MEETING OF CREDITORS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LVI, 14 October 1922, Page 5

MEETING OF CREDITORS

ESTATE OK THOS. JTQRTON

An adjourned meeting of creditors in the bankrupt estate of Thos. Horton, fruitgrower, of Tasman, was held yesterday afternoon at the office of the Deputy Official Assignee (Mr W. Rout). It will he remembered that, a meeting was held on September 29th -last In confirm a speeial resolution passed at (be first meeting of creditors that bankrupt be allowed to retain bis Ford motor ear. On the resolution coming up for confirmation, Mr ('• R. Fell, representing' the Nelson Co-operative I'rnit Company, opposed the mol ion, a nil suggested that the meeting should be further adjourned in order to give bankrupt (who was not present at the meet’ing) an opportunity ot explaining a claim of £644 alleged to be due to the company, which bankrupt bad omitted lo mention in bis statement; and also concerning 300 eases of I mil belonging to bankiupt which it was .slated, said .Mi‘ Fell, bad been sold out of cool store some days before lie filed. Mr hell asked lor further information regarding the auction sale of bankrupt's plant and implements. There were present : Messrs 1.. J. Frank (Buxton and Co ), H. Nm'iii (Ivory's Ltd.), Buckeridge (Stilwell and Co.) C. !v. Fell (Lime Co,). McCiurg (Nelson Cooperative I'iiiit ("o.J, \\ Ihe (Dee and Sons), and T. A. H. Field (Wilkins and Field Hardware Co.). Mr 0, Thorp represented bankrupt and, Mr W. V. Rout (the D.0.A.). Bankrupt, in reply to the D.0.A., said Ins furniture was insured ■in the South British office for £SOO in his own name. The furniture in the lions* 1 belonged to himself and -Mr and Mrs (loss. The piano, insured for £IOO. belonged to his daughter, and was willed to her by her mother. Thev all lived as one family, and he had simply asked the office" at Hastings to issue a policy covering the whole lot. Mr and Mrs Loss had approved of this. He had held a clearing sale at Hastings and had brought no big furniture with him. He admitted now that it would have been better had the furniture been injured separately. [ Mr Frank questioned bankrupt re'garding a statement he bad shown bun which "made it appear (hat he owned all the furniture. Mr Horton replied that when he took the statement to Buxton and Co. lie knew he was up against it. and was trying to arrange his finances and wrote out a little list Showing what he had got. He had put down £SOO as the value of the furniture and £SOO for plant,; the figures were approximate. He had no intention at the time of realising on his furnitu" 1 . He really went to consult. Buxton and Co. as one of his creditors. He was not seeking further credit from the firm. The fact of putting down the fur.i ‘me at £SOO did not affect Buxton and to. one iota. He had no intention f misleading Buxton and Go. i At his 'stage Mr Field had to F’uve ihe meeting. , ~ , . In answer to Mr Buckeridge, hankrim said he had removed furniture of Ins own only to the value of £SO. He would swear that there was nothing removed by Mr and Mrs Goss which was not tficir own. . i , , The D.O.A. said bankrupt had certainly made a great mistake in msui ing other people’s furniture in his own name. Regarding the shares in the Nelson Co-operative Fruit Co., bankrupt said he knew nothing about the second lot of 500 shares, and nc had never, been billed for the calls; he never remembered signing up for another 500 shares. When the company was formed he was in Hawke’s Bay, and was in.a solid financial position. To help the company, lie took up 500 shares, and it was put to him that supposing not enough shares were taken up for flotation, would ho take more. lie agreed, and that was how he came to have 525. He had paid on 525 shares, and had always been billed on that, number. • . , Mr McCiurg explained that the second 500 were taken up in 1918, when the evaporation plant was installed, ihe only payment made by Mr Horton was 2-1 per cent, on the. fruit put through the plant. The plant had worked for only some 18 moqths. Mr Horton said lie had no recollection of ever .signing an application form for the shares. • .. Mr McCiurg put in an application form signed by bankrupt, for 600 evaporation shares. . . .■ . Mr Horton: “That is my signature, and it is correct. I had forgotten about it and I have Dad no reminder about it! I had forgotten I had ever taken them up. . ,i Mr Dee said he was in tlie same position. If anyone had come ,to him and asked him if he had any shares other than the first issue lie would have bet £IOOO that he had not. Mr Horton said }ie hud a very faint recollection of something being .done in connection with evaporation, and he hud forgotten that he jiad taken up the shares. He was very sorry indeed that it had escaped his mempry. Mr .Fell asked what about the unpaid calls on the first 500 shares. ' Mr Dee replied what about Ihe assets? He stated that a committee set up at Tasman had gone into the matter ns to assets, and reckoned they were worth from 10s to 15s a share, Mr McCiurg said he knew nothing about a committee which had placed that value on the shares. All he knew was that a committee had gone into the value of the plant. . In the course of some further discussion bankrupt said four calls were owing on the first 500 shares ahd»Jie had paid two of them. His books showed that ho owed the balance. Mr Dee reiterated that the shares were an asset. ' . , Mr Fell said the question was as to the liability owing by Horton; not the position of the company. Answering the question as to irnit illegcd to have been removed from cool store a few days prior to filing,, hank-

