The Sun.
London, England, 1840-01-10 00:00:00

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

INSOLVENT DEBTOR'S COURT, J4N. 8

IN THE MATTER OF ABRAHAM HENRY CHAMBERS.
An application, which was made in the case of Mr.
Chambers, the banker, and reported in The Sun on
Tuesday, again came before the Court on Wednesday.
Mr. WOODROFFF. said the Court would, perhaps,
permit him to renew the application be made on
Saturday to commit Mr. Chambers to the common gaol
of the county in which be lived for a contempt of Court.
The application is to commit him for not filling his
schedule under a vesting order.
Mr. Commissioner BOWEN—WC have discussed the
question over and over again, and we have no power
to take him out of the custody of the Warden.
The CHIEF COMMISSIONER concurred with his
Learned Colleague.
Mr. Commissioner BoWEN—On whose behalf is this
motion made ? _

Mr. WoonaossFE--Mr. Henry Wilton, a solicitor,
who obtained the vesting order ; he is the detaining
creditor. Mr. Wilton was the attorney in resisting the
bankruptcy, and, to acknowledge that bankruptcy, it
had been agreed, by the se-called assignees, that Mr.
Chambers should be paid '23,4001., of which sum we
to read the affidavit of
say
mhre. h\a‘s, receivedoo D
rF proceededE2,ooo/
Mr. Wilton in support of the present application. It
set forth that the vesting order was granted in this
case on the 19th of December, and on the same day
Mr. Chambers was served with a notice to file his
schedule within fourteen days ; he had not done so,
and up to the present hour no schedule had been filed.
That the said A. H. Chambers had, since he had been
in the Fleet Prison, received 2,000/. from the Ac-
countant-General of the Court of Bankruptcy ; that
be had ample funds to obtain his discharge from prison,
or to file a schedule, but had wilfully disobeyed the order
served upon him ; that deponent was acreditorforl6,ooo/.;
that it had been proposed to pay Mr. Chambers out of the
estate 23,400/. to acknowledge the validity of the com-
' mission, and which he had agreed to accept, although he
(Mr. Wilton) has for ten years resisted the act of bank-
ruptcy, and Mr. Chambers and his family had on oath
denied the commission of an act of bankruptcy ; that
the payment of '2,000/., part of the sum agreed upon,
had been made in fraud of deponent, and he believed
that no distribution of the assets would be made unless
enforced by this Court. The Learned Counsel said
this case showed the impotency of the Court of Bank-
uptcy, and his object was to show that this Court was
not so useless. There were ample funds, and one of
two things must be clear to establish the total ineffi-
ciency of the jurisdiction under which the matter had
been in agitation since the year 1825. If Mr. Cham-
bers was not a bankrupt, it was extraordinary that
the Court should have been so many years trying the
question ; and if he was a bankrupt it was strange, aed
showed the impotency of the Court, that the estate
should give 23,4001., to induce him to acknowledge that
he had committed an act of bankruptcy. He (Mr.
Chambers) refused to acknowledge the validity of the
commission, unless he got 23,400/. ; and was he in the
same way to set this Court at defiance ? He had un-
der his control a considerable sum, and this Court was
called upon to take such steps as would cause justice to

be done to the creditors. The first was to order his
commitment for refusing to file a schedule.
Some further discussion oa the subject of the appli-
cation took place—towards the conclusion of which,
Mr. Commissioner BOWEN said he was quite satisfied

that the Court had no power to grant such in order to
remove Mr. Chambers ; he should, however, be glad to
see the question raised on an application for a mandamus.
It secms to be understood that the Court cannot
grant the application.