BANKRUPTCY COURT.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 8005, 25 October 1887, Page 2

BANKRUPTCY COURT.

Monday, October 24.— Before F. P. Corkill ; I Er-q., Deputy Official Assignee, IN RE CETAMiES COOMBSR, OB" NEW PLYMOUTH, LICENSED VICTUALLER. The first general moeting of creditors in the estate of Charles Coomber, licensed victualler, which had been adjourned from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and then again to 7 p.m., took place at the last mentioned hour, when there were present : — Messrs. A. Goldwater (Goldwater Bros.), £19 17s; E. Petty, £4 16s; McDonald (Bank of New Zealand), £591 183 6d; H. Shuttleworth, £87; A. H. Denham, £17; O. Rundlo, £7 13s 6d; R. Clarke, £5 4s sd; T. White, £268; fl. Moverloy, £19 11s; B. Wells (W. Bayly), £7 10a 61; R. Smith, £ ; R. Cock (Cock & Co., of Nelson), £63 5s 2s; (Selandera & Co.), £105 18s; J. Paul, £251 12s Id; R. Cook, £1; W. Barnard, £10 6s Id; W. Sole (Sole Bros.), £16. Mr. Samuel appeared for the Assignee and Mr. J. Paul, and Mr. Govett for the bankrupt. ■ The Deputy Official Assignoe read the statement of üßsots and liabilities, which are given oleewhere, and draw attention , to certain discrepancies therein. Mr. Govett said it was oniy fair to his client to state that the books had been kept by Mr. H. Shuttleworth, Mr. Coomber's accountant, and that the stat'j'm'ent just read wns mainly compile 1 by him, but ho must admit that the books had been badly looked after. The Assignee : I should think so, judging by a perusal of them. Mr. Shuttleworth claims a largo amount for keoping them, but I shall only admit his proof -for the purposes of this meeting, as' his account will have to bo investigated. Understand that,' Mr. Shuttloworth. ' ' Mr. Shuttleworth:' All right. ! ;Mr. Paul: What is tho stock filed at? ' Assignee: -£325. I Mr. Paul: I had it valusd this morning, "and it was set down at £35. 7 Mr. Samuel: Perhaps Mr. Shuttleworth or Mr. Ooomber will throw some light on the' matter." ! The bankrupt, on being sworn, said, in answer to Mr. Paul, that he could not account for the discrepancy in the stock, as he had not been in the hotel for ten days past. : Mr. Gov.ett said that Mr. Paul had told him it was £325. but Coomber thought it was £350. I Mr. Paul: That was tho valuation on tte Block and furniture when the bankrupt first went there. ; Questioned further by Mr. Paul, the bankrupt stated that about the beginning or October he received from Sclandera & Co. ono octave of whiskey, a quarter-cask .of rum, one c&se of gin, one case of Old Tom, and one case of LL whiskey. He did not know what had become of it; it was left nt the hotel when he filed. The rum vas left in the billiard-room. The Assignee: You filed last Tuesday, and that's not ton days. ;Mr. Paul: You told me before Mr. Ellis that the quarter-cask of rum was left intact by you. Mr. Samuel suggested that the bankrupt's private depositions should be read, in order to stive time and needleas questions. : The Assignee read the depositions, and then referred- to some of the ledger acccounts. He said the ledger showed an account against Mr. W. Humphries for £45 153 7d, extending over a good period, and just a couple of dayb before tLe bankruptcy it was squared off by a contra. , Mr. Paul: It is most inexplicable. The: Assignee^ b took tho trouble to spend two hours over the books the other night, and I found quite a number of accounts squared off within a few days prior' to the bankruptcy. Mr. Paul: Yee; quite a eleighfc of hand business, apparently. In answer to Mr. Samuel tho bankrupt stated: If Mr. Humphries wanted a case of anything ho would get it from me, and vice versa. All such transactions, how-, ever,' took place while I was in the Taranaki Hotel. Ho has had things off me since- I have been in the Red House Hotel, but he his paid for them. Mr. Humphries' accounts rendered to mo are,' I' think, on the file. I think the £39 sho.vri in my statement is due ou a bill to Mr. Humphries. I did not take notice that Mr. Humphries owed me £45 15s 7d on tho 11 th instant, and 1 did not authoiiae ,i\lr. Shuttleworth to square that off by ( contra to the best of my recollection, The ■'lAssi^nee stated that this account had been 'squared off, ani as there was still about £40 owing, to Mr. Humphries that would mean tint tho bankiupt had owed Humphries about £85 in all.] Evidence continued: I don'i know if Humphries owes me tho £45 15s 7d now. 1 have paid him for wo gallons of bran ly for which he gavo me a receipt. I was in the habit of paying by Uill3. The Assignee, iq looking through the bankrupt's b\nk book, said thsro was James McLaughlan's dishonored cirque for £1 15s, which the bankrupt stated he had not received. The