DISTRICT COURT.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXIII, Issue 193, 9 September 1889, Page 3

DISTRICT COURT.

[Before His Honour Judge Broad.] A sitting of the Court in Bankruptcy was held this morning, when the adjourned ap- j plioafcion for the disoharge of Nanny Callo> I way Donald cama on for hearing, J Mr Harper apologised for tho non-attend-anoe of the bankrupt at the laßt sitting, Bhe I having made a mistake as to -he hour. I Iv reply- to the Court, 'Mr fccaife, the Deputy Official Assign.-., eaid that the dabt-3 I were £800 and the asse c £600. j Mr .Harper took exception to the following j paragraph in the Assignee's ropori : — l As I the date of the Bmk suing her sho owed Mr George Harper £111, and on thn 29th cf April she mortgaged tbe stcok on the farm, together with growing crops, to Mrs Ailport by bill of Bate and paid Mr Harper the money, a proceeding that appears to me to -be of tho nature of a fraudulent pref.rence." —Ho said that was written under a mieap- I prehension. Tbe faot was tbat he had a bill I of sale over all the etock and iff. ote, which j however, he had omitted to re-register, whioh had been running over ten years. Whea the Bank took aotion to recover its overdraft he represented the bankrupt, and [ was well aware of her ciroumsiauees. He could have aeiz-.d the property under the bill of sale, bnt in (nder lo save trouble he ad~ Yanoed che money due to himself for a client. Hia Honor; I don't know anything about your tights, with whioh we are not dealing now. The question is did Mrs Donald con« traot a fresh debt and give seourity for it at the time Bhe knew ehe was bankrupt ? Is the assignment to Miss Ailport attaoked. The Assignee ; No. I would oall attention though to the dates of the various proceedings, whioh were all about the same time, between the 20th April and the 16th May. The bankrupt was examined with reference to the hop press, whiob, she said, originally oost £24. It was taken down by ber son with ber sanction, and sold for £14, she receiving £5, and the balanoe going to pay off an old debt to the purchaser. Oross examined by Mr Harper she said that her son, to whom she owed wages, would forego his olaim and not oppose her disoharge, And the same with regard to Lewis, another olaimant for wages. His Honor ; I oannot take the bankrupt's answers to theae questions. You have no sight to ask for her disoharge until the wages olaima are settled. It is so well known a rule that I Bhould have thought every one was aware that it was useless to oome to the Oourt nntil nabh olaimß axa withdrawn. His Honor added that he waa not altogether Mtiified about the hop press, whioh appeared fto bo an aot of preference, to whioh ' the Assignee had done perfeotly right in oalliQg attention. The application for disoharge mast stand adjourned until the next sitting of the Oonrt on the 6th November.