MEETING OF CREDITORS.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 5, Issue 1391, 30 May 1883, Page 2

MEETING OF CREDITORS.

A first; meeting of Creditors' was held yesterday afternoon in the estate of King k Toomatb, Sawmiilers, at the Courthouse, Masterton, In the absence of the Registrar who was detained by illness, Mr, Caselborg was voted to the Chair. /, The Chairman stated that - the liabilities of the partnership amounted to £635 12s 9d, the private debts of the partners to The assets considered of stock valued at £216, on which Mr £, Toomath sen,, had a lien of of £2ll, and book debts ■amounting to £219 16 2. -/On the motion of Mr McCarthy, seconded by Mr Marshall, Mr F. Gray was elected Creditor's Trusteo,' 'The principal creditors were reported to be Mr E bill ofsale£2ll,and F. 'McCarthy £76; Bros. W J and F. being'all under £2d fIHHB " Mr Beard proposeV^^Mßebtor 7 Mr Bunny: On whose behalf do you appear. ,■ • - . Jit Beard: 1 represent Mr Hayes and Mr Marshall, James Toomatb on oath deposed I am a member of the firm of King& and Toomath., • We have been carrying on business for a period of ten months. .1 started with no capital, 1 and we have been trading'on none. .'■ ; Mr Beard] Have you beenliving on your creditors then! ft 'Hardly that | ),,;.< , V On what then? -i /: /■', On the proceeds of our trading plant! You have been insolvent from the first then? No sir I •■■ ■ Mr Bunny/ complained that Mr Beard was trying to trap the insolvent, ■ Mr.Beard: lam not doing anything of the sort! What had you to pay your debts'withl' \ We:had,our book debts I What.was your .posjtion two or three months ago) ' ? ;t ■ "Weowed about fourhipdredpounds I What did your book debts amount to then J ' ■ About £4OOI /" What have you done with them 1 ■ Colleotedw many aswe could I MrJ Bunny thought his friend, was premature in making such an examine- ■ ti6n-wh»n;tile'de|tor hajd'nb^hißbooks -' to aid him. v " ■ _'. '■ M^'Beard l asked why the books' were. not there, they were, he had been told, in the possession of Mr Sellar, but it j waa clearly the duty of the debtor or -

- ' his agent to have seentht theywere m Court onthe present occasion. >■ The debtor: I am only a working member of the firm. .MrMarloy kept the books and can anßwor these questions much better than I can! Mr Beard thought Mr Toomath had been grossly culpable if hV had not made himself acquainted with the affairs of, the firm in which he was a partner.' ■'■'. ■'■'•;,' Mr Bumiy said tlieso'qiiestions were after considerations and .should not be '"' put at present. - Mr Beard retorted that Mr Bumiy burking his questions only, made the position^,worse for the debtor. He would bo willing to postpone the ex- '■'• animation iirtho meanwhile ■ Mr Bunny was glad to hear that this ; * course would be adopted by Mr Beard *"•■' as-he considered it was a proper one. $e promised that every facility should • " be given to inspect the accounts, but \"• till the. trustee had had an opportunity '■='■• -ofmaking himself,familiar'with the accounts it w.as not desirable to go into '• them or to suggest that, there had been improper practice on the "part of the *?'■■ -debtor.' . ," ' ; y •' Mr Beard replied that he'had not in : ' !: -any way suggested any improper prac- '*'■"•'•'•■• qnlyJiUrfriepd'a'ictiQn' wfeh-threw. a■. .•v doubt on the debtor's transactions. . • - Mr Burnett.asked. if they were' to lOseiheir.tirae coming there without ■ ; ascertaining the position' of affairs ? . '•• ' "'."Mrßeard.:.Thenl'wilJ.continuethe r examination of the debtor i s \ • James Toomath,. continued; The books are in Mr Sellar'sjands. None ofthe money-collected during the past three months has been handed to my '■'■■■ • father or paid to him. My father has ;" held the bill of sale from' the first, It ' •-■ represented. the value, of the stock we •--'•- •• -took.over from.him in the assigned . . _ estate of Bowry k King. We had a "■'■ ; ■'■ prospect of meeting our. engagements ' , ifwehadhadfair busin&ss luck, but "!'*-■ •'■our,career from first to last was a chapter of accidents, I found in '• ; . April last that we were losing money., j • jtoiathercollected £SO for us from <fc Dawson, but paid the money. 1 ''•' to our credit at the.Bank. We have • notpaid him any rent, We paid wages 1 till within the last seven weeks: about' i £9O is owing on this item. To Mr Bumiy: In December last we were moro in debt than we 'are ( .now. We filed because my father put ' pressure onusunder his bill of salo, "and seized the stock. We were consequently not, in a position to go On, Had. we been able to go on I believo wo ! could have overcome our difficulties. « Mr Beard: Was it your father or the workmen Who jammed you into bankruptcy] | It was the workmen in a sense. - Fathers are convenient in bank- ( ruptcysometimes aie they not? a ' Not whenthey let their sons become bankrupt. .<StiHj I believe I could have arranged with my father if there had ' been no other pressure! , Mr McCarthy: Why did you not t call the creditors together when you a received Beese k Dawson's money 1 ' There were'one or two bills to meet then, and my father assisted us'at'the ' time'to m'e'eVth'em! Do you think the creditors are better off now than.-they would have been in January? • No! Mr McCarthy: Did you ask anyone U> prove as a bogus creditor 1 j •No 11 demand in open Court the name of the bogus creditor, to whom I Mr McCarthy alludes! * Mr McCarthy: Oh no—you know yourself! The debtor (indignantly): Ido not, . and I demand his name ? J Mr .McCarthy: Did your father * collect other debts? f The debtor: I want to know about c the bogus creditor ] « ; Mr.McCarthy: I will tell you c presently. l c The debtor: lam not going to sub- I • -mit to. insinuations of fraudulency, and ■ if Mr McCarthy makes them, I shall refuse to answer; any questions he may ! put to me. Th.cuigh lam a bankrupt, / • I claim, to be treated as a gentleman, Mr Rapp: Are you prepared to J ■'■- ■ make an. offer to your creditors I ; ' 'The debtor: No! , '-■- The proceedings then terminated; j ' ' "' ' "" 1