The Sun.
London, England, 1803-04-11 00:00:00

CpUR~' OP ryiANcERIP.

,LirtrOlN'S-INN-HALL, APRIL 6.
tt 03u Of RENNET, A BANKRUPT.
Titir Waik Petition to the LORD CHANCELLOR
to SUPetletk' a Commission of Bankruptcy, issued
against Mr. Robert Kennet, and to refer all matters
relative to the first CoMmission to the Master.
The first Commission was taken. out many years
since, 'en w4iich occasion Brackley. Keneet,,.the
Bankrupekeirother, vas appoieted Assignee, while
Vincent Kennek. another brother, put in his claim
to certain premises possessed by the Bankrupt, and
filed in equity to assert his right. The bro.
Cher put in an answer to this claim, from. which I,n
assignment of perjury was made, eed.ae itidielmett
, prosecuted, the effetts. of which, however, were
defeated by a flaw in the indi&ment. In the, mcaq
time the Bankrupt was enabled to.Obtainhis certifi,
cate, and from that time to the Feint, not a shil.
ling has,been paid to the creditors, nor the disputed
tlatm been ,brought to issue. The Counsel -said,
the whole transattion was a farce, got up for the
express 'sweat, of duping the creditors, in which
the only pereons so be interested were the Manager
and,* .Dramalis.Peeree.r, who were to pay them.
selves for the expence of getting up the entertain-
ment, out of the pockets of the creditors.. ,• , •
The CitriNC ettoa observed, that ,the case before
~hini furnished a convincing proof of the absolute, ne.
•,tessity for• placing some controut.on the conduCt of
Assignees.. :They .were bound to protect the in.
' „retests .of, the creditors, and where .theY did.not,
they would be made sooner or: later to answer for
their misconduCt. Its the,present business the' per.
, ties had been guilty of something short of a conspi.
racy against the creditors under the Commission ;
and he-had always observed, that scheines of an
improper or criminal nature,, however well they
were planned, finally defeated their , own purpose.
Mr. Brackley Kennet, the 'Assignee under the first
Commission, had
,told the credit-ors, that when he
had obtained judgment in a CoOrt of Bquity, on
Vincent Kennet's claim to certain' effeas of the
would_
Bankrupt, then he make a distribution of the
property. That day had not Stet arrived, 'nor
• would it, perhaps, for ten ' years to come ; he
should direa an estimate to 'be made of what the
Bankrupt's property„wai worth at the time it should
have been applied to liquidate the 'debts due froni
the estate, and every shilling of interest should be
added for the laese of time since that period. He
was sorry the proceedings under Commissions
of Bankruptcy had become so corrupt and contami.
•nnted c twenty-five' years acquaintance with their
administration had.convinced lrim.they were preg-
nant with. the greatest fraud and injustice, and it was
thatenine remedy should be thought of to'
intsoduce a greater _degree of }nity into those pro.
ceedings. '!'here was abundant .proof that the As.
signee .in Kennet's bankruptcy had, not done his
duty to the creditors. The first thing .110 did Was
tO.gflt the :Bankrupt's certificate signed) before the
snedlest c.ireuinsteece, had beery done to benefit the
creditors; that effeCted, the purpoSe of the bank.
ruptey was auswered, for should an aCtioq at laW'be
ponitueeeed.against him, the produaion of that cer.
tifieete wale re legal answer to the atliOn„ 'tie was
surprieed to find creditors, ,Ring in the way they
did towardi 611crupt ; an' note:l466*g the
charaCler
„of g,nglisluden, to the hondur of the
'yet,
stood, so high" with respect to humanity,
in, the trapsaetions. alluded to, he confessed he
was often at a loss to 'reconcile that humanity with
,pommun .sense.. Creditors, after
,suffering them,.
selves and their families to be pillaged, -were seen
assisting the atithora of their pillage, taking them
by the hand, and expressing their satisfallion they
, were relieved from. their dltfiuritrey. It well in
,many instances., a mistaken humanity, not. that he
conceived that many, very many, bankruPtcles, did
not briginate in misfortune and the accumulation nt
untoward events. Notwithstanding,
site, debtors were daily and hourly,trying,to cheat
creditors, and he would state a'cOe
He 'once had .the honour tObring into ParliaMent an
Insolvent Debtors' ' on which Occasion he re.
;et ved an innumerable quantity ,of letters from dif.
ferent debtors,. and he would protest that thi fads
Sat forth in every one of 'them etiniincedbitil thet
the author was endeavouring :td Cheat his creili..
WS, con. the other hand, he
.did not receive a sin-
gle letter from a creditor against the Bill intontetn.
plation. With resPeCi to particular Solicitdea-wled
had been alluded to in discussion; he should
that his judgment could not be prejudiced by names,
yet he could-not help.remarking, that he often saw
the names of particular Solicitors to ihe proccedings
of fraudulent Commissions,' or to 'fraudulent super.
rieduree of valid tnximissiOns, who did not dare to
shrew their faces in any °dm Court of Jostice:: He
should' not be too hasty, though' his rood was part.
ly made up, in giving judgment, and would defer
it till the next morning ; in tire mean time he 6c,
peeled the. Attorney- under the Commission. would
deliver into Court the bill of:costs,. which could not
that morning, he-found, es the produCtio:n. of chat
instrument might. be. important in deciding 'whether
the Commission should be superseded or ,not ; at all
events, .he wished, to he .understood, that, he thought
himself bound to: highly charge the, contlud of the
Assignee.

