ALFRED CROSSEY'S BANKRUPTCY.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXIX, Issue 3678, 2 March 1899, Page 7

ALFRED CROSSEY'S BANKRUPTCY.

FIRST MEETING OF CREDITORS.

ADJOURNED TILL FRIDAY,

Tho first meeting of creditors in ,tho -estate of Alfred Crossey, bankrupt, : \yas; heid at the Official Assignee’s rooms yesterday morning, Mr Ashcroft presiding. Mr Skerrett appeared for, the bankrupt; Mr T. Wilford for .iVlessrs' Wollerman ’and Co., Zohrab and Co., A. ii... Kernot, Baker Bros., - Blundell Bros*., Kirkcaldio' and Stains, T>. G. Macarthy; :Mr Wylie appeared for Mr A. : Alaguirc.' A' I ' number of creditors wereunrepresented^'' 1 -'V'-‘kV-, , ■ The Official Assignee to him that the lease of flip Rahfurly Hotel having been.itermihatedj by/thc pankrupt tho body of creditors? 'Wrpmt? tbp^mercy, of Mr Maguire. r -- -j— •*— Mr T. B. Dwan said if some of the unsecured creditors had not been so pressing when they heard that the Tiotel had been sold, they might have derived something out of tho estate. As it was, directly they heard that a sale had taken place a number of them rushed in their claims, thinking, evidently, that it was a case of first come'first served. The consequence was that before the sale had been concluded Crossey had been obliged to file. i . , , ; The Official Assignee said the books showed that tho bankrupt had passed L 18,176 through his hands in less than two years, and all he had got now was £1 7s Id. ■ It seemed to him that the total deficiency was something like £SOOO, bub Crossey’s books were in such an unsatisfactory condition that it was impossible to arrive at anything - like an approximate; idea of what he had done with the money. l 116 would suggest that the bankrupt should bring up a statement of profit and loss from the data appearing in the books. The bankrupt, examined by the Official Assignee, said.the assets set down in the statement were- correct in every: way. H : s wife had no money. The £8 a week w.'rich Mrs Crossey hpd received was spent in sundries: items in -the house outside the butcher and baker. It was not for wages, but just for extra expenses, such as fruit, etc. It was not enough to pay these expenses. , It ought to have-.been £lO. To Mr Wilford: Sundries 1 were for; vegetables, etc. There were things, in: running hotels which no one knew of but those coriducting them. The; 6f the hotel was Bernard McGuire. Dwan. Bros; wore acting as brokers for vendor’ and purchaser. He told Mr A:‘ MagUire,: his landlord, that he was trying to sell to Bernard,McGuire and that he wanted tr* get out of; the house at any price, as his creditors were pressing him. Witness never saw Al Maguire with 'B. McGuire at any time. -Bernard McGuire paid £2OO by ,'cheque‘:as deposit,to. Messrs Skerre.tt. and Wylie as agents for A. Maguire. Bankrupt’s "interest' in; the'hotel was sold for £3500. He must correct his state ment. He did have a conversation with Messrs A, Maguire and B. McGuire. He took' Bernard: McGuire up to ATan Maguire in a cab and introduced him as a purchaser: Allan Maguire said he knew nothing of the man. if he (witness) could show testimonials as to Bernard McGuire’s character he might accept him.- As the result of a conversation between witness and B. McGuire, they went next day-to Messrs Skerrett and Wylie’s and the dejposit was paid. This was nearly a fortnight before bankrupt filed. The manner of tho completion of the payment was left in: the hands of Mr Wylie by Mr A. Maguire. /Mr B. McGuire left the deposit with Mr Wylie in trust. ■ Possession was to bo taken and given within six Weeks of payment of deposit.; A con : ract was made at the time and signed bv Mr B. McGuire in the presence of Mr Wylie, who was, acting for both proprietor and purchaser. l About £ISOO was to be.found an cash by Mr B. McGuire. Had been tne 'owner of Lady Agnes and The Gmrdsinan. Bought Lady .Agnes in 1897 from W. Corlett for £75.: Lady Agnes was partly sold* to T. Clark. Gave tho mare t.j. Clark -to'-train. ‘ ‘Ha/l ! freqiumHv 'stated—to the WellinMion Racing Chib land others l —-that he ‘‘did not own a lia:” in her itail.”' , He told his creditors over : 'and over again. • that .-he . had Isold -tho jicrsesVmerely to Keep thira’.ouiet ” As a matter of fact the horses belong .' I 1 1 bin, (bankrupt) the whole t'me. f'.’ark took Lady Agnes axuLfecl an.l i rained her On the risk of winliing. The f-uardsnian was now turned out iiv Alt' Here's pad 'docks at Blenheim.. Paid'abcut £B6 one. jway . and another for The Guardsman. Reckoning that-he had taken "£IB,OOO in 1 the hotel,' ho could not reckon to' within ifitflO or' £2OO whether it had cdsu lii.i: £4OOO for racing. He had more often lost than won. Racing had icen'to. him an unprofitable game. He coold noc say wliat h© had lost, but it must have been Oyer £IOOO. When ho had, a big bet he generally lostsmall bets he won: Wb.cn : a bookmaker came along if he had llic money he paid him, and if he bad not thebookmaker bad to He might have lost-£ISOO throughracehorses. - - Had borrowed money.from Mr Smart. Previous to tbe last bill of sale he had given a.bill bf sale to Mr Smart, for the horses. Smart prepared a new bill of sale each month. The first bill over the two horses was for £IOO. Bankrupt,agreed .to, give Smart £lO (120 per cent.) for thp Iqan of £IOO for a month. , He had not'given Similar , interest to anybody ;else.. TheJim mint was afterwards reduced to £5? a pi enth (sixty per cent.). Paid G. Smart £lO2 on the'2lst February; and borrowed jt again from Walter Smart on the same dav. on the security 'of the “horses. Hhd arranged. to keep , the - bailiff (nit .QL.t.he_RpteT,until, the . sale ,of .tlio’ iotol wns completed. Used to, “get i. chap in” once a month' to' write no his j'day book” from memoranda’which’ho mode himself on pieces of paper. The nolicn prosecutions had . affected, the boarder trade and bar trade. , It had cost him something like’£looo in law expenses; in j connection with the hotel. He could nni, .account., for the . manner in - which £-1700 acknowledged ns unaccounted for had been spent. He lost on every racebourse booth lie went in for. He paid the seme amount for the booths each time (‘looking for a 1 recovery, the same as he (lid with his racehorses.” At the Inst faces ho reckoned he lost £llO on the booths. ■. . '■' 1 ' ‘ r 1 | It wns decided to adjourn tho meeting pntil Friday next at 2.30, to give,., Mr B. McGuire an opportunity of giving evi r derioe, and in the meantime to authorise tb« Official Assignee to expend £s’ fn ’ get ting banknipt’s books examined, and a statement of profit and loss compiled...