£300,000 LOST IN A DAY

Waikato Times, Volume 94, Issue 14600, 25 February 1921, Page 3

£300,000 LOST IN A DAY

CAPTAIN DUPED BV FRIEND. AMAZING STORY OF TRUST. The romantic story of a wealthy army officer who parted with £300.00') to ,i "friend," who promised to make him a financial magnate, and then disappeared, was revealed in the Lord <: 11;.■ t" Justice's Court in London reci nliy.

Tlic cenlrnl figure in this drama of

real life. Captain Henry Kidd, was described by Mr Patrick Hastings, K.C., us "a singularly li'usling individual, where money w;is concerned, .nil in financial matters he is a child-"

"Captain Kidd comes of :i good family," said Mr Hastings, ":nul he and his wife, Lady Mary Kidd, occupy a prominent social position in Iho routines of Nottinghamshire and Olotio.estorshirc. and liavc a host of friends. In 1907 he was persuaded by a friend ih.it in; possessed an aptitude for finance. He thereupon parted with £90,000, which he lost. After this he handed £300.000, which belonged to himself, his wife, and his relations, to a man who professed to lie able In make him a financial magnate in the city. This man one day announced that he was going to Prance for 1 a holiday. He went instead to South America, and has not been seen or heard of since. Captain Kidd had not seen his £300.000 since. If you ask him where il went, lie will tell you thai he has not the slightest idea." , Laughter.) Sale of Shares. The £300.000, however, was not the subjeel of the present action, which was a claim for £50,000 damages againsl Mr William Pepper Cross, of Northampton, and the Glazed Kid Company, l,hi., for alleged fraud and misrepresentation, in consequence of winch Captain Kidd's trustee had sold 23,000 shares, in the company at a much lower price than their true value. "When Captain Kidd's affairs hecame involved," continued Mr Hastings, "everything he could save out of the wreck was handed to tus solicitor. Mr Powell, who acted as trustee. One of the things that had been saved was a block of Chrome Company shares, an I Ihe.v were assigned to a Mr Raymond Barker on behalf of four friends, who | had guaranteed money to Captain Kidd. The Chrome Company was formed | years ago, and reconstructed in 1909 with 2U.000 shares. , Captain Kidd's holding was 2-2.910 of that number. The directors were each entitled to £IOO a year as fees, with 10 per cent. of the pronts to be devided among them. I think there were three directors, one of whom was Mr Cross. When the war broke out the shares becam; of great value. Then Mr Cross and his co-directors conceived "•the brilliant idea of getting enormously increased commission for themselves, a fact that would hav«i tbt effect of reducing the value of the '■''".res. Commission. "The three directors were allowed to divide 23 per cent, of the profits as remuneration. There were no shareholders to object, except Mr inond Barker, who held Captain Kidd's shares, and he apparently did nol worry so long as the shares stood r I. In the following years the directors look £20,000 as their commission, in ! addition to £7OO as salaries. 1 ••'l'll,- company one yoar recently showed a nol profit of £2-">.SOO, the dii tors having taken £22,000 as commission and remuneration. Kvenlually, through some manoeuvre, Captain Kidd's shares were obtained by Mr Cross for £3 each, a price much below their real value. The trustee was persuaded thai Ibis price was a fair one by the state of the company's balance-sheet, which showed tlie company to be less beneficial to shareholders, because of the big sums taken by the directors as remuneration. When Captain Kidd tried to buy hack the shares and asked Mr Cross to Id him have them for £70,000, and -sometiling for his trouble,' Mr Cross asked for a profit of c.Mi.noii." £30,000 Loan. Captain Kidd stated in evidence that he was a landowner in comfortable circumstances, and had team deputy lieutenant to a county in Scotland. it was a fact thai lie lent £90,000 to a gentleman named (Jluek, who was connected with a firm of skin rchants, and received Hie Chrome Company shares as security. He lost the 1'.i0.000. It was also a I'ael that, telling a Scottish solicitor of his misfortune, he was persuaded to agree to pay that gentleman £ISOO a year and act as a sleeping partner in a business which would make him wealthy, and lie put •into the concern about £300,000 of money belonging to himself, his wife, friends and relations. Mr Hastings: You Insl thai money Yes; £BO,OOO belonged lo my sister. The solicitor disappeared. Tim lasl 1 saw of him was when lie Hashed by in a laxi-cal». I have never gol any of the money back. The Lord Chief .luslice held thai Captain Kidd's claim failed, as there was no evidence of fraud or misrepresonlalion. He could see no evidence that Mr Powell had been induced to part With the shares on an inaccurate or fraiidulent balance-shoot.