MEETING OF CREDITORS IN THE ESTATE OP VV. D. SHAW.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXII, Issue 9145, 23 June 1880, Page 2

MEETING OF CREDITORS IN THE ESTATE OP VV. D. SHAW.

An adjourned meeting of the creditors in the estate of Mr W. D. Shaw was held yesterday, at the Courthouse, for the purpose of receiving the report of the Committee appointed to investigate the affairs connected with the estate. Mr- Cross occupied the chair. There were about seventeen gentlemen present, several of whom held proxies. The Chairman rend the report of the Committee, which was then duly criti* cised. It is as follows : — " So far as time has permitted the Committee have looked into Mr Shaw's affairs, and report as follows : — " Stock &c, as per statement filed by Mr Shaw, was valued at £7000. This, it seems, was only an estimate. The stock-book now completed shows £6254, but as a large proportion of the stock was purchased in the colony, and some items overpriced, your Committee consider its present imported cost would not exceed £5750, and value it accordingly. " Pboperties — Messrs Liffiton and Barns were retained and instructed to value them at the price they would fetch if disposed .of to the best advantage. Their report is attached, and it meets with the approval of the Committee. A fee of five guineas has been paid to each of these gentlemen. " Pbwate House, — Mr Shaw returned this as of no value. It seems the title is in his own name, but Mr Walker holds an agreementto mortgage. This gentleman advanced to Mr Shaw £850, of which £200 was paid off in April last. It is questionable whether Mr Shaw was justified in making this refund, but in any case it is doubtful whether the estate can receive any benefit from this property. "N. S. W. Bank.— Probably this claim will bo somewhat reduced before any dividend is paid, but as the Bank is in a position to enforce payment in full, we have thought it best, in the meantime, to take the full claim into account in the balance-sheet. " Balance-sheet as prepared by us is submitted as a bond fide statement of the position of the estate as a goiug concern. To bs wound-up there will of necessity be considerable shrinkage in the hands of the trustees. " Contingent Liabilities.— No claim is likely to arise from bills under discount at the National Bauk, nor does Mr Shaw anticipate any claim on the estate from bills endorsed by him." The following is the balance-sheet : — Liabilities as filed by Mr Shaw, £14,347 0s lid ; Bank of New South Wales, £4288 13s 4d ; total, £18,635 14s 3d, less rebate of interest on composition bills not matured, £160— £18,475 14s 3d. Contingent liabilities : National Bank (bills endorsed by Mr Shaw), £1918 4s lOd. Assets : Stock-in-trade, £5750 ; good accounts, £2981 19s Id ; doubtful do (estimated value), £407 10s 5d ; cash sales and accounts paid since assignment, £253 Cs Gd ; P.N.s received since assignment, £85 13s Id ; freehold property, £033 3s <ld ; leasehold do, £1388 6s 8d ; share in Graziers' Company, £45 ; bill receivable in National Bank, for collection, valued at £1150; second mortgage on Selby's property, Halcombe, £50 ; shareß in. Waneanui Loan Company, £26 bs ; household furniture and effects, £200 ; Avenue property, secured on account of Bank of New South Wales' claim, £2177 10s ; bills dishonoured and expected to bo paid in full, £878 13s Sd ; do for collection, held by Bank of New South Wales, £053 3s 4d— £16,580 11s Id ; deficiency, £1895 3s 3d : total, £18,475 14s 3d. Mr Shaw asked permission to make a few comments on the report presented by the Committee. The Chairman gave Mr Shaw permission. Mr Shaw then asked the Committee how it was that the book debts were agreed to by the Committee the day before and stated at £150 C loss to-day.— Mr Duthie objected to nnswsriiig Mr Shaw seriatim, but said that the Committee would reply when, Mr $haw had closed his remarks, Tlie gJuuirwau fowled out tl^t tie

course Mr Dutkie had sketohed met with his approval, and ho would ask Mr Shaw to criticise the report under the several heads into which, it was divided. — Mr Hill (Gutlirie and Larnach) thought it made very little difference whether Mr Shaw agreed with the report or not. If the estate was better than the Committee thought, so much the better for the creditors. — Mr Shaw explained that it seemed as if the Committee desired to throw blame on him for endeavouring to place a false value on his estate, and he wanted to refute the insinuations. — A long and desultory cross-fire between Mr Shasv on the one side and Messrs J. P. Watt, Duthie, and Thomson on the other, elicited Ihe opinion that out of some £3000 worth of bills held as overdue or for collection, the actunl recoverable value was only £900.— Mr King, of the Bank of .New South Wales, endorsed this view of the value of the bills, saying that £1000 would be an exceedingly liberal allowance.—Mr Watt said that a difficulty had just cropped up, viz : How would the real estate, which at the first assignment had been vested in Mr Williamson for the payment of the composition bills, some of which were still unpaid, be now vested ? — Mr Lo\j suggested the fairest way would be for the former trustee to re-assign the real property for the benefit of the fresh creditors. (This proposal was received witli much mirthfulncss.) —Mr Thomson, manager of the Bank of Australasia, said that the position was this — viz , that the personalty only was an asset of the present creditors. (The original pro-, posal agreed to by the Wellington creditors, whereby the above opinion was confirmed, was read by Mr Barnicoat, solicitor for the debtor). — Mr White (J. H. Cock and Co.) said that although he was a new as well as an old creditor, he could not see that it would be fair that the new ones Bhould participate in the advantages of a re-assignment of the first estate. Mr Duthie moved, That the deed of assignment be assented to. He deprecated tlie too common habit of assigning to certain trustees without first consulting the creditors. He did not object to the trustees personally, but only gave expression to this opinion with regard to a very general practice. He asked what reservation was made in the deed with regard to furniture. — 1 he Solicitor : £200 ' worth. —Mr Levy seconded the resolution, and said that in estates paying a very much smaller dividend, a sum nearly equal to that mentioned was reserved without any hesitation. — Mr Williamson said that it was very much against his will that he had accepted the trusteeship. — The resolution was put, when the Chairman declared it carried. All the creditors present voted for it, with the exception of Mr Xvi. Jones (T. and J. Morrin). It was proposed by Mr Duthie, That a commission of 2£ per cent be paid to each of the trustees, such payment not to exceed in the gross £500. ' [Resolved, That each of the Committee be paid the sum of two guineas for services ren« dered in connection with the investigation of the estate. It was made an instruction to the trustees to wind-up the estate as speedily as possible.