HIS LOST MEMORY.

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 202, 26 August 1919, Page 8

HIS LOST MEMORY.

INTERROGATING A BANKRUPT. •A meeting of creditors of unusual muturc was held before the Official Assignee in Auckland yesterday afteinoon. It wo» a meeting of creditors in tihe estate of '•William Robert Hill, produce dealer,'* an elderly man, who wna Ixiforc the Supreme Court Oβ J -'H. Johnson, alias W. R. Hill, alias John Horc, and v.-ns sentenced to months hard labour on «h«,rprp» of having obtained goods from Auckland wrchants by (mud. to lioe conviction, Hili was declared bankrupt in 'the petition of creditors oiitbide Auckland vmlio hnd no>t boon concerned in the criminal charge. A DEFECTIVE MEMORY. The only creditors represented at the meeting wore the petitionei-s for tlie bankruptcy, jVlosars. K:iy ami Carter. <jf Oilri'.stchurcli, iroprcacntod by Mr. V. K. il&Toditih, who hiid pruvod a <:laim of £72 0/7. Consequently there was not a quorum, and the Assignee intimated th-Jt the bmincee would be limited to a (■roes-oxajniiiatioii of t'ho bankrupt. There iluad not been an opportunity of seeing the bankrupt, the Assignee said, except for a few minutes Imfivre 'the when thtv banlcrnpt stated tliut liis memory «- a , o (J .:Lefective that 'he. could not supply even a list of hii creditors. VAtH X LIST OF LIABH.ITIKS. Mr. Allan Motnly appeain-rt for tinbankrupt, uml ,-rtated Uleat judgments luu.l l>een given against banknipt in the Civil Court an follows:— and lkm<l (Oiimaru). Z H'.\ 8/1 j Ituxtun v.nd Co. I'linuini), .f77: Kay and Ciirler (CUrietchurch), v IJO I()/:i: Ireland and Co. (Oamuru). X. U.j m/ 7; Ha.ll and Co. (Uuncdin), X.»H 17/1; Goldinjrliarn and liivkftt iPalnKirwton North), 10/8: a.nd Hanuway and Sons (DuncfcUn). €S7 7/S. Uountel MtntM that from banlcrupte' paj/crs antl statempiitci he that ba.nkru|>t jKa owo<l money to Hoddor anil Tolley ( North). Hamilton and Sons fChimani). H. A. I.h.vd tA>hluirton), Fruser and Co. (Uuneilin). Anderson and Hronde (Marton). C>rrie and In. (Timarii), Field sin<l Kovs (Chrktcliurrh), and jiray [tros. " i UiineJin). CoiuimcJ could not i-ay what the amount* »<■"•, and bankrupt could remember.

In reply to the Assignee, t;c liankrupt r-aid hU rotil name u-.i* John lion-. :uid hiri occupation w:i* tliat of protiui o dealer. Ho wiis 6."> year* of ajriv ll>Juul carried on husina-s mostly in Woetern Australia, in Perth, ivlu-rv he Ua.l an oflice in Hay Street, in partrasrnibli John Shorn, a Churew* merohant. iHc wae only a f<-\\ months in that oflipo. t.h<- year Urforc ln--<t. He \va.« a native ot Sr'w S.mtli WaJc*. but had -r«'nt five years in Western Australia. which he left al>out eighteen months ag->. Xt-tore to \\V»itom Au«*raJia °h<; nod spent most of his life in New .South \VaJ(-s. Ho had had an accident to his Iw.-ul, lw said, and Ma memnry w« s yen l<ad. He iiAd alwolutejy m> knowledge lof having been in N"«w Plymouth, but pointed out that this was rvwt th>. only thin- he luul forffottea He must have 1.-roujrh't about £ 7(50 over from Australia. Hie present Mrs. Hore'«ias s"ci»nd wife, Living in Sydney, but he <Ji,l not know where she Jived, and lie wrote to her care (i.P.O.

Ihe Assignee hojran try the dcbtorV niGßJory as to the iw.neys'owing to his cr.-d,tr, r ,. an j wha . t the j. WCTC " foT _ but tins met urth sucli a very va-uv response that Mr. Fisher dropped vhk line of inquiry. Nearly all .hi* produce in Atickland and Hamilton was sold throujth .k)iK-s. the auctioneer.

lo Mr. Mcroditli. he said he could not say ,how much «ish Uβ received tram the auctfoneer. but he lcne«- he 1, ; ,<1 had sevca-al ■hiuitlnvl.s. semlin- iTOO to his "Tie. us, he fcul usihl hers to r<mie screws H uns his wife's money he 'had usod to '•onun«H-r> his produce trajKactioas Ho tsad .-e.it hi» wUe a sin,, of S.IOO and onother of .cm), ami about l 100 be•M.ies. He sent two i>f th,-se immuntn in noi« p-r ro ?I ,ten,i letter. Apart from rather u,jru«- rtaU-ini«ntrt Mr MerediUh'« aU.-..npt bo Ilore's to* -X much a failure a.s Mr. had Ix-en. aad the proceeding cuZed wrthout ;. ffrcat deal of satdsfsJ,tioii being gained by anybody.