ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 9005, 18 January 1895, Page 6

ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

(THOU 008 BPKCIAL CORMSPOKDENT.) LONDON, December 7. The affairs of Mr Joshua Jones, of Mokau, appear likely to become the subjeot of a cause ceUbre in the English Law Courts. I mentioned some time ago that Mr Jellicoe, the well-known Wellington (New Zealand) lawyer, had issued on Mr Jones' behalf a writ against a London solicitor for the recovery of the famous Mokau property, with which Mr Jones's name has been so long associated in New Zealand Parliamentary and other records. But the matter has now assumed a new phase. Mr Jones' action is still pending, but Mr Jones himself is now the hero of other legal proceed ings. Hβ has been forced into the Bankruptcy Court, and his case is now before that tribunal. Hie statement of accounts shows an estimated surplus of £87,894, while his debts amount only to £12,005 all told. These extraordinary figures are made up thus :— Creditors fully secured. £9550; unsecured, £2416; liability on accommodation bill, £40; total, £12,006; assets, £100,000, being estimated value of securities Meanwhile it v notified that Mr Jones "has been adjudged bankrupt and makes BO proposal," and that he " attributes his failure to the conduct ot his late solicitors In regard to their dealings relative to his property, which dealings are the subject of a pending action lately instituted by him." (That he "never kept any books of account," and that "the stated unsecured debts comprise £793 to creditors resident in England, including £605 for borrowed money, the rest of the indebtedness appearing to be to creditors in New Zealand, including £570 for borrowed money and £300 as due to the bankrupt's son for

■alary." So much for the bankruptcy proceedings, Which Mr Jones asserts have been forced on him with the object of hampering his action in pursuing his claim for restitution of his property. His statement of claim in the other proceedings now pending eets forth that his Mokaa property was mortgaged to Messrs John Plimmer and Walter Johnston, both of Wellington, New Zealand, as first and second mortgagees respectively. The two mortgagees successively foreclosed, while Mr Jones was in England endeavouring to float a Company to take over and work his land and its minerals. He stated that he employed Messrs Flower and Hussey as his solicitors to arrange the matter. . Mr W. Flower (one of the firm, who is also one of the defendants in the action) then, according to Mr Jones, arranged with Mr C. Hopkinson, a banker (the other defendant), for the latter to provide the needful funds, and then bought in the property on Mr Jonee'e behalf, on the understanding that the property should be re*transferred to the plaintiff (Mr Jones), on the defendants being recouped their outlay with interest and reasonable costs and a bonus. {They agreed to give Mr Jones an undertaking to thia effect. 'Accordingly Mr Flower, who Mr Jones alleges was atill acting as his solicitor and agent, purchased the Mokau property for £7600 in the name of himself and his co-defendant, Mr Humphries. After the sale Mr Flower asserted that he made the purchase on behalf of himself and Mr Humphries, and not as trustee for Mr Jones, who thereupon remonstrated with him on his alleged breaoh of duty as solicitor and on his alleged breaoh of faith In violating the agreement. However, in place of famishing the undertaking which Mr Jones alleges to have been promised, Messrs Flower and Hopkinson made a proposal to' re-oonvey the property to Mr Jone*. on his paying them py a certain date £10.000 plus a> bonus of £2000, interest at 10 per cent, and all coats and expenses, but failing such payments the property to be realised on the joint account for the joint benefit of the plaintiff and the defendants, Mr Jones to "giye bis and best and constant assistance in such' realisation," and one-.

