Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878] SATURDAY, MARCH 26, 1892.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XIII, Issue 4073, 26 March 1892, Page 2

Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878]

SATURDAY, MARCH 26, 1892.

Being tub extended title of the Wairahafa Daily, with which jt is IDENTIGALi <

Although much has boen written about amending the Bankruptcy law, little has been done, and probably the only persons who are at all l satisfied with it as it now exists are those who have to take advantage of it, There is a class of case wbich not unfrequently comes before the Official Assignee which at once suggests itself to us as affording food for reflection, In this the debtor files; a declaration of insolvency and exhibits liabilities of, say, £BO and assets w'l \ and among the articles which he has purchased and been unable or unwilling to pay for will be such items possibly as would be considered luxuries by Oven an ordinary prosperous citizen of moderate wants, The facts make an instant impression, possibly one of iudignation, but after all, hardly of great surprise. People spoken to about it shrug tbair shoulders when allusion is made to the' embarrassing position of the debtor, and say." Oh I there's nothing in it "-and probably there is not, as far as the creditors are concerned—''he's no worse than the most of .'em"; and there the thing ends, except that possibly the meeting of creditors passes a resolution that the debtor's discharge shall be opposed until he pays a stipulated dividend in the £, It is generally, by the .way, made a pretty stiff proportion, more put of pure cussedness than that they expect to inflict much retributive justice, or hope to get anything. After that the gentleman most concerned either stops on fhe scene of his downfall or of his triumph-svhioh/ever way he regard's it—or departs to, a lonarjty where, being unknown, less interest is taken ill his transactions and where a maximum ef confidence inay be.irispiredwithaminimuniof expenditure. There is not occasion to say much about oases of this kind, The. preventive is to give no right of recovery by law for debts under, say, ten pounds, Good results would sooii 'follow. Tradesmen would be mote cautious as to jyjiom they trusted*, .cash trading .would and Court work,would decrease; while the basis flfbrnuness would b.e,better all •round. Lasv'y/irs wpiild ■suffer, but that wonld not matter, ■'.",' Another phase of the popular course of bankruptcy seems also very censurable, and that is the reckless manner in which an insolvent man will run to the extreme end'of his 1 tether till there is not even, enough left to hang him with/if he were worth such an , exit. We refer to the singular faoility

b,e lias, of taking tho down.;grade without:any thought 'of arresting iiis untoward oateeruniilthe'estate will not'carry afarlhing to,the'£. The remedy'for this is that law should corripel bankrupts to >; pay ,'a fair proportion of their liabilityten shillings in the £ might be fixed as a minimum—or the Judge should tefase the order of discharge. This power should by no means be left in the hands of the creditors themselves, for it is 'well-known that a cunning and plausible scoundrel is frequently able to fascinate his oreditors with all the magnetic influence of a professional hypnotist, and their wrath so turns into compassion that mingled with the sigh lor their own loss is 'a tear of sorrow for the painful position in which they have placed the unfor j tunate cause of all their woes. Then they let him off lightly—and ao it goes on. The Judge would of course have the power to grant a' clearance on other condition! in oases when pure misfortune such as loss directly caused; by illness or by. fire inime-. diately contributed to the debtor's insolvenoy, and when it was practically out of his power to avoid falling • into debt to the extent which had happened, His .would be distinct from tho ordinary case, whioh is the result of reoklessness and of speculation.

The Married Women's Property Act and its results as it affeols bankruptcy is thoroughly notorious, and the'de* vising of restrictions in its applicalion so as to afford protection on one side and not open up a.door for fraud on the other, is a'tax upon anyone's resources,' The advantage which is taken of its present condition'affords innumerable examples of scandalous abusejso muoh so, that it would hardly be •going too far to say that unless the law oan be.improved in the facilities with which settlements can be made it would be better ;to abolish it altogether, A longer" period than the present supposed three years which is needed to validate transfers of property might prove of some effect. It would at least give more trouble to the frauds lently inclined, but it is hard to say what course, short of no protection at all-for tho property rights of married women, would be best. As far as past experience goes,' it is certainly mainly those who are: dishonest who have need to avail themselves of tho shelter (his Act' affords.