Assignee put it do A-n as an asset. There svas also a bill of Humphries' for £41 which bankrupt stated was given tor grout rhs. Evidence continued : When my account with Humphries amounted to a sufficient sum, about every three months, he cann to me and got me to sign a bill. I never looked at hirf accounts to check them before givin . bill?, nor did 1 look at my own books to soe what he owed me. ;By Sir. Sole : I never rendered an account to Mr. Humphries. Coutinued : I never touched the books. I have no knowledge of its being written off. All I know ii that I owed him some monoy for groceries. The Assignee: You'll finl other accounts written off. Mr. Paul : Yen, they have boen written off wholesale. , 'Assignee : Mr. O.ven has proved for £3 10s, balance of a pooy account. Mr. Paul: D,ii you not tell 1110 tint Owtn and Jones between them owed \ r ou about £200 ? Bankrupt': I havo nq rccollectiun of telling you so. Assignee : It appear a that Jones owes £1183. Does J. Callaglnn stiil owo £5 8s 6d? B mkrupt: I don't know. Air. O.ven paid cash tor hia board. Mr. Paul: Dil you not tell ins that Owen owed you £100 ; ha und Jones owing £20C between them ? Mr. EUis : You told Mr. Paul quite rocentlj iv my prcsonco in frjnt of tho Alexandra Hall. Mr. Paul : Over and over again you told me Owen wus indebted to you^ anl I always urged on you to get a promissory note from him. Dj you consi.ler that you are indebted to Owen ? Bankrupt; : I don't consider so. Ho has beou off and on with mo for 12 mouths or bo ; in fact, since I bought the ponies trom him. Mr. Paul ; Have you any entry in your cash book as to what ho paid you ? You havo had a splendid secretary, uuu ought to know. Mr. Shuttlevorlh : I never hoard of Mr. Owen paying any cash for board 01 anything olse, except the £2 10s in tho book.

Mr. Samuel : How much di j you charge him for board ? I Bankrupt : 18s per week. In answer to Mr. Paul as to why he had not kept the books in a propor manner, Mr. Shuttlewortb said: [ had no mxterial to work on, as I oould not get any data from Mr. Coomber. Could you keep booka correctly under such circumstances? Assignee: You should have endeavored to, a3 your reputation as an accountant was at stake. Bankrupt questioned by Mr Paul sail, that he had received £2 lUs from Owen, but he could not tell the date. He put it - on the slate. Mr. Paul : The book only shows that Owen has paid £2 10s. He has been living off and on with you for 9 months or more. Assignee : There is absolutely no account against him. Mr, H. Shuttleworth, when questioned, stated : I could not mako a statement of Owen's indebtedness to bankrupt. I only worked by the slate h© kept. Mr. Paul: As private secretary you should be able to do so. Assignee : It is a matter of notoriety that Owen bus been in tosvn for 12 or 18 months, and all the time he has been living with tha bankrupt, and according to the book he has only paid you £2 10s. Mr. Paul : He told me distinctly that Owen owed him £100, B mkrupt : Perhaps I meant Joshua Jones when I told Mr. Paul that. Assignee : Tv ell. then, what does Jones owe you? Bankrupt : I have had pigs and potatoes off him: and he owos me now about £15. Mr. Paul : As the Assignee said, it is a well-known fact that Owen has been living with you lor a considerable time, and yet he has only paid you £2 10a. Assignee : Have you any interest iv the Mokau, Mr. Coombor, that induced you to ,give speculators board and lodgings free ? Bankrupt : No interest whatever. Mr. Paul : Why should not Owen be treated like Jones, against whom there are entries ? Bankrupt : I don't know. Questioned by Mr. Samuel : Mr. White has proved for £268, bills I backod. I dou't know why I excludnd them from my filed etatement. Mr. Samuel : The first, dated October 17, 1883, for £23, between yourself and A. T. MoGonagle— Bankrupt: I have paid interest on it ever since. He still owes me it, except a small shoeing account ho has against me. He has been bankrupt since he got the money. Mr. White: It was before McQonagle's bankruptcy. ' Mr. Samuel: The second is May 22, 1884, for £20, between H. Shuttleworth und yourself. 