third of the ne6 profits to belong to him, the balance going to Messrs Flower and JHopkinaon. ft But in estimating the net profits it was stipulated that this £10,000 and bonuses ' end coats, and ail farther costs and ex* - penaea of realisation were to be a first charge with interest at 10 per cent. Tbeae various charges are stated by Mr Jones to be as follow:—Loan £10,000, bonuses ' £4000, retainer £1050, solicitors' costs - 431000, gratuity £500, survey a, Aα, £2000. AlLthefae to be a first whargq with interest ,;" at 10 per-cent., and, , in' addition to these .. turns, two-thirds of the whole, proceeds of the property to go to Meaers Flower and Humphries, leaving Mr Jones only onethird, minus these heavy charges. > "This attractive proposal, strange to say, dldnotfind'favour in Mr Jones'eyes. He refused to entertain it, and now is bringing an action'to obtain restitution of hia property on payment of the moneys actually ' advanced ou his behalf, together with ' ' seasonable coats .and interest. He intends, bo he tells mc, to institute further proceedings against the defendants • for needKisly and improperly forcing' him into nkruptoy. Altogether the affair promises lo be a somewhat remarkable case. . Meanwhile, however,' Mr .Jones had to raise money to carry on with, and hie creditors finding that there was a hitch about his property, and that he was likely to have ; difficulty in recovering it, " came down on Aim " and filed a.petition in bankruptcy. Mr Flower contends that m Mr Jones Aid not accepb the terms on which he {Flower} had offered the reconveyance t>fthe property, therefore he had forfeited his; right to recover such reconveyance, Mr/ Jones* alleges that if he were reinstated in possession ho has a purchaser for the pro- j . party in the shape of a Company that will -' at once begin work in the coal mines on a <■] royalty, taking out four steamers to New | {Zealand and finding a working capital of £100,000. At present, of coarse, the whole . matter is " hung up," A peculiarly sad feature of the sad case of young Alan Fergusson, who is now under sentence of a year's imprisonment for arson, i , lias rebently become public. It seems that this unfortunate boy has been for, some . time mentally deficient, and that' (his ; mental weakness dates - from an injury ' received at compulsory football. f As a child he had suffered from meningitis, which, had left him weakly. Hβ was * fair scholar, however, and averaged 200 marks out of a possible 300.' But, although he bad a dislike to football and a dread of it, ha was forced to play with boys stronger than himself. He was thrown violently down, and left insensible. Ever since his recovery his head seemed to go all wrong. Be only averaged 34 marks out of 300> and his-teachers could do nothing with nim.He was examined for the Navy, but was rejected. He , bad, in fact; become a compile mental wreck. Happening one Sunday to hear a sermon about the three Hebrews and the *• burning fiery furnace" (which is presented by one- ' paper whose Scriptural lore is evidently - ahaky., as *' Daniel and the fiery furnace "), - Alan Fcrgusaon caught at the idea of having a "big blaze," and told his schoolfellows that he should sot fire to their college. They laughed at him, not imagining that he was in earnest. He walked a long way, ■ however, to* buy some matches, and then set the college alight, with the result that damage to the amount cf some £6000 was done. Some further efforts in the same direction led to the disclosure by his school- ; mates ok his declared intention. His arrest* followed, and was succeeded by his confession and sentence. Ie is a deplorable case, and argues gross mismanagement on the part of his "pastors and masters," who, no doubt, were slaves to the silly idea, which coo would have tuought Mr Hughes bad sufficiently exploded in his "Tom Brown," that yon can make a weakly, timid; nervous boy strong and robust by c&Ußing him to be knocked about ana ill-treated by a peck of cowardly bailies. A few days ago Mr Courtenay Greer, of Liverpool, gave a lecture at Barrow, under the auspices of the Barrow Naturalists' Field Club. He entitled it "A Vagabond in New Zealand." The announcement of the lecture drew a large audience and deep interest was manifested in all information tbat could be obtained about Now Zealand. Mr Greer' sketched in pleasant chatty . fashion his experience in tbe colony for several years beginning in 1885.' Hβ was amazed on arriving iv New Zea- • land to find tbat the oulyapparenb difference fcetfrwu colonists and ordinary Kugiuhinen •a* wwaea lit rviftat of <imi was tbat

