LAING AND SONS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9050, 27 March 1908, Page 5

LAING AND SONS.

BANKING COMPANY'S PETITION. Received March 26, 8.51 a.m. LONDON, March 25. Barclay and Company, Limited, bankers, who are creditors to the extent of a quarter of a million, are petitioning for the cowmulsory winding up of Sir James Laing and Sons, shipbuilders. Barclays allege that a balancesheet published by Laings in 1906, showing a large profit, induced them to advance £IOO,OOO, and that Laings immediately paid a dividend of 50 percent. Barclays in July last advwced another £IOO,OOO, and £f,ooo (? £50,000) more last February, Laings suspending three days I later. Laings allege that they had unexpected losses, exceeding £200,000, which the bank knew of. The case is proceeding. Sir James Laing and Sons were the principals in what was known as the Laing syndicate, formed last year to take up the contract for the carriage of Australian mails to London on the expiry of the contract of the Orient Company. The syndicate had a capital of £30,000, and the first directors were Lord Armstrong (Sir W. T. Armstrong, Whitworth and Co., Ltd.,) Mr Albert Maxim ers, Son, and Maxim, Ltd.), Mr J. H. B. Noble (Sir W. T. Armstrong, Whitworth and Co., Ltd.), Mr H. T. Clarke (Sir James Laing and Sons, Ltd.), Mr J. W. Port'-r, and Mr William Beardmore. It had been arranged that Beardmores, Vickers, Sons, and Maxim, Sir W. T. Armstrong, Whitworth, and Co., and ; Laings, should share' the building of the steamers required for the fulfilment of the contract. There was trouble from the beginning, and be- ' fore long Mr William Beardmore and Vickers, Son, and Maxim retired frnm the syndicate. As time passed, and there were no indications that the syndicate were making adequate preparations for the fulfilment of the contract, Federal Ministers became anxious, and demands were made that the guarantee of £25,000, which had been made, should be increased. Ultimately, after long drawn-out negotiations, the contract wis cancelled early in July last. Then followed an attempt by the Commonwealth to convert into cash the £25,000 guarantee of Messrs Barclay and Co. for the fulfilment of the contract by Sir James Laing and Sons. The guarantee was for £25,000 "liquidated damages for any default on the part of Sir James Laing and Sons." So far the efforts of the Commonwealth to get this money have been unavailing, and when the Senate opened on January 22nd the Vice-President of the Executive Council (Senator Best), in reply to a question, stated that a writ had been issued by the Commonwealth against Barclay and Co. for the £25,000 guarantee. The issuing of another writ, in connection with the failure of the contractors to carry out that contract, was being considered by the Goverment.