1 Mr. Shuttlewprth: I had the money. I intend to meet the bill, as I told Mr. White. I paid the interest on the bill. Mr. Samuel: The next is a joint promissory note between yourself and Mr. Richard Smith, dated June 5, 1884, for £50. ' Bankrupt: IL was a renewal. Seamark got the money. Mr. White would not renew it, because he would not take Seamark's name, and another had to be got. It was an old bill for which Seamark and myself were liable. Mr. White explained how the bill was made up, £32 10s being paid by him as cash. Questioned by Mr. Samuel, the bankrupt said : I did not hold any sacurity over SeamarK's farm or cattle. I held one ovei 45 head of cattle, but Mr. Randolph Smith held a prior one, whiah I did not know until after the bill was rn-ide out. I did not represent to Mr. Richard Smith to get his name that I had a bill of eale over Seamark's farm and cattle. Mr. Richard Smith to bankrupt : Sou told me that to indu-je me to sign the bill. You can't look me in ths face and say that you did not. 1 would not own you as a countryman. I want to see no more of you. Bankrupt: I did not. By Mr. Samuel : I don't know if Smith and I are equally liable on the bill. I paid the interest. Tho book would tell what Seamark owed me. Mr. H. Shuttleworth : Up to December 31, Seamark's accouut was £95 15s. The position of the account now is balance due to him of £9 18s 6 1, after receiving tho £32 103 from Mi. White. The interest on the bill was charged to Seamark. ■ Mr Samuel said that Seamark was not liable, but Mr. Smith was. Mr. Shuttloworth : I charged interest to Seamark because Mr. Coomber told me to do so. Mr. Samuel said tho nex; bill November 7, 1885, was J. O'D. Q.ii,'ley for £60, endorsod by Major C. Brown, and Messrs. Marchment and Coomber. The Assignee explained it was a guarantee to tho Drug Company when Qiigley wanted to renew business after his bankruptcy. Bankrupt ; Marohuient has goao away, and Mnj->r Brown and myself lave had to meet the interest. Mr. Samuel said that Mr. Coatnber's name was last, and he couU therefore! only bo held responsible after the others had failed to satisfy tho bill. The next bill was Miy 4, 1887, for £30, W. S. Hoskin, backed by tho bankrupt, who said Hoskin got tho money. Oa May 13 was another for £70, on s.imo grounds. Tho oext was Ap:il 27, 1887, for £20, £10 oE which had been pail oif. Mr. Jordan and bankrupt had signed. Jordan said he would pay the remaiuder. The bill was floated to help a Maori. Mr. Samuel said that the best thing that could be done wag to make them pay up their bills as quickly possible. Mr. White said he had written to tho ones in whoso favor they were made calling on them to supply a name in place of the bankrupt's. By Mr. Paul : I would not have paid £50 a mouth ago to Shuttloworth to square his account. I owe him a little, but not £50. Assignee : You owe him £87 according to (tis proof. By Mr. Paul : A month ago I would not have paid him £25, as I think I did not owo it. I know I owed him monoy, but the amount I don't know. Mr. Paul : Would you show tho book with your takings since yuu have been in the Rjd House Hotel? Bankrupt : All tho books tho Assignee has. Air. Paul : You showed me a small pass boqk with }oifr takings in it once. By tha Assignee ; I never kept one, Only what I paid out 1 noted. Air Paul: Tom showed (no one; between 3011 ;iuv.l your secretary you out to bo able to bljow a btatoiiicnt. What were your takings ? Bankrupt : The first tn >nlh about £25 prp 'r week. Air. Paul : Show m 3 clearly your taking. Binlirupt : I can't. Mr. 1 "mil : You have v pass-book. You have paid no monej into tho Biuk for a mouth prior to bankruptcy. Assignee : You ougnt to be iible to tell, for very few nipn like you can have the luxury of a factotum. Mr. Goveit : Givo him his bundle of receipts, und ho will tell you. Mr. Paul : You have im-rnged 8 hogs^ heads a month in tho Roil House. My books show that. Where has the monoy gone? Bankrupt : My receipts will show * [At this stugo the Asaigneo sent for the receipt r ] By Mr. Paul ; I hud over £50 wufiu u£ Bin 11" from Scluadcru auJ Co. Ja6s

month, and £20 from Jock nnd Co. in the beginning of September. I did not sell all the stuff. It is there yet, I supposo. Tho Asfiignoe: When tho bankrupt filed I was at Stratford, but Mr. Samuel acting as my solicitor put J. Loveridge in for three days, and then 11. Hnmmond was put in — both reliablo men. When I went up after coining from Stratford, I found a a tremendous gathering of "dead heads," the passage being blocked with spongers who had to be cleared out. Mr. Govett said he would explain in in reference to the discrepancy in the stock valuation. He said he asked Coomber what the stock was worth, and he asked me what Mr- Paul thought. As he (Mr. Cf.) understood from Mr. Paul that it was £325, it was put down at that, and the furniture at Shuttleworth's valuation. He had great difficulty in getting a statement. Assignee: Net even with the private secretary's assistance. I found on the file an order bearing no name to give someone a bottle of best brandy as tho children had the measles. Tho receipts for last month, when looked over, showed that £65, including £10 in solicitor's hands, had been paid away. Mr. Paul : You have averaged two hogsheads a week, about £80 per month, and jou can't