The Sun.
London, England, 1857-08-28 00:00:00

ROYAL SURREY GARDEN'S.

COURT OF BANKRUPTCY.
(Before Mr. Commissioner Fane.)
IN RE THE SURREY GARDENS. COMPANY (LIMITED).
Thii was an adjourned hearing of a petition under the
Joint-Stock Companies Act, 1856, to wind up the affairs
of the company.
Mr. A. Jones, Mr. Chidley, Mr. Fleming, Mr. Link-
later, Mr. F. W. Casppell, Mr. George, and ,Mr.
Coombe appeared in the matter.
Mr. A. Jones said the directors were prepared to meet
any charges against them. He understood three affidavits
bad b-en filed.
Mr. Flensin g—l appear for a large body of shareholders.
Mr. A. Jones--I deny that.
Mr. Fleming—l appear for Mr. Nicholls and other
shareholders.
Mr. Jones—Mr.Niciolisis the holder of one share.

mr. Flawing—That is sufficient to give him a right to
be revresented. I appear in support of resolutions pa'sed
by 63 shareholders.
Mi. Coombe—l am a solicitor and shareholder, and
appear 114 such.
Mr. James Coppock—Perhaps your Honour will allow
roe, kr myself and others, to state—
The Commissioner—Stop. I have stopped others.
The proceedings must be conducted in proper order.
Mr. Coppoek—l should first—
Tne Commissioner declined to allow Mr. Coppock to
be heard at this stage of the proceedings, and asked Mr.
Fleming and Mr. Coombe whether they were in favour
of witclieg up, and received for an answer, " Decidedly
not."

Mr. Coppock ag tin wished to be heard.
The Commisiiocer—What is your name ?
Mr. Coppock—My name is Coppock. (A. laugh.)
The Gimmissioner—You are a shareholder ?

Mr. Cupplck—Yes, I am the largest shareholder in
the company. I all al3o a solicitor. I am the holder of
1,100 shares. lamal o a creditor of the company for
bet xten 400/. and 5001.

The Commissioner—That you assert ?
Mr. Coppock—Yes.
The Commissioner—And what is your wish ?
Mr. Coppock—l am for the winding-up, and I wish to
tellyou what—
Toe Commissioner—Stop. I ought to hear Mr.
Fleming first.
Mr. Fle,ning—l am against the order as prayed. I
'boon be wiling for an order to he made that would
admit of the shareholders winding up the company them-
advise.

The Commissioner—l have nothing to do with wind-
ieg up, except by tbii Coat.

3.1 r.. Jones suggested that M. Jallien could not be re-
preseuted by bosh Mr. Chappell and Mr. F'eming.
Mr. Chapped—l appear as before for M. Jolliet' and
several ether shareholders.

Mr. Fleming—M. Jullien is present—he denies that.
lla stlys I appear for him.
M. Julien—Mr. Chappell is my legal adviser. If
there be any clash between them I should wish—
_

The Gmninissioner—You seem to take part with Mr.
Fleming and the 63 shareholders.

111.

Cominission;r—Then it would be unfair for Mr..
Chappell to appear on your behAf, Will Mr. Chappell
give the came of any other shareholder for whom he ap-
pear. 1