lIATi/RDAY, APRIL 9.

After Counsel had been heard at length, the Loll)
CAANCEDLOR dellyered his judgment in' acvery do.
quent speech, in - which he took 'a review' of all
the tlansaitions to whiCh the Petition referred ;
his Lordship stated, that it appeared by the Pe-
tition a commission of Bankruptcy had. been issued
against Robert Kenner, on, the • petition of Riclt-
art" Dyer, under which Commission Robert Ken-
net was declared a Bankrupt. Dyer proVed
debt of 1601. and Brackley. Kennet, the bro-
ther of the Bankrupt, proved a debt of 3001. ,and the
debts proved under the Commission were, about
14001. That at a 'pectins of the creditors py er and
Brackley Kennet Were chosen Assignees. Before
ny thing had been done, except incurling ,ex-
pences, the bankrupt obtained his certificate, a cir.
cuinstance which, his Lordship said, created the

LONDON: Printed by BtiCkiANAN NW! LIAN, (of Bow. Street, Covent-Garden) i‘
At the 51/N.Oirica, No. II n, Stramd ; what Akiertirementr,Order,

• 11.`
principal ditiiarrty in 014, 6se lie" ttyfrid mast
certainly have thotiet ,
•his • bbitaderl atsty:mat to
have :-suffered 'the -Bankrupt -to, -hire 'gone far:li
again into the Wilda with his'' certificate,- had- the
allowance of it be6,,touirovertea.: Dyer .had since
become a 'Bankrupt; and, in 'the *Month 'of- Septent.
her, last, a 'meeting: was held',4 the Creditors,
lbr the' ptirpos'e of appbinting an Aggignee in
his room. At that Peering a't6jority: ht
of the Creditors -appoitited Bradklcy Kennet sole
Assignee. His' Lordship said, That upon the.state
'of the case thus far, ir.WaS evident this was a frie-fal..
' ly'Conuniision, for, from4he affidavits which had
been laid before' hith, it ra' priCared. that the- former
Commission having been taken out against Robert
Kennet, it was thought' advisable by. his family
that another Comthission should issue under •the
;working, as it Was termed, Friendly. Assignees.
It 'had "been sworn br a person of the name of
Bames, that Robert Kennet had told him an'Ad of
ankruptcy Would be taken ont against him at soon
as , friendly Assignees could 'be procured. His
Lordship here observed, that when Dyer beanie
a .Bankrupt, and it Was' necessary 'to •'proceed .
to another choice of Assignees, it might have been
expelled that s9me tuber Assignee' 'Would have been
appointed in 'fbe room of Brackley Kennet, .who
from the time of 'his being-chosen, up to that mo,
Mew, had never taken one 'single step which bud:,
for its objeft the general interest of the -Creditors.
rile Petition further stilted, that ;deer the.lappoint-;'
ment of Dyer as Assigiiec, he had never ailed nor
interfeeed at all; and that no dividend' had bee,n