"the ladies wore lighter coloured clothes aod the men did not wear top hats." This I fancy was a somewhat rash and unsound generalisation on Mr Grear's part, but no matter—let it pass! He described his experiences as a smelter of antimony at Endeavour Inlet; as a storemau at Blenheim— in a store whose proprietor "chartered a whole wool ship, or sold a pound of treacle across the counter," as a driver of the Blenheim-Nelson mail coach, and last, but not least, as a newspaper correspondent! Mr Greer sounded a note of caution to colonial newcomers against trusting to letters of introduction. He had, he said, a letter of introduction to a friend in Dunedin, but did not find it a success. " Friends who were far away," he said, " bad perhaps forgotten old associations, and took little interest in the Old Country. Such was his experience." By the a.s. Buapehu next week the Rβv. E. Bell, vicar of All Sainte parish, Camberwell, leaves for New Zealand on a visit. Mr Bell, who is a son of Sir Francis Dillon Bell, ex-Agent General for New Zealand, is well known as one of the most devoted and hard-working of London clergymen. He has lateiy been greatly overworked, and is much in need of rest and change. He is going to take a run out to New Zealand to see his brothers and other relatives and friends, and will then return to his parish duties. I have heard it remarked that he would make a splendid New Zealand Bishop next time one is wanted. He is a capital organiser and a very popular preacher. Sir Francis Bell is at present living quietly in London. He was noticed, a day or two ago, strolling quietly along Victoria street, a locality once tolerably familiar to him in his Agency-General days. He is looking very well, but has aged a good deal of late.

Mrs Ballance is still in town, and is looking remarkably well. Dr. and Mrs Truby King, of the Seacliffe Asylum, Dunedin, were in Ediubutgh at the same time, and appeared to be greatly enjoying their sojourn in the Mother Country. They previously spent some two months in London seeing and hearing all that was best worth observing or listening to. I understand they return to New Zealand shortly. There seems to be very few New Zealanders in town just now. The fogs which have prevailed since December opened have driven away all who could conveniently fly to more annny and genial climes. Mr Cameron, formerly of New Zealand, has just opened at Manchester a New Zealand produce store. He has secured excellent premises, which he has inaugurated with a judicious flourish of trumpets. He means to keep all kinds of New Zealand produce on sale and to push them in every possible way. He believes there is money in the enterprise besides benefit to the New Zealand producer, and he means to give the undertaking a thoroughly good trial. Sir VVestby Perceval tells mc he has not yet decided whether or not he will accept the Government's offer of a renewal of hie appointment as Agent-General for another year. Doubtless his definite answer will have become 1 known before this letter reaches you; but I may Bay that at present both Bir Westby and Lady Perceval feel strongly disinclined to accept another year's uncertainty of tenure. For at the end of next year the position will be just the same as vow, and meanwhile Sir Weetby is debarred from making any permanent arrangements and Lady Perceval is suffering from the cold aud dampness of the English climate. There is a very decided feoliug in London that this keeping the appointment open, as ifc'were, for a whole year is nob at all creditable, and a universal suspicion: prevails that it is being held in reserve for purposes of political influence, to be used if necessary in any "pinch." • Much uneasiness and annoyance are expressed in Jbinglish commercial circles at the prospect of a return to the old* cable rates, foreshadowed by Mr Ward's remonstrance against Victoria's threatened withdrawal from, the existing intercolonial arrangement regarding the cable subsidy. Ie is strongly urged that the colonies should act in concert in this matter, aud nob take a step which is of so seriously retrograde a character as to cause an increase in the telegraphic rates, thus interposing obstacles to expansion of business, and .exactly reversing the main objects of the Ottawa Conference. Mr A. J. Wilson and the Investors , ' Review are *' at it again." In the current number is published under the heading "Notes from New Zealand "a long communication from "a trustworthy correspondent," who says that in all the years he has lived in New Zealand he " never saw things so bad and. working men so pinched. . . . . The unemployed labouring man is now a recognised profession,, only woe hetide the man who is of the wrong political colour!" " I tremble sometimes," eaye this writer. " What is to become of my little ones. I have thought for. yean that the beat thing that could happen to us would be bankruptcy, and the longer it is delayed the more intense the suffering will be when it does come." . "Our new style of borrowing is something like a third mortgage and the security for the first doubtful," says the same writer. " The whole scheme means plunder for a select ring—more patronage, corruption and waste! " There is. much more .to the same purport. Mr Ward's speech at' Oamaru affords the text for some special comments by Mr Wilson himself. . '♦ Oamaru cannot pay its debts, but that it should be obliged to take the consequences is something too shocking .to the mind of the colonial political hack. Political quacks at Home might pick up wrinkles in the art of tergiversation from this droll fellow of a Colonial Finance Minister."

This, of course, is Mr Wilson's pleasant way, but, of course, one cannot help wishing that there were no grounds for some of his correspondent's criticisms.