IN THE ESTATE OF W. JAMES, FURNITURE DEALER.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 2, Issue 122, 31 March 1879, Page 2

IN THE ESTATE OF W. JAMES, FURNITURE DEALER.

Mebtixu ok Creditors

(From the Chronicle.)

A meeting of creditors in the estate of W. James, furniture dealer, was held in the Supreme Court Buildings last Friday morning, there being some forty gentlemen present.

Mr Quick represented the debtor, Mr Lipman Levy was elected chairman, The following debts were proved;— John Richards, £132 ; W. Waddell and Co,, £lB5 (8 2d; Joseph Ed. Nathan £334 9s Id; M. McCredie, .£l7 Gs 7d; W. Boyd, £149105; T. J. Ladd, £470 Is 3d; Krecft, L 214 0s !)d; R. J. Duncan, L2G9 8s 2d; Dalgleish and Reid, L 3 Gs •10d, 11. Burrctt, L2 Is; A, P, Stuart, L 125 13s 4d; Bank of New Zealand, L 3478 lis lOd; W. G. Turnbull and Co., L 74 7s 9d; Kcmpthovne, Pressor and Co. Ll4los 3d; Guthrie, Larnach and Co., Lll 2s; E. Seager, L4l4s Gd; C. Gamble, L3l2s Gd Turnbull, Smith and Co,, L2 4s Gd; William Dawson and Co., LlO 13sGd; Travel's, Ollivier and Co., L 5 Is Gd; Tramway Co., L9O; F. A.. Krull and Co., LlO7 Os Gd; R, Hannah and Co., lfis; R, Gardner and Co., LIS 4s; Jas. Stewart and Co., LG 2s lOd ; Wilson' and Richardson, Ll7 10s 9d; Mills and Co., L 272 18s; Wm. Dunning, L 5 18s Gd; J. Mclntyre, L 43 Gs Gd; C. H. Ellaby, L 5 Gs; G. Denton, L 8 Gs 2d; E. Anderson, LI 4s; W. T. L. Travers, L 243 2s 8d; Wm. Fife, Ll7 7s; Thompson, Shannon and Co., LIG7 10s 4d; J. R. Denton, L 154 13s 4d; Carl Peters, Ll3 8s 8d; Robt, Queen, jun., L4O 19s 3d; S. W. Alcorn, L74s 9d ; W. Tinnie, L4214s od ;A. Fisher, L 37 os Gd; Jno. Adams, L 75; W. Whittem, L 229 4s 7d ; Wm. Tustin, Lslßs 2d.

The assets of the estate, including contingent assets, wcro set doivn at.£20,822 7s 10d ; the liabilities at L 9386, showing a bulanco of assets over liabilities of L 17,430 19s lid.

Mr Wilmer having officiously suggested that it was not usual for the Press to be present at creditors' meetings, the Chairman was about to put the question to the meeting whether the reporters present should be allowed to remain, when The Manager of the Bank of New Zealand said, before the reporters left, if they were to-leave, he would like to make a few remarks. He could not imagine why

Mr Jamea had filed liia schedule at all. I 'Ml'James had waited on him frequently ; relative to a ifttnibei' of overdue bills, some i of which had been overdue for three ' months. He had asked Mr James to i inako provision for these long overdue ■bills, and though Mr James had promised to do so, 110 effectual steps had been taken to that end. On tlio day Mr James filed his schedule, lie, with Mr Quick, waited on him (the speaker) and asked him to make some proposal. He then agreed to give Mr James three months'to liquidate his account, but lie declined at the same time to conduct Mr James' account, as it had boeu most irregularly operated upon, as his transactions' would show. He (the manager) insisted that some responsible person should lie appointed to undertake the responsibility of conducting the account, and who would be a guarantor for it. One gentleman's name was mentioned, and lie (the manager) consented provisionally to accept that gentleman. Mr Quick and Mr James then left, and the next thing, he was surprised to learn, was that Mr James had filed his schedule. It had been asserted by a portion of the Press, and he believed by Mr James, that the bank had placed psessu'-e upon him. This he desired to show that lie had not done through the medium of the Press, Mr Quick, in reply, in explanation of the debtor's conduct, that after endeavoring with Mr James for some considerable time to got his financial matters satisfactorily settled, and finding this impossible, lie, with Mr James, waited on the manager of the Bank of New Zealand, and talked over the matter, It was true what Mr Tolhurst had said about the proposal to clear up Mr James' accounts in the bank; but finding it impossible to go to the bank with a proposal which would be likely to be accepted; and the hank having put the bailiff in; time of the writ running out, and the possibility of the bailiff sacrificing a LIOOO worth of goods to satisfy a debt of L3OO, induced Mr James to take the step he did, Mr James said that the three, months proposed by the bank was not sufficient time for him to turn himself round and settle all his accounts, He might be able to settle the bank account in that time, but that not being fair he acted as any honest man should have done, and took the only step lie could—filed his schedule and placed his estate in the hands of his creditors for equal distribution among them. Mr Lipinan Levy thought it was a strange thing for Mr James to have filed as he did. Mr James had seen himself and Mr Nathan the day before he filed, and they had told him to go to the Bank of New Zoaland and mention their names. He did not do this, nor did he return to them to state his course of action, but had gone straight and filed. Mr Quick said that Mr James only un dcrstood.Mr Levy to say that he would put in a word for Mr James as a friend. That was all very well, but there was still the bailiff in his house, and the writ running out, and there was nothing to do but act as they had done. Mr Tolhurst—No.

Mr Quick—lt was nonsense for the bank manager to say that pressure had not been used. What was the bailiff there for?

Mr Buckley said there was no foundation for saying the Bank had used pressure, because lie, on behalf of the bank, told Mr James the bailiff would be allowed to do nothing till he had settled his arrangements. The bailiff was only there as a matter of form.

The Manager of the Bank of New Zealand was not aware Mr Buckley had gone so far as tlmfc; but lie himself hail instructed the bailiff to take no action,

Mr James said Mr Tolhurst was quite right in a great deal of what lie had said. He had endeavored to get a number of persons indebted to him to take lip theii overdue bills, but without success. He had also been " strung on " by a person who was to have lent him LSOOO, which he could not ultimately get. It was true that the bank had not pressed him on his overdrawn account; it was only on overdue bills.

After a long and irregular discussion as to what course it was best to pursue in the interests ef the creditors, it was ultimately resolved that Mr Denton be pro forma appointed creditor's trustee in bankruptcy, and that ho should hand over the estate to Messrs James Smith, J. S. M. Thompson, and J. T, Ladd, as trustees in liquidation—that those gentlemen should realise on the estate in the best manner possible; that they should declare quarterly dividends of os in the £, with 8 per cent, as interest added, and that the residue, after full payment of amounts to creditors, be returned to Mr James.

The liquidators' commission was fixed at 5 per cent, in full, to be divided anion" the three liquidators, and to be payable only on the dividends paid to creditors. The proceedings then terminated.