rapt stated that he had no' fruit in cool store for several weeks P™r /° >s bankruptcy. He explained fully what had happened to the 300 cases he had m store; and the creditors were apparently satisfied with the explanation given. A statement of auction; account sales of plant, etc., was -put in. , Mr * c • said that apparently some of the mattrial- had been sold at a sacrifice, and that it would have been best if tlie creditors had been notified beforehand of the step proposed to have been 11 said he had notified all his creditors of what he; proposed to do an( l that he would distribute the amount received among them. Messrs Frank and Buckendge said their firms had not received notification. In answer to Mr Thorp, the D.O.A. said a recent valuation made o. bankrupt’s orchard property at 1 asroan at the Bank of New Zealand s request was set" down at £13,750. The valuer Mr Noitage) stated that as requested he had n ade a conservative estimate; but was of opinion that there would ho considerable difficulty m disposing of the property at its true value. Bankrupt was closely questioned iegarding several matters by Mi jVI• Mr Dee said that, bankrupt- had h<ui subjected to a cross-cxamnialun, winch the very worst, criminal would not have got. , ' Mr Fell: T object to that.

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Mr Dec : I repeat it. The D.O.A. : 1 cannot allow that, Mr Bee. Mr Dee: Very well; 1 will withdraw it and say that he Ims been subjected ' to a very severe cross-examination. The D.O.A. said that bankrupt had certainly bee i subjected to a severe cross-examination. Mr Dee went on lo say that bankrupt by Ids answers had shown that he was honest and a victim of circumstances. It was a case where leniency umld very well be shown, and it would he an act of graciousness on the part of the creditors In allow him to retain his car. Ho moved to this effect. One of the planks of his firm was to help a man when he was down. Mr Npi’th seconded the motion, seating Unit bankrupt.ls answer to questions showed that he was acting in a straightforward manner.

Mr Foil said his instructions were to oppose the motion. The questions he had pul to bankrupt were purely from a business point of view. , Mr Fell* asked to what extent were Den and Sons creditors.

The 1) O.A. sold £6 13s; but a creditor to this extent was entitled to just as mueli freedom of speech as a creditor for £I6OO. . Mr Buckcridge said he considered bankrupt's position was due to rashness in expenditure; .he did rot think the circumstances were such that leniency should be shown, and he would vote a era hist the motion. Mr Thorp considered that the questions answered by bankrupt had put him in status quo when the motion to hand him hack the car was carried at the first meeting. • • • , ... Mr Frank considered that the position was altered. He ; greed with Mr Buckeridge. . , . The motion was put and lost, only tne mover and seconder voting for it. The disposal of the car was then con'Mr Dee made an offer of _ £25; hut this was not accepted, and, it was tesolvcd tl-at a limit of £SO he put on it. The meeting then adjourned. A motion was carried at the first _ meeting recommending bankrupt for Ins immediate discharge. A GENEROUS GIFT We understand that, since the meetin .Messrs Bee and Sons have put* chased the car from the 8.0. A. at the price fixed by the creditors, and that the Finn has handed the car to Mr Horton as a Tree gift. _