THE INCOME TAX CASE.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 12214, 2 August 1910, Page 5

THE INCOME TAX CASE.

i\ , (Per Press Association.) ■I-*, ■ GHJRISTOHUROH, last- night. ' t . The appeal of 'nWilljuiin Bowron, Ueorge • Bowrxm, artd Qfe^rge Join 1 ! Smith against • -the decision of the Magistrate m thfc i income tax case waJ continued thif after- *• noon. . , « • ■ •> „f . ■ ■ s. ■ . , i •• Percy* -Hovvatti Goodwin, formerly m f the employ of .Bqwron Bros., from 1904 ! to ' 190?, said, 'that he had never taken > out a> ; balance-sheet, and the . cash book | he ktept did not contain sufficient infor- ' mation 'for the compilation of one. He ! .did- not J get' stock sheets or information *. as to capital. i concluded the case for the De- , 'rwutnient, ,\and the case was -adjourned . Itill to-morrow. • ; CHRI6TCHURCH, this day. ' y ' Mr Russell, m opening the case for the - 'appellants m the income tax case, said j [the charge was a criminal one, and the : (Crown had, to'; show, . by .convincing cvi- ) 'deuce, that* fraud had. been committed. ' The members' of the firm, Bowron Bros., occupied high positions m the city, and J jthe consequences to them would be very [.serious if; the charge was upheld. As jtp tlie' penalty, in -adoytioji to paying the 1 (tax m. dispute, there w.yujd be a moneitary penalty of ' about" £5000. He iri■tendeo,; to. shdw v that . the profits as, jshiteVl by "Mr Tyers 'were illusory. Apf iljelants might ha-ve been guilty of humidling, bad" book-keeping, and negligence, ■but there was. not a title of -evidence of dishonesty .. o^l. their part. The business of . the .firm, had begun m a small way. i, jMi'. had ? been . built .Up gradually by Mr Cieor^ge' Bowrphj ■ M'hp had had- no com- , .mercitil training, and knew nothing of . the, science of book-keeping. Mr Smith ihad never kept a set] of books m his life. ;. In etu'ly days .of ihp business, the practicehnq. been t6 make ;'lho' income tftx. ■rptijrns according to the surplus made tluvii'ijg the perioa covered, and the practice, had never 1 been altered.