The Bankruptcy law all round i cumbrous to operate when it is re quired to punish fraudulent debtors and it is most uncertain in its actioi even when once it is in motion. It maohinery requires very much simpli fication and more preoision befon miscreants can be satisfactorily deal with. ■ ...... One other class of transaction which is closely allied tn bankruptcy calls for a woid of comment, and that is compositions will) creditors. »• It should undoubtedly bo an illegal act to make these privately. All should he registered, and be subjected to the same dpgree of publicity whioh attends the less voluntary aot of a debtor. Were it so, greater, care, would be taken as regards running into debt, and more trouble would be taken to get out' of it; and, what is more important still, one of the most fertile elements of danger in mercantile transactions would be removed. In alluding to " compositions" we are reminded of a crafty manoeuvre of this oharaoter whioh was neatly oarried out in this district a few years ago by an individual whom for convenience' we shall call Mr Ebenezer Tompkins. Ebenezer was, it seems, a man of fair credit, and he took advantage of it to run upsome pretty stifi "tick's." One day a bright idea struck him. He could settle up all round and make a handsome profit on the'transaction. His first move was to call on—we'll call him— Mr Geordie Softie, to whom he owed ■ twenty pounds. To Softie he confided the startling intelligence that he was Btone*tpke and intended .to. ro " through the mill" the next day, but, he added,—" I couldn't let you in old man, and although I have only a ten pound note in the world you shall have it, and all the other vol' tures can go to perdition, Here it is I Give me a receipt in full. Then mum's the word, and nobody's the wiser I" Softie, considering he quite comprehended the situation, speedily came to the conclusion that half a loaf of bread was better than none, pocketed the 'jtepner/ and gave the required clean disoliarge, Then our ingenious friend went round to another creditor with like result; and so on until he had interviewed the whole of the confiding circle, carefully enjoining the most rigid secrepy jq every instanoe In the sacred cause of friendship. A week later Mr Softie, the first creditor adjusted, happened to meet Mr Ebenezer Tompkins in the street. " Hallo I Eb;," he oried, " I thought you were going banki r'uptl" ." Bankrupt.bejiggered," retorted the now elate Ebenezer, " I don't owe a red cent to anyone—why should T go bankrupt?" And so might say many more, who like our frienjl Mr Tompkins, prefer to ar* range these littfjj matters quietly and without any fuss.

The annual meeting of the Wellington branch ot the JNew Zealand Institute of Journalists is to he held thjs afternoon. The E.M.B. Tongarjro, from, London via way ports, arrived at Port Chalmers yesterday afternoon. Bpr inajl shoujd reach Masterton on Monday. ; In Messrs J, Graham and Oo,'s advertisement we stated yesterday that two hundred tons of wire had been received, This should have been twenty tons. A extraordinary- Gazette published yesterday afternoon further prorogues Parliament to the ißth May,', ; One temperance enthusiast has, we understand, given £5 towards the cost of erecting a public drinking fountain in Masterton, Mr G, W, Woodroofe is canvassing the town for Bubsoiiptions. ' A special sitting of the District Ctourfc is to bo held at Masterton on May 11th, when His Honor Patriot Judge Bobin? son will give judgment in the case Hicknell v. Donald,' and transaot certain bankruptcy business.'' . The Ohrißtchurch Press-says oompany M Ohrisiohurch ■■'has ; just remitted £40,000. to Australia, and two firms here have Bent by the mail to England' £]12,000 and £17,000 respectively, With facta suc'h as these before them, it is difficult .to: see how Ministers oau any longer deny the fact that .their policy ]s noj> only fresh capital from comjri?aera;.but|s causing the withdrawal of money already inyested in the Colony,. , ~ A shocking accident occurred at< Eoseyears, Tasmania,, on the I.4thinst,- A 4 t \ ssmed Wing, -aged'nine, was.shot dead by her b'rd&r. aged 11. The boy was playing with a gun; and iuC-g. ,tl | .w'aß Jyjnginth^'grass.afow'feotawajr.. 'The! cha'rge'wen,t*offand blew A portion of her' side away.,'' % .'verdict \ of'' accidental deafh was recorded. '' '■ ...'.'; , 1 "',..'; Mr R, M. Galloway has been appointod 'President'and tyr W.D.Kummefiyice". President of "the Masterton Ghess' and Draughts Olub;' -^fte 'padfell6\vtt' pall has been engaged for Monday,- Thursday . and Saturday 'evenings,- where members will no. doubt find a pleasant recreation during the winter months, .'.-....-.-