account for it; and with other stuff your takings would bo about £100 a month. The Assignee said that Mr. H. Shuttleworth had been keeping the books for six years or so , and had charged against himself, but not credited himself until the crisis came, when he credited himself from May, 1882, to July 12, 1887, with a lump sum of £135. Mr. Cock said that as the representative of Sclanders & Co. he would move when the time came that Mr. H. Shuttleworth's account be rejected. The Assignee said that Mr. H. Shuttleworth would havo to air his knowledge of the bookp at a public examination. Mr. Paul : Can you account any more for the difference in your receipts and payments for last month ? Bankrupt : Three loads of wood and ten baas of coke, valued at £2 2s 63. Mr. Paul: Where's tha deficit? How much money have you got ? Bankrupt: None at all. Mr. Paul: There have been over £100 taken; thn last payment was made into the Bank at the end of September. Assignee: Coomber was in the house when Loveridge was in. A bulk of the stock has disappeared. Bankrupt: I left tho rum in the billiardroom, and the octave of whiskey under the stairs. Aseignee: As to Morris' account for £3 16s, yon said in private depositions that you squared his account by giving him the ponies. Has he paid this sum, £3 16a? Bankrupt: Yes ; but I did not take a receipt for the squaring up. No cash was paid by him. Mr. H. Shuttleworth: Mr. Coomber put it down on the slate, and said it was all right, and I then entered it as cash. Assignee: I can't see what .\ r. Shuttleworth wants to be paid for. He knows nothing about tho book, seominaly. Mr. 'W. Sole: Except for blinding the creditors. Mr. Paul : You owed Morris £15 for hay, etc., and you gave him tho ponies and £3 163 to boot. Yoh told me in Mr. Ellis' presence that you were going to take a quarter cask of rum to some house you had in view. Bankrupt : Mr, Ellis tells a falsehood and so do you if you say so. Assignee : I won't allow that. Mr. Cock : Mr. H. Shuttleworth, did you not go through the books with Mr. Coomber just before the bankruptcy to square accounts ? Mr. H. Shattleworth : No. Assignee : With Humphries or anyone else? Mr. H. Shuttleworlh: No. Assignee : The book has been gone through by you as shown by your handwriting and accounts squared off. Mr. H. Shuttleworth : You'll find no account there that has not been squared off without Mr. Coomber's con3ent. Mr. Paul : If that's your book-keeping you ought to be ashamed of yourself. You call yourself an accountant, and own up to keeping these disgraceful books. Assignee : I notice Mr. H. Shuttleworth that all the bills are payable at your office, Brougham Street. Where is it ? Mr. H. Shuttleworth : At the old Neios office. Mr. Cock : There is not- the slightest doubt that Mr. Coomber has trusted Mr. H. Shuttleworth to keep books. Mr. Paul : Mr. Assignee, are there no means of getting a proper account from the bankrupt sinco he has been in the Pied House Hotel ? for at present it seems like a Chinese puzzle — tho farther you get into it the rrore confused you become. Assignee ; Yes ; we can have him before the Court for public examination, and his accountant too. The meeting then considere the best means for realising the estate, and for bringing the bankrupt up for examination before the Court. The following resolutions were then passed :—: — Mr. Cock (Cock & Co) proposed, " That tho Assignee be rtqueeted to fake steps to bring up the bankrupt for public examination at the earliest possible date, and that this meeiing nosy intimutes to the bankrupt that he is expected to prepare a proper statement of his receipts nnd expenditure for the period of. his occupation of tbo Red House Hotel." Seconded by Mr. Goldwater, and carried. Mr. Sole proposed, "That the Assignee be authorised to pay Mr. Petty £5 10b for the inventories and other information which he has available." — Seconded by Mr. Paul, and carried. Mr. Goldwater proposed, " That, the goodwill of the Red House Hotel, togelhtr with the furniture and stock-in-trade, be advertised for sale by tender; tenders to close within a fortnight from date, and advertisements to appear in the local newspapers only." — Seconded by Mr. W.Solc. Mr. Paul Btated that he would be willing to give £200 for the assets mentioned, excluding the piano, butgy, and guns. The resolution being withdrawn, Mr. Goldwattr proposed "That Mr. Paul's offer be accepted." — Seconded by Mr. Moverley, and carried unanimously. Mr. Paul proposed "That the *\eßigneo realise the remaining asse*e (excepting the piuno),tißfipc-eriily as pcssiblo." — Seconded by Mr. Denham, und carried unanimously. The meeting clofaed at 10.45 p.m.

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