£3310 CLAIMED.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20234, 19 February 1934, Page 7

£3310 CLAIMED.

Farmer Conducts Own Case. HAD TO LEAVE FARM. With i’3310 at stake, a farmer conducted his own case in the Supreme Court to-daj-. His claim was made to ijover alleged losses suffered by plaintiff as a result of being forced off his property by the mortgagee. lie alleged that there had been a conspiracy to damage his interests and put him off his farm. Plaintiff was Frank M’Clelland, a farmer, of ScargiU. The defendants were Helen Beatrice Westenra, wife of Derrick Warner Westenra. of Dunsandel, and Helen Walker Denniston, a spinster, of Christchurch. The case was heard before Mr Justice Johnston. Statement of Claim. In his statement of claim, plaintiff set out that he was the registered Owner of a sheep and cropping farm at Scargill, which contained 597 acres 2 roods, and that the land was subject to memorandum of mortgage in favour of the defendants to secure the principal sum of £SOOO and the interest thereon. On June 8, 1933, defendants, exercising the power of sale contained in the mortgage, sold the land to William Brown for £5526 17s 6d, and before selling the farm omitted to take reasonable precautions to obtain a proper price. Defendants, by their agent. Derrick Warner Westenra, it was claimed, allegedly entered into a conspiracy with 11. S. Lawrence to force plaintiff off his property and further interfered with the working of the farm in a manner that allegedly proved detrimental to plaintiff’s interests. Plaintiff further alleged that the sale was collusive and made at a gross under-value, and with wilful or reckless disregard of plaintiff’s interests. The sale was made and the preliminary steps and proceedings were taken contrary to good faith on the part of defendant’s agents, and in consequence of the wrongful acts on the part of defendants and their agents plaintiff had Suffered considerable loss. Therefore, he claimed £3310, being the value of the property (£9145) less £5835 the amount owing on the mortgage, and such further relief as the Court might deem just. Allegations Denied. Defendants, who were represented by Mr Sim, denied the plaintiff’s allegations. i Giving evidence, plaintiff said that he considered the value of the farm to be £l6 an acre. In March, 1912, when he bought it the price was £ll m acre. It was sold at £9 5s an acre. When the farm changed hands last year, the value of the land to plaini.c was £l6 an acre. The Government aluation in 1929 was £ls 16s an acre. Referring to his allegations that the defendants did not take reasonable precautions to obtain the most favourable price, plaintiff said that they did not advertise and the sale was put through in a hurry. Asked by the Judge on several occasions to support his allegation of the conspiracy mentioned in his statement of claim, plaintiff answered that through advice given by Mr Westenra to Dalgety and Co. he was forced off the land. His Honor: That is a serious charge to make. How are you going,to prove it? It is not enough to make a statement. Plaintiff then made a lengthy explanation of changes in cropping that he had -made on instructions from the mortgagee. These changes were deliberately forced on to him to _iut him in difficulties. His Honor: Did the mortgagees interfere with your farm before you fell into arrears with your interest?—No. His Honor: Then it was not thenfarming that put you in trouble?—No. “ To Help a Friend.” Asked by Mr Sim if it were true that the mortgagees and Dalgety and Co. had lost heavily on the mortgage transaction and therefore would endeavour to realise the highest possible price on the sale of the farm, plaintiff said that information nad come to him that the man to whom the land had been sold was an intimate friend of Mrs Westenra. For that reason the price had been made easy. Mr Sim: You suggest that Mrs Westenra and Dalgety and Co. between them threw away nearly £IOOO merely to assist a friend?—l cannot ray definitely, but I have heard that the man was a friend of the mortgagee. If they wanted to help him they would ; not insist on a high price. Mr Sim: That is your case in a nutshell, and you seriously make those allegations?—Why would they put the sale through in such a hurry if it was not to help somebody ? < (Proceeding.)