THE TOURIST TRAFFIC

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume IX, Issue 692, 11 June 1903, Page 23

THE TOURIST TRAFFIC

STRUGGLES OF A PUBLICAN. The following is the sworn statement in bankruptcy made by Mr T. H. Glass, licensee of the Terrace Hotel, Taupo : — “ I took possession of the Terrace Hotel, Taupo, about two years ago. Prior to then I had been in business as a publican at Port Ahuriri for some six years. The Terrace Hotel property which I took over consisted of a long Government leasehold with buildings thereon, in addition to which I bought all the furniture, cattle, stock-in-trade, etc., on the place. The price for the lot came to £2830. I paid out of >my own money nearly £6OO in cash. I gave Mr McKinley, the vendor, a mortgage over the property for £950, ; and a Mr Chadwick a mortgage for £BOO, and ,for the balance took over bills drawn by Mr McKinley in favour of Messrs Ellison and Durican,

amounting to about £4BO. These were renewed from time to iimo, and HOW form part of my indebtedness to Messrs Ellison and Duncan of £9OO, to secure which they hold a bill of tale over the furniture. Owing to the representations made to me by various people as to the business to be done at Taupo I expected a good tourist season, but was disappointed, the season being admittedly a very bad one. I continued to struggle on, hoping that the following season would prove better and recoup me, but it proved worse than the first. I began to find that I was too heavily handicapped to carry on further, so I decided to file, more especially as the mortgagee had taken possession under his mortgage security. There is little or no business doing during the winter months at the hotel, while interest and expenses are running up, and a good or bad season makes the difference, I might almost say, between prosperity and bankruptcy. In addition to the above, the tourist business for some reason or another seems to be diverted from Taupo and Napier. A few year® ago special and 'Other coaches were passing between Napier and Rotorua almost daily, but now a special is practically unheard of, and the ordinary weekly service carries little more than the mails. Nearly all the tourist traffic goes from Rotorua to Tokaano, and from thence to Wanganui and Wellington, or round , New Plymouth to Auckland, thus avoiding Taupo arid Napier. I am now absolutely penniless 1 , having lost all my money and given up to the Assignee all my property, and regret that I am not in a position to make an offer to my creditors. I attended faithfully to the business and did my utmost to make it a success, but nearly every month I was there the expenditure was greater than the receipts.”