SUPREME COURT

Greymouth Evening Star, 30 October 1931, Page 2

SUPREME COURT

BANKRUPT WOOL-BUYER. [PBB PBESB ASSOCIATION.] CHRISTCHURCH, October 2. The trial was concluded at the Supreme Court of Washington Irving Carney, a wool buyer, on charges (1) that being adjudged bankrupt he had by unjustifiably extravagant living brought about bankruptcy; (2) that he contracted a debt of £l7 with the Rink Taxis Ltd.; (3) that he contracted a debt of £l2 with J. E. Hurdley and Son, Ltd-, both without expectation of ability to pay.

Giving evidence in the afternoon, the accused said that before 1925 he had been five years managing director of Armour and Coy. in New Zealand, and had been for thirty years connected with that firm’s wool business. Since 1925 he had been buying wool for clients, which were big firms . in England,- the Continent, the United States and Canada. Until the depression of 1929-30, he had had a substantial number of clients. Then there had been a decrease, as some of the firms had gone out of business. In good years, his turnover would be £400,000, but in 1930 it had been £123,000. He had never known so long a period of declining prices. He had made some losses on account of wool being rejected by his clients. The overhead cost of the wool-buying business was heavy. He had made losses on his farm and on share purchases. The accounting work at his office was very involved, and he always considered his accountant capable and straightforward. He himself gave no attention to the accounts. He had always assumed that the balancesheet presented to him showed the true position of his business- He estimated that his drawings' for personal expenses (pocket money) would not exceed £1 a week for Mrs Carney and £l/10/- for himself. He had hoped in 1929 that the business would improve, but it had not. Eventually, when the mortgagee pressed for interest, he could not pay, and the farm which had cost £lB an acre, was sold up for £ll/10/- an acre. He had not recognised he was insolvent till 1931. He said he would, so soon as he was able, pay all the debts that he had incurred. The jury found Carney guilty on the second count. The jury disagreed on the first count. Carney was remanded for sentence. BUILDER’S FAILURE. CHRISTCHURCH, October 30. In the Supreme Court, the trial is proceeding of Frederick Ashley Neale, a bankrupt, for alleged failure to keep proper books, and two charges of contracting debt without the expectation of ability to pay. The Crown Prosecutor said that accused could be described as a dealer in land. It was obvious that the slump was the main cause of his failure. When lie filed, he listed his assets as £18,546, and his debts to unsecured creditors as £10,310, leaving a nominal surplus of £BOOO. Actually, there would be a deficiency of £lO,OOO, and the dividend would be from 2/- to 4/in the pound. Accused’s assets were in the form of land property and houses, the value of -which had slumped enormously. It was pointed out that tho money had not been frittered away. The debts were to builders and timber merchants. The hearing is proceeding. ALTERED TELEGRAMS. WELLINGTON, October 29After a short retirement in the Supreme Court, this evening, the jury returned a verdict of guilty against three men, Ralph Antanvitch, John Ryan and Wilfred Henry Gladstone Brown, and one of not guilty against a fourth man, Charles Thomas Tassell, in -what has become known as the “Telegraph Betting Case.” A conspiracy between two postal employees, Brown and Tass'ell, and two other men to defraud two bookmakers by making alterations to betting telegrams was the Crown’s allegations. The Judge remanded the three prisoners for sentence, and Tassell was discharged. DANGEROUS” CRIMINAL. AUCKLAND, October 30. Edward Donovan, 34, electrician, was sentenced by Justice Herdman to five years’ hard labour, for breaking and entering, and being armed with a revolver, with intent to enter a store. He was one of four men concerned in a burglary at Wiri, when revolver shots were fired. Prisoner, in a statement from the dock, appealed for a re-trial, which t’he Judge refused, saying the verdict was quite sound. Accused was a dangerous criminal. His most serious crime was an attempt to shoot a policeman at Wanganui.