mode of the Bankrupt's estate 'and effects. His
Urdship said, that to .thoe who 'were nnt in the
habit of attending thiS .
teem•Tather
extraordinary, that a Commission.'should issue in
January isot, and no dividend 'should be declar6i
so late as:December iSoz. Cetfainly it Might hap_
'pen, that in the fair adnfinistiatiOn of Bankruptcies,'
-the hi could not be otherwise; hitt he retily:be-
lieved, that in nine Out of ten of ilre'COrritnissions Of,
Bankruptcy in this cotfhtry, the Solicitors charges
were the principal objc•Ct in sucinA•the'rn That
the intent of the presse,(Ccitiiiriiilsion was ro get this
Bankrupt' unfairly dischatged of. his debts, 'to' the,
ice of his CiedilorS, was beyond all doubt.:
It L:.en appeared, that' for the purpose of getting j
Petitioning Creditor 'Who wits ftieadlfto the' Bank. 1
Jupt, they had made'tise of the name.of a person to:
whom he ativally iliil not"C.4e tool. at-'the time'of
his Bankruptcy, Dyer', in order •toinirest hirriS'elf
•
With the charatler hi a Petitioning Creditor, had
:sworn, or rai:ter -Armed, for he was 3 Quaker, that
cool was, 0u:illy Aloe to hiM;• thoUgh;lnOw he
:Aimed, that he only' believed the. Bankrupt was
intlerited to him in',tliarsum.by reference to certain
accounts, ivhicb it /hat "was4iot
Creditor of, Robert Ic.ennet for more thap.6ol. 4t
was impossible a CaniMission of Baidauptcy, found.:
id-Upon such aPetitioning Crediiotisdebr,' could be.
,
supported. It was rucA'se7iritialods proceedingl
was this Quaker first affirnainglie Oas a Cre.
(liter to lie amount of 'cool.' and then affirm, .
,
ing that lie was nor.'""-HN'Eorgillip• said, •if• he
could possitly allow this COFrithission '46 --st-and,
lie should think hiniself 'bound to order that.
Brockley Icetinet should 'be' diselihieir from be:.-
irrg
,Asignee,' and that-the` 'W•hiltAati:
sigmi "lhe cerrifiCate' 'should he 'resit-airier:Pt `tht.,
choice of future "Assignees: ''Re'stividtt
it •
VCCS sary.to enquire w e '
heftier •theitc d'tors had
been prejudieed, or atir loss hatf Slisiained to-4
the 'llatilcr'up Os -estate by he 'delay in ii+iiitiposal cif
it. But, this, under the present circumstari*'4UP
could no'f-da, far it was'his' ter-exiibiete th4t,
Commission to the bane; in order to asaertaiti.wheihtfr :
it was a bora Pe Cammissifiai'He had tiosie.tti lord '
he Was convincetti t Was not. The tftoillankruptcf;
the 'Petitioning Creditor's.- dtht;-*he tznner'
ivhich the 'choice of Assignee*:had made,: the
condua of the Solicitors, and the circumstances. on-

cler which the certifteitte- had been granted, he was
compelled to.say,. even though he houlli J)e.. wrong, .
that it was for the interest of tlie Greditvrs~ ,bait
above all, 1)r the interest or iii'etiitilkr"itibt ttris
-Comniission Otduld be•supirie'deilrandMtrefordoaiii-
his' Lordthip, ,let.• it be
,supet.suied at tho ,
expence of. Mr. Dyer (thouglilie has been a Bank—
rupt), of Mr. i3racliley•icennet the Assignee, amt.-
of Robert I:crinet. ' •

SritT R Y .-7-7-111 C TlCkelt No. 14,45;.
drawn;.:the.‘,secon,l, .of. refii9ll) a 1:4110-
of
Twenty -Theli.und- Pounil4; ryas 011q-40;
Onetquarter,:One.eighth, and tivo;Skteepth sIW y,
at E. iVlarjec,'s truly. fort uu.4ie Olike, Great Piatzii,
eoveonat:den,,Where tckets and Shates, wilt*Pn-
tinne on idle Awing the drawiil..
• N. R, The full value. will be paid to die.fo.r.tui
nate. holdeti on demand