- Mr. Chappell—Mr. Thomas Chappell.
Mr. Coppock—Will you let me say a few words now ?
The Commiesioner—lf Mr. Jones appears for the pete-
tio a, r it is his duty to open the rase.
Mr. Jones scarcely knew whether it was necessary
fps ►im to say anything, as it appeared to be the ineii-
math n of his Honour's mind at the last Hitting to make
an order in complial.ce with the prayer of the petition,
verified as it was by an affidavit of Mr. Ellie, secretary
of the company.
The Commissioner—Then you have asked for an order
fora indiug up, and you sit down. (Laughter.)
Mr. Jones—Yes. (A laugh.)
Mr. Fleming said, if his Honour would allow M. Jul-
lien to be examined, it might be the beat course, and
would avoid much trouble. He might, however, proceed
to &tete that since the last meeting the shareholders had
taken steps to examine the company's accounts. They
were in a complicated state, and it would take an accoue-
tent many days to make out from them a balance-sheet.
He refir the Cour: to the contents of affidavits
that had been filed in support of the opposition to the
wind ng-up order.
nese affidavits are three in number. Subjoined is a
cops of the affidavit of Mr. Coombe :
"In the Court of Bankruptcy.
"IN THE MATTtR OF THE ROYAL SURREY GARDENS COM-
PANY (LIMITED), AND IN THE MATTER OF THE JOINT-
' STOCK COMPANIES ACT, 1855."
"1, William Alexander Coombe, of Hanover-cottage,
Brunswick-road, Camberwell, maks oath and say :—That
Mr. William Tyler was lessee of certain ground and pre-
rale. sat Walworth, and he there conducted in a very re-
epee: able way a Zoological Garden, but that for the last
two ,r three years of his tenancy it turned out an unpro-
fitalle undertaking.
"That he became indebted in a large amount to James
Coppock, Esq., one of the directors of company, called
the Royal Surrey Gardens Company, who was mortgagee
of the premises. or in some other way beneficially entitled
thereto.
" That for about 12 months previously to the year 1855.
the lease and premises were in the market for sale, and
IleVel,l,l parties treated for the same, but no sale was effected.
" That in the latter part of the year 1355 a conapa,y
was formed, called the Royal Surrey Gardens Company
(Limited), of which the said Mr. Coppock was one of the
registered promoters, the said Mr. Tyler was appointed
nia.,ager, and the petitisner, Mr. Horace Jones (who now
asel-s to wind up the company), was, the architect.
1. That a company was readily formed, and in the month
of March last commenced their buildings an i laying out
the ,rounds at an outlay of about 25,0 t 0/. at the least.
" That at a meeting of shareholders in Oct., 1856, a
div;aend of 10 per cent. was declared out of profits said to
be matte in a period of 10 weeks, during which time the
garkleus had been open, an i the account marked A, hereto
am axed, was then circulated among the shareholders.
That in April last a second meeting was called upon
the following notice, without any account being sent with
it :- -" Notice is hereby given, that in pursuance of the
dee 1 of settlement of this company, the second ordinary
gen ;red meeting of shareholders will be hel l on Thursday,
the 2d day of Aeril proximo, at the Royal Surrey Gardens,
at t o'clock in the afternoon, precisely.'
" That from the wording of the aoove notice, and inti-
mations given to shareholders that nothing but the ordi-
nary business, such as the arrangement of the establish-
mei is and the opening of the gardens, would be under
eoueideration, saverel shareholders did not attend who
otherwise would have done so, particularly- if it had been
kite sn that an account affecting the vitality of the under-
taking would have been brought forward.
-" Tnat at this meeting the shareholders were kept in the
large concert room until the appointed time for the meet-
ieg had expired, and they were then shown into an a Ijoie-
ing room, where a plentiful supply of sandwiches and wine
was spread upon a counter, which several of the share-
holder, attacked at once, and at one end was laid a bundle
of accounts, which accounts were not distributed, but left
to he taken by those who chanced to tee them.
" That I had not time even to real the said account be-
fore some gentleman moved that such accounts be received,
appsoved, and adopted, whereupon a question arose as to
whether the dividend declared at the last meeting was or
was not psid out of capital, when a show of bands was
taken and the account was assumed to be passed by a ma-
jority of two as counted by the secretary (although I be-
lieve the fact to be otherwise), all the directors present
Yeti eg for tha passing of their own account, and the real
and vital question as to whether the sum of 14,0001. should
be eppro‘ed as and for the purchase of the gardens was not
made the subject of discussion.
" That I had not the opportunity of reading the Said
account until the evening of the day of meeting, when I
discovered that the sum of 14,000/. was charged for the
purchase of the lease, and a day or two afterwards I spoke
to two or three of the shareholders thereon, and although
it was then believed that the directors possessed a lease of
aboet !A/ years, still 14,010/. was thought au exorbitant
snu. for the purchase, the fact being well known that the
hew, was held upon a heavy rental and a large septennial
fine.
" That I believed the lease had 50 years to run, or there-
about; for I positively swear that during the time the
grounds were being laid out I walked rouni them with
Mr. Coprook, and, being well acquainted with the laying
out of gardens, I expostulated with the said Mr. Coppock
upon the enormous and unnecessary outlay being expended
on the sail garden, and at the same time I said to Mr.
Col peck. ' I suppose you have a long interest in the pie-
wises to justify this outlay ;' to which the said Mr. Cop-
pock answered, ` Oh ! yes, my dear fellow, about 50 years'
cr words to the like effect.

