The Statesman.
London, England, 1820-08-09 00:00:00

THE sitAti

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

COURT OF CHANCERY, AVOVPT P.
1131-IPAITE IN TRE NATTER OF Tell FLR.

Mr. HEALD stated this was a petition, the prayer of
which was, that au order which was made by the
Court in 1816, directing an issue to be tried in this
matter, should be rescinded. The present petitioners
were the assignees of Temple, against Whom a com-
mission was issued in 1:313. The bankrupt had been
a wine and spirit merchant, and carried on business in
Pleet-street. He had also been a rectifying distiller,
which trade lie carried on in Doswell-street, and
shortly after the comm4sion was issued its validity
was disputed by Messrs. Hodgson and Co., Malt Dis-
tillers. Their debt was stated at 15,000/. ; they al-
leged that the coinmissiou was fraudulently obtained ;
they proceeded at law and obtained execution for that
sum. But the :“signees in the mean time proceeded
to act under the commission; they directed an auc-
tioneer of the name of Pocock to sell the bankrupt's
effects in Fleet-street. The solicitors fur Messrs.
Hodgson attended un this occasioo, and gave a pnblic
notice at the place of sale, that the cotunaissi s. under
which the sale was ordered, was as invalid contain's-
sion, and they warned the persons present, that If
1 they made purchases, and paid any money after this
notice, that they would pay such money in their own
wrong. Notwithstanding this the sale proceeded.
and the produce amounted to at -ott :400/. The Messrs.
liodrions presented a petition to this Court shortly
after to set aside the et/It tttt ission, and Pocock' typo
this account refusing to hand over to the assignees the
ttoo/. produced by tio. sale, he was arrested, sent to
! the King's Bench, and ultimately made a bankrupt,
by which the ttit!o/. was all •guther lost to the credi-
tors. Upon the hearing of Ile.rrg. Horlgson's peti-
ti.oi, the Court directed an issue to try whether HIV
petitioning creditor had any and what debt ; erhethsr
the bankrupt committed an aci of bankruptcy; and
whether or not that act of bankruptcy was concerted.
'l'll4 order was made in 1816, and tip to the present
moment the issue had mgt b—en tried, nor had any pro-
ceedings fur that purpose been ta:.sti by Messrs.
Hodgson,. The assignees thought, ther•tfore, they
had good reason to cotiqi!ain of so lone a delay : 300/.
was already lost to them, snit the estate of the bank-
rupt was ureessatily injured by remaining so long un-
disposed of.
. _

Mr. lionyre op:le:IT-ea for Me.qra. ilotirson, and ac-
counted fit the tfe:ay by stating, that when his clients
had rut in an execution nd on the premises in Fleet-
street. they tonna they had to contend against an ex-
tent issued by the Crown against Temple, and this
!imolai-ea a snit in the Conti of 2scheyuer, which was
not decided until 1.0 4. Since then one of their
partners, whores the uotna..., r of the concerns, died,
and these circumstances with sonic mistakes about the
orders of the Court, were the chief causes of the delay.
The whole length of the postponetueut lie
was not however, prepared to justify. Undone,.
etilv it was too long, but his clients we'll
re.ol) to proceed to trial by next terns, to which
hr hoped the Court would see no objection.-..
Nothing which bad since occurred had altered the j
rice of his client's ease. They had obtained
fession of Camplin, upon whose oath this act ter
ruptcy war founded, that he bad been prevailkinpoif
to makes faleo-esth,• Ott which he expressed-his roe-
' putiction. They haul also documents under the hands
land seals of two supposed creditors who had proved
under the Commission, debts to the amount of several
thousand pounds t those were neither more nor less
than fictitious debts, and that neither then nor at any
other previ• us time, did the bankrupt owe them so
much as one shilling. lie was free to admit that the
delay in proceeding to trial owl too long, but IN
trusted the Court would see that it could not, Ira
' any regard for the justice of thia ease, grant the prayer
of this petition.
The Loop CHANCELLOR. after recapitulating the
circumstances under which the order had been made I
in 1t416, proceeded to observe, that whoever the per-
sons were to whom the delay, from that time to the
present was owing, they had not dune their duty ei-
ther to this Court or to the persons whose interests
had been entrusted to their cure. That delay was
much longer than in justice.to any party it ought to
have been. On the other hand, daring all that time,
it was competent to the assignees to make the applica-
tion which they now did. Seeing, therefore, that there
was ,eettlect on both sides, he thought it was right.that
Messrs. liodgson's should have liberty to proceed to
trial next term, but at the same time they should also
pay the co:ts of the present petition. Upon the
merits of the case he bad to observe, that when he di-
rected the issue, he also ordered Camplin to be ex-
amined at the trial, as from the oath which that Hon--
demon had made as to the act of bankruptcy, he
thought it necessary to the ends of justice, that that
Gentleman should be exposed to examination. Jones,
the petitioning creditor be also ordered to be examin-
ed. But as to the two persons who had Oskar,
knovrledgments under their hands, that although they
bad sworn to debts of several thousand pounds, yet
that neither then, nor at any other time, did the bank-
rupt owe them one farthing ; he felt that no course he
could adopt would be too severe towards them. No
Judge, who had such circumstances brought under
his knowledge, could discharge his duty to the public
who would leave them unnoticed, and he hoped, there-
fore, that Messrs. Hodgson would assist his with
these documents, in case be should desire the Attorney
'General to prosecute them.
Mr. Hoax% said, that he had no doubt Messrs.
flatiron would give his Lordship every facility
their power in aid of such an object.
The Loin CHANCELLOR said, be was determined
that the system of fictitious debts ANN lie pot an
to. lo this instance, it seemed to have bees. tweeted
.to in order to outvote Messrs. lieelgoes is the "poise-
meat of the assignees. But now, as well as Avery
other time, that a clear mar of sash a ammo -
placed before the Court. be would elit every thitag-L.
lay in his power towards promoting the ends et riblike
justice.

We hear that a aew Comedy la to be pedittatod
Sato:day at the Hay-Hirket Theatre, *as the
of Mr. latopiore Hook, called Szekeerbete
berg: er, Dittementi Mag."