A BANKRUPT FARMER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19454, 9 October 1926, Page 14

A BANKRUPT FARMER.

DEFICIENCY EXCEEDS £SOOO. AN UNSUCCESSFUL VENTURE. UNABLE TO MEET INTEREST. With a deficiency in his estate of £54.16 14s Id, George Hall, a farmer of Wood cocks, appeared before his creditors yesterday. There were five creditors present. the official assignee, Mr. W. S. Fisher, presiding. The schedule showed £266 19s 6d owing to unsecured creditors and £9317 14s 7d to secured creditors. The securities were assessed at £4140. leaving a deficiency on securities of £5177 14s 7d. The assets amounted to £2B, comprising a gig and harness and cream cans, leaving a total deficiency of £5416 14s Id. In a statement, bankrupt said that m December, lfiß3, he purchased a farm of 208 acres at Woodcocks from Mr Neils Neils'en, of Auckland. Prior to that, he had been engaged by Mr. Neilsen as a, share-milker, but Mr. Neilsen offerer] to sell the farm to him as a, going concern. The. price bankrupt agreed to pay was £7OOO for the land and £1353 lis for the stock and implements. From the, farm, however, he found he could not pay interest, on the £7OOO, Bankrupt gave a mortgage to Mrs. Neilsen to secure, the payment of the purchase price of (he. land and a bill of sale to Mr. Neilsen to secure payment for the stork and implements. In December, 1925,. bankrupt said he was forced to the conviction that the farm would not pay. He, had th l " farm valued and the valuation placer] on it- was £3536,\ In July of this year bankrupt walked off the farm and went to work. He. had been pressed by the North Auckland Farmers' Co-operative Dairy Company to reduce his indebtedness and he sold ail his stock to pay them. Fie, was adjudicated bankrupt when Mrs. Neilsen proceeded against him for £630, arrears of interest. Examined by. the assignee, bankrupt said he. had been share-milking for five or six years prior to purchasing the farm, lb l had no knowledge, of the value of properties and did not take steps to get an independent valuation until two years after 'ho purchased thf property. Then it, was valued at half what he paid for it. All the. money he earned went back into the farm in one way or another. The. Assignee: I suppose the, bulk of (he proceeds went in the. payment of interest. It was resolved to make investigation concerning bankrupt's payment to the. North Auckland Farmers' Co-operative Dairy Company, and concerning his general expenditure of money received from the farm.