" That two or three days after the meeting I met Mr.
Fleming, the landlord's solicitor, who also had attended
the meeting of shareholders, and a conversatb n arose upon
the sum of 14,000!. charged for the purchase of the lease,
whin I discovered for the first time that about 114 years
was the only tenure under which the promises were held,
at which I expressed my ant prise and asked his permission
to : llow me and other shareholder to inspect the lease,
That 1 called upon a shareholder, Mr. G. P. Nicholls, of
Pat,rnoster-row, and told him of my information and re-
quested him to accompany me to the lanllord's solicitor to
inspect the lease, and we went to Mr. Flemings office, in
Tlieitv-square in the Borough, and tht rts examined the
said lease and found that it bad only about 11 years to
run, and that every erection would then nese to the land-
ha. t.

."rho, •
I was so i disgusted the'
~,bi,,,, _,
e, . amazes an with the way in
_taii,,,,i ~,u,,
Beek meeting had been conducted that I &ter-
Who illatd.beeka. an interview with §ir Win. De Bath, 11. rt..,
a slight con. the chairman of the last meeting, and, after
shai.eboid.„reshpArtslerice with him, who said he was only a
Thvinas Knox fikew nothing of: the fats, I wrote to
wn, haebec, cu.',Te°, Esq., a director of tbe company,
was dechr„l, „4"iuriTial when the 10 per cent. dividend
uaaately I procur ed a ineetiim between
these two wiairmen
kni.w the facts, to acco,V,l'equested. Mr. Nictipolls who
,
`'.Thai in this Peall,letti:ty:lY.,d:etne'rrained to call the alert.
hol krs together,
crelary to let me make a cop 7 puttrste: applied to the se-
but ho refused to let mu copy a namee list of shar,hom„,,
I procured, nt
from the Re-
cur siderable expense, a list of shardiiV
gis ration-office, and wrote and sent a written
cur, War to each shareholder--nearly 200 ii,,l'uald la, lilted
" That in pursuance of this circular a. Intheet'elor%
pit co„ , and the question was fully brought for - i'"k
'PPeck. the acting
w"r I, bu,
owing to a statement made, by Mr. Ci-
di)stii.or of the coripany, that an. offer had ken two, ,
3,
"rsoi.le abstinence society at the price of 15,0001., and by u:
Ju:li6n at 12,0031., and that the coming sensor won]. t do
so tders for the shareholders the subject of the circular
was not entertainel, and my motion for a committee , f
inquiry was not even seconded, and the meeting separated
leas.ing me with the pleasant reflection that I had wasted
a gent d .:s1 of time uselessly, at a cast of about 101. into
the bas pin. The fact,. however, that the lease had only
14 years to ruu was not denied, and the sum of 14,4)0(4.
as the value of the lease was justified under the above
stated
facts, that other offers *bad been made of 13,0)0/.
and 1t,0)0/ , and therefore the sum of 14,0001. ought not
to oe objected to.
" That I was • •
dissatisfied with the statement of Mr. Cop-
poJe
that such offers of purchase had been made, and 1
found out Mr. Philips, the gentleman who had been secre-
tary to the slid Abstinence Soci
mwhho stated. that the
a sciety had at one time the idea oPierrctanil,geltihfeaßndoyal
Sorrey Gardens, bat they were nut)
an, ante that a 50 year.' lease was tLo term of yenta limn:
which the gardens wtra held, or could witiot,t iloubt in