BANKRUPT ESTATES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20289, 23 December 1927, Page 3

BANKRUPT ESTATES.

A DUNEDIN SALESMAN. A meeting of creditors in the bankrupt estate or Charles Edwin Bezar, salesman, was held before the official assignee (Mr W. D. Wallace) yesterday morning. The statement of the bankrupt showed that he owed £212 17s 9d, and that his assets were nil. The principal unsecured creditors were A. A. Srlßth (Auckland), £49; James G. Neil, £25; Sundstrum and Thompson, £l4; J. M'Lennan, £l3 ; Miss K. Stevens, £l2 8s ; Mrs J. Rutherford, £ll 10s; J. Patton, £lO ; and Charles Lee, £lO. In a written statement bankrupt said he had been engaged in a somewhat precarious calling—that of life assurance agent. The calling, though at times lucrative, was often the reverse. The war had lowered the purchasing value of money, and he was among the only employees in New Zealand who had received no assistance. He had had a nervous breakdown following on the death of his wife, from the effects of which he had not yet completely recovered. He was at present engaged" by a Dunedin firm as a salesman, and was working on a commission basis only. Ho regretted exceedingly that he was unable to make any offer to his creditors at the present time. Bankrupt was examined by the assignee regarding various debts. He said that the money owing to Mr Smith was a debt incurred some three or four years ago, when he was in difficulties. Bankrupt ■ said h a had lent a man named Escott, residing in Wellington, £BS. That was before the war. He had never received the money back, and he believed this man had since left the Dominion. He had bought a gramophone on the hire purchase system from Mr M'Lennan, when he had been in financial difficulties, and had paid £2 on the purchase. He was a widower with four children, the eldest being 17. Ho was living in a furnished flat, the rent being £2 per week. There were four rooms and a kitchenette in the flat. The Assignee remarked that the bankrupt was certainly getting a cheap place. The bankrupt was further examined by the creditors, it being freely stated that he had m&de no attempt to live within his means. The Assignee said that the bankrupt should certainly try to make som e offer. He had no chance of securing his discharge unless he did. After further discussion the Assignee suggested that the best way to meet the position would be for the bankrupt to agree to pay a lump sum sufficient to give the creditors 5s in the £, or in the alternative that he pay 10s per week until the dividend would reach the sum of 5s in the £- Mr Sundstrum then moved in this direc- | tion, and on the bankrupt agreeing with the proposal the motion was carried. BALCLUTHA FARMER’S AFFAIRS, j In the afternoon the financial affairs of Harry Hasler, farmer, Balclutha, engaged the attention of the official assignee. The amount owing tc unsecured creditors was set down at £1385 Is lid, and the assets at £77 9s 3d, the deficiency being £1307 12s Bd. The unsecured creditors were as follow: —Lucy Elizabeth Bayley (widow), £1298 is 7d; Wright, Stephenson, and Co., £47 19s Id; R. R. Grigor (Balclutha), £l2 12s; Ramsay, Barrowclough, and Haggitt, £26 9s 3d. The amount owing to Alexander Syme was stated as “ not known.” Mr Baylee appeared for the bankrupt, and Mr Barroclough for Mrs Bayley. The only other creditor present was Mr L. Robertson, representing Messrs Wright, Stephenson, and Co. Mr Robertson said his company did not intend to prove its claim. It was satisfied that bankrupt had made a very fair attempt to get on and that he had had a pretty bad spin. So far as his company was concerned in was making no claim, but was writing the amount off. Mr Baylee said that if Mr Robertson was making no claim, then they had no quorum present. In a written statement the bankrupt said that when he came back to New Zealand from England in 1921 he had £760. While in England he had been farming for a period of about eight years—a small farm of 65 acres. He had known the late Mr R. R. Bayley, the husband of the petitionary creditor, before going to England, and on his return Mr Bayley asked him what he intended to do. Bankrupt told him that if he could get a small farm to suit Lim he thought he would give it a trial, but would wait a little and sec if things settled down. Bankrupt’s statement went on to say that he lent Mr Bayley £650 at 6 per cent, to enable him to build a house, and that subsequently he entered into partnership with Mr Bayley to buy a Government leasehold farm at Paretai. The purchase price was £3OOO, and there was an existing mortgage to the State Advances of about £4OO. Bankrupt was to find £650, and Mr Bayley the balance. He, however, paid the deposit of £25 in addition to the £650, so that his interest in the farm at August 51, 1921, was £675. As Mr Bayley at that time had received his £650 towards the building of his house, he had to find the balance, but was to give bankrupt credit for the £650 already lent to him. All the final arrangements for the purchase were made by Mr Bayley, but so far as he could gather the vendor, Mr Syme, left £BOO on second mortgage, and advanced £250 on the stock - and chattels, after allowing bankrupt credit for £650. Mr Bayley found that money and the balance. In addition to the purchase price, they had to pay for the milking machines. Bankrupt took possession on October 1, 1921, and Mr Bayley was to find an additional sum and pay it into the partnership account for working expenses. However, before the partnership had lasted very long—in fact, after only a few weeks—-Mr Bayley took ill, and nothing was paid into the partnership account by him for working expenses. After a very short illness Mr Bayley had died. The question then arose, said the bankrupt, if the farm could be readily sold, and he was informed that if the place was sold it would be at a loss of £4OO or £SOO, and rather than see Mrs Bayley and himself lose such a sum he agreed to buy out Mr Bayley’s share in the business, and this he did, giving Mrs Bayley a mortgage over the property for the amount duo. Finally’t became clear that he could not get sufficient out of the farm, and that they had paid too much for it. lu February, 1926, he received a demand from Mr Syme fer the £250 secured by the bil! of sale, which was theli overdue. He had then tried his utmost to sell the farm, without success, and had informed the petitioning creditors brother that lie could take whatever steps he thought necessary to protect his sister, and that if necessary he was prepared to lose all the money ho had put into it. He understood that the brother had tried to sell, but had failed. Finally, in November, 1926. Mr Syme, the second mortgagee. sold the stock, and endeavoured to sell bankrupt's interest in the farm. ’Phis j lie was unable to do at the time, and the : farm lay idle for some months, but even- i mally it was sold by Mr Syme, and be ' bad been given to understand that Mr j Syme had lost about £2OO of the monev ; advanced on the second mortgage. Bankrupt stated that his only assets were 75 j shares in the Paretai Dairy Company, and on these 15s per share had been paid, and a small balance of about £2O in the National Bank. He was 62 years of age. and was earning not more than £2 5s per week. He attributed his bankruptcy to the fact that ins partner and himself bad paid too much for the property, that the farm was not callable of producing sufficient return to enable a living to he made out of it at the price they had paid for it, and to his inability to meet the amount due to the second mortgagee. The Assignee said this bankruptcy was j only one more instance of those that came | under his notice where people had got into

trouble through paying the high prices for land which were ruling a few years ago. They had paid too much, and hgd had to walk off their properties. The point arose whether they had a quorum, Mr Barraclongh asking Mr Robertson to prove his claim to enable them to come to a decision. There was really nothing much in the estate for division. If Mr Robertson remained a* a creditor they would have a quorum. Mr Robertson said he was sorry to have to hold up f>io meeting, but his company would not prove. Mr Barraclough said be would simply have to arrange for Mr Grigor to be present at the next mooting. Mrs Baylcy was an old woman, and was now practically penniless, and he wanted to got any money he could for her. Mr Baylce said that Mrs Baylcy had gone into' the transaction with her eyes open. The meeting then lapsed, and it was decided that another meeting he hold on January 18.