua, in order to recover his hearing. In October, 1917, he was distrained for a year's rent, and in settlement of this he paid the bailiff £l5O. In the following month a writ was issued on'him for the amount of his liability to his father, which include! the original debt, and the rent owing, the whole amount accumulating at 7 per cent, compound interest. This totalled about £I3OO, and to save publicity he confessed judgment, although he resented being charged compound interest, especially on overdue rent. Shortly after this a bankruptcy notice was issued to him from the same source, and he paid off all the outside creditors that he could. He left Invercargill in December, 1917, and volunteered for military servic; abroad, but was refused on the scone of his health. This left him out of practice, and with no cap'tal. In i ebruary, 1018, he took up a practice in Patea, but in November of the same year he and his wife and child were down with influenza. All three had only lately recovered from the after effects of the malady. Not having enough capital to purchase the Patea practice, bankrupt had to relinquish it. He then spent some months, with only enough capital to finance his immediate needs, in seeking a suitable practice. Ultimately he settled in Waipukurau, but on account of opposition coming to the town and on account of back debts he became more and more embarrassed. Eventually he was compelled by pressure by various creditors to sell his car and file. Bankrupt put in a statement showing that his annual income had increased from £270 in 1912 to £1557 in 1918. Bankrupt's debts to unsecured credittors were set down ait £2301, and his only assets were £1055 worth of book debts, estimated to produce £7OO. The principal creditors were,: .fames Collins, senr., £1300; Bank of New South Wales, Patea, £59; Adams, draper, Patea, £7O; Lewis and Co., drapers, Invercargill, £55; Glasgow, Wanganui, motov car account, £B2 10s; Cronin's .Motor Works, Patea, £4O.