•;4 yoto woman hamed.Sarah Tindall sentenced ia "Wellington; : to two days' hardl labour for Jailing to keep a bridle pn; her unruly member, exclaimed on the dock. '/1 won't do Mr Qarvey's cashing,'' and muttered to herself, ''lll leave the gaol first." Por.defraudingthe South Melbourne Building Society, Larkin, one of t.ho Directors, has been sentenced to six years' hard labour, and Oleary, another, to four years. Sir James Hector and Mr ' M'Kay, Government Geologist, are now on a tour of inspection of the gold and copper mines of the North Island, Notwithstanding that a reward of •£260 has been offered, tho police have been unable to procure the slightest clue to tho Pahiatua poisoning mystery. The public will have to suffer through the bungling of tho police, ' - William James Reece. aged eighty yeari, was found dead in his bed at Dunedin on Thursday, Messrs Cole and Payne, painters, of Maaterlon, return- thanks to their patrons for paßt favours, and remind those whose houses require renovating that they are still to be found in Chapelstreet. Messrs Cole and Payne : have been soino time in business here, and havo proved by the way they have com< pleted several important contracts that they am good and reliable workmen. Nessrs Campbell and Clifford, piano tunersand repairers,havetaken tho premises in Masterton opposite the Loan and Mercantile Agency Company's Office, and will shortly offer the public pianos of the best make on the hire system or for cash. A workroom ia beim? erected at the rear of the premises, whore all repairs will bo undertaken. It is gravely stated fay a contemporary that a Frenoh soiontisb has invented an instrument with whioh he olaims theauul caii be seen passing from the human body at the moment of dissolution. Here's a ohanco for some one to try the above ex • perimenton the miscreant Williams, the Windsor murderer, when he make 3 his oxit from this earth with a rope round his nock. It would bo interesting to watch the route his preoious soul will take ■ "'■■■'!. The Hawera Star hears that the fleece of the morino ram which took first prize at tho Wellington show, and was bred and exhibited by Mr Chas. Goulter, 1 of Hawke's Bay, Marlborough, was sent to Europe. It has since been Bhuwn in i competition with wool from all parts of the world, taking first prize, at London i and Paris, This is regarded as a great ■ coup for New Zealand. i Mr Twomey, Secretary of the New South Wales, branch of the Shearers' Union, has made some extraordinary remarks before a meeting of the Trades » and Labour Counoil, He stated that In • the Young district Borne labour troubles i had recently ocourred, and the men had I formed themselves into prospecting parj ties, and had struck good gold on private _ property. They intend, he mentioned, to organise a new L'mon, and form parties 3000 oi 4000 strong, and simply take 1 tho gold, and if they could not get it by fair means, they would seize it. Tho Salvation Army are not to be allowed to march the streets of tho Golden City. At leas; we judge not from the newspaper files just received from that part. In sentencing half a-dozen officers and Boldiera to six weotal imprisonment for marching the street in procession, tlie magistrate of Ballarat remarked : 11 You are sentenced ts eix week'B imprisonment, and if when you are roleased jou repeat the offence, you will be imprisoned tor three months with hard labour. Unless your other officers discontinue tho street marching, they will all be sent up, and if the gaol is not large enough we shall build a bigger one, and keep the lot of you there until you learn and obey these law?." The Salvationists were not to be daunted 1 In the War Cry thoy published'.the following:— " We shall go on marching just the same! The Commissioner had over a buudred volunteers in his meeting at Ballarat the other night,, over 10CO officers are ready to follow suit, and there aro thousands more in these nies ready to help us in thn struggle. We shall march the streets of Ballarat West until the crack of doom! Our trust is in tho living Qod." : We would not be in the shoes of that Ballarat magistrate for a consideration.

The following is from the Otago Daily Timsi— On Saturday evening. last a strange phenomenon (writes a porros' pondent) was, at Lake To An'au. The ocourretice was noticed at 5.30, about a mile and a half from the Bouth end of the lake, the writer's attention being first arrested by a noise resembling the explosion of a bombshell almost beneath the spot where ho was standing, About fifteen scoonds later a sharp shook was felt, similar to what would result from the discharge of a heavy .piece of artillery. Twenty minutes' afterwards the lake, which at that time was perfectly still, and as clear as a mirror, showed about seven distmot streaku of brilliant colour, in parallel lines, running horizontally across the lake, The color was that lof a riph ochre, and in the rays of the Betting sun shone ati burnished copper. Unfortunately the writer! wbb fully two miles distant from where a boatcould be obtained, and consequently could not t;et on the water to more closely obsetve the nature of the appearance. He, however, proceeded to a place on the boach whore tha end of one of the coloured lines, seemed to touch the shore, and founi that the colour was produced! by afiuo yellow i cluab floating upon the ptor, A gticjf.on be|ng dipped into it was.coated with the dust, which when dried stained the wood, Ho smell could be deteoted, but having no means of testing the substimco it was found impossible to form s.ny opinion regarding its nature. A 8m.a1.1 quantity of the dust has boen forwarded to this office, and wo shall give the result of its analysis in a feiv days. . Our first shipments of how foods for the Autumn and Winter season have now ooqje to hand by the latest mail steamers, arid we nave been busily employee; in opening them out and preparing them for inspection at Te Aro House, Wellington, ; ■" We shall be happy to forward patterns of our new Dress Fabrics-and other, novelties free by postWany address, ou application to James Smith, Te ArO Hpuso,' Wellington, Our seleetion.of Autumn ;aud Wjnter Fashions has'beenmaao by.pur own buyers —men oi great experience, tafte and judg. ment—in the British,' I'renoh and Continental markets, aml.may be relied on as surpassing every thinß we have previously 'shown a'Te Aro House, Wellington'. .'.' Our ladies would find it to- their' advan* tsge to Mate their choice da early as possible.'and so to havp the advantage of getting their dresses made in gogil time for the Hoason.<at Te Aro House,, Wellington, Wo will a'so forward our Charts'for selfmeasurement to anyone intimating their wish in this, respect to us, and will guarantee t>i all customers the advantages of taste, fit, finish and prompt execution in-our Celebrated Dressmaking,' Boom at Te Aro House, Wellington, ". .!'.' .