The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1883-10-09 00:00:00

THE CHARGER OF FRAUDULENT BANKRUPTCY.

THI ACCIL,InD HUME TILL MAOIST/UM&

On Tuesday morning at the Guildhall. before J.
Robertson, Esg.. B. Holmium and W. Talbot,
Reg., the various charges egaliast Henry Vine, butcher,
were gone into. The Gees basing created • outsider-
able sensation in the town and neighbourhood, the
court MY crowded during the hearing of the eser.which
lasted a greater portion of the day. The charge which
was first proceed, I with was for not having, to the
beet of his knowledge awl belief, truly and fully dis-
covered to the trustee administering his estate for the
benefit of his creditors all tis eroperty, real and per-
sonal, and bow, whom, and for what consideration, and
where be disposed of any part thereof, except such
part lie had been disposed cif in the ordinary worse of
his trade, or laid out in the ordinary expenses of his
family, within the meaning of section 11, sub-section 1
of the said Act._ _ . .

hirT -fro- ;or- v lea, instructed by the Treasury
appeared to prosecute, end Mr. S. Percy Street de-
fended.

....Mr. Trevor Davis. said he appeared there on the
remand to lay further evideace before the Bench upon
the several chargee which he purposed to bring against
this liquidating debtor. Their worship. would
remember, or rather thole. gentlemen who were
present, that very short evidence indeed was taken in
the first in,tence, and therefore be purposed that
morning to c immence Sc novo. The subject of the
present charge I. or was a butcher in this town, and
he believed he had conducted the business of a butcher
for some years. On the 9.h of March in this rear be
filed his petition in the County Court of D
shire, holden at Dorchester, and a few
days after that • Mr. D61:111110, of Yeovil,
• chartered accountant, was appointed an
nominated the receiver of the debtor's estate and
•ffecta. Th. first meeting of oreditom woe held on
the 2nd of April, and on that occasion Mr. Denman
was appointed trustee. When the receiver went into
on, which he helivvel was on the 13th of
as would be the pr per duty of the receiver,
he law the debtor, and be eoquired of him what
property he had. The receiver made certain state-
ment., which he (lit. Darted) need not enter into
minutely. Mr. Denman put into presemion a per. m
of the name of Holder, who remained until Mr.
Denman sold the business on the 14th of April.
At the first meeting It was the duty of the
debtor to put in • statement of his affairs, and they
(the prosecution) would prove that this wan not a
true and full statement of his affairs under the
schedule of the Act, and that he had other property,
ether than that which was disclosed in the document
which he handed to the chairman. Some time after
that the trustee, not being satisfied with the defend-
ant's conduct, it we. thought advisable the defendant
should go before the Court at Dorchester, aud thie was
dons uo the ilrd of May last, before Mr. Symon.l.,
the registrar, and be was at that time examined at
Name length by Mr. Howard, who was then acting for
Mr. Denman, and at this a short-baud writer was
employed to take notes, which would be presently put
into court. The defendant saw the statement of
accounts at the last moment, end said he had made a
c implete disclosure of everything which belonged to
him. He purposed to-day not only to charge the
defendant under this particular section of the Act, but
to bring five other charges against him. He had
Informed the Bench at the last hearing, that he
Intended going into nine oases, but on the last three of
these charges—for having obtained by fraud property
on credit, for pledging property, and for having made
gif s of his property with intent to defraud—he did
not propose to offer thy evidence. The present charge
was of not fully making known to his trustee
his estate. He proposed to take the cisme as
It stood, and offer such stridence as would
justify them in oommitting him for trial. With
regard to this first charge, although the defendant
professed to tell them all he had, he failed to disolose
to the trustee that he had some swedes and some
agricultural implements, which were in a shed in
fields in his occupation. The evidence showed there
warn a deliberate intention not to disclose them, with
the probable hope that at the aloft of the proceedings
these articles might be found there. There were other
articles besides these, and there we. a charge of
,em icing a dem/log-room carpet and other articles,
which would come under another chimes. He would
also be able to prove by were' witnesses that
defendant did not di•olose • number of book debts,
but he wool" not go further into that matter now.
After having heart the evidence it would be the duty
of the Bench to consider if there was a prime facie
cage made out against the defendant, upon which they
wou:d send him for trial. The first witness called was
William Watkins: I am • clerk in the office of the
County C cot Heglatrar at Dorchester. I produce •
file of the proceedings in the matter of the liquidation
of Henry Vine. He filed his petition on the 9th of
March. I also produce a transcript of the shorthand
writer's notes filed at the proceedings.
Crom-examined by Mr. Street: The shorthand
writer was sworn.
Thomas Lilac Denman : I am • chartered thooantant
reading at Yeovil. On the 13th of March last I was
appointed a receiver and manager of the estate and
effect. of Henry Vine. I produce my nomination and
appointment. In pursuance of that nomination I went
to the reeidenee of the debtor about five o'clock on the
afternoon of the 13 h of March. I saw the debtor
there- I ep.,ke to him, and told him I had been
appointed nominator and receiver by the creditors, and
In purausisce of that! should take poesession. A few
minutes after I had been there Thomas Hodder, a
bailiff, whom I be I gent for, came in. I asked the
debtor for his books, and he said he had three. First
of all he said he had a day-book, commencing the let
of Jan„ 1883. I asked him if the daytheok was posted
Into the ledger, and he said "Yes." He next said he
had a ledger and three bank pi...hooka. Those, he
said, were his only account books. He pointed to the
desk where he said they were. I asked the debtor
what the estate consisted of, and he said book debt.,
household furniture. pony and trap, harness, and an
, old cart. I then asked him for his cash-box, which he
, produced, and in it I found • chigoe from J. W.
' Blechman, and cath in hand, amounting altogether to
23 18s, 91. He maid there were two ricks of hay in his
tell, which he had sold, and tw pieta id riche, some
, sheds, and the lease of • tell. He said Williams and
C s , the banker., claimed the two parts of ricks, the
, sheds, and the lease. Ile had as mock-instnvie four
carcases f sheep an I a few j luta id meat. This was
the whole of the estate. The de,dor did not tell me
he had • suriare. I thili went over his
house' and I believe Hodder went with me. I west
over the back parlour and the drawing-room. When
I got to the drawin.t.room Vie wan with me, and I
said to him "Where le your piano r He said "That's
misses's." I replied "Whether it is mittens's or not
It must be returned. The piano was not there. He
said it was pent away some time ago. I premed him
to tell me where it wee, and he then called in Mr..
Vine, and the aald in hie preemie that the piano had
been delivered to a friend of their., • Mrs. Rabbetta,
on account of • debt of £4O I •Imo rr peattd it must
be brought back. I d.er •tt ciiion to the carpet, and
said it did not look g..0l erouth f. r the furniture.
Vine said it was the only one they had. I noticed
the chairs in the drawing.ro in were placed each on
the other. I drew the dtfendant's attention to this,
and he said—" Oh ! the ethane is cleaning up the
place." I put Hodder hi pose.seion, left him there,
and gave him authority to act for me. Oa the 30th
of March I came to WeYmouth, and saw the debtor
at his solicitor's office (Mr. Street's). I had prepared
a drat of hie 'dare In the rmgh, and then went