Western sentinel. [volume] (Winston [i.e. Winston-Salem], N.C.) 1856-1886, 1878-01-24
REPORTED AMEND
NENTS TO TIE BANK
RUPT LAW.

|
will come mp before the attention
of the present Congress before the
session closes, and will, no donbt,
be thoroughly discussed. Among
other members who will be instru
mental in bringing up the matter,
we notice, SAYS the Savannah Neaos,
that Hon. Van IL. Manning, Of
Mississippi, a well known prac:i
tioncr in the bankrupt courts of his
State, has, after careful study, pre-
pared bill bearing on the subject,
which he proposes to press at an
early date upon the rcassembling
of the body. Colonel Manning is
a native of Martin county, in this
State, and in addition to being a
good lawyer, was as gallant SOL
der as ever drew sword.
Colonel Manning's bil:, says our
contemporary, provides for three i'm
portant amendments to the present
law. The first section proposes that
thereafter no payment of any por>
ton of the debts proved in bank
ruptcy shall bc required to entitle
bankrupt to a discharge from his
debts and liabilities if he shall he
otherwise entitled thereto" Col.
Manning's reasons tor the clause
are that The provision of the present
act, requiring the bankrupt to dis,
charge at least thirty per cent. of
his liabilities before he can be re.
leased, often operates unjustly in
that it delays the usefulness of
business man who, alter he has
honestly paid over everything he
possesses to his creditors, without
reservation, desires to start business
again. AT present he says if such
ones assets amounted in all to only
twenty nine per cent of his liabili'
ties, hc would he debarrcd from
the benefit of the act. This obiec-
ton Of Col. Manning seems to be
we'll taken, provided, always, nev
ertheless, that the bankrupt has
indeed honestly turned over all his
assets to his creditors.
The second section provides for
$50 amending section SO of the
: present act, as not to require more
} than one creditor to institute pro-
cecdings in involuntary bankruptcy,
under said section, Tor any of the
causes therein specified, except the
suspension and non-payment of
commercial paper or the non-pay
ment by banks and bankers OF
deposits made with them provided,
the defendant owe debts to the
amount Of three hundred dollars
and that he is indebted to the pcti
toner in the sum of two hundred
and fifty dollars" :"
Col. Manning claims that this
clause would be acceptable to bust.
ness men generally, rs it is con-
fessed that the present provision
requiring several creditors to act
conjointly in driving a man TO
bankruptcy often proves disastrous
to the creditors, and gives the
debtor all opportunity to shift and
remove his assets. His object is
to have this amendment cover all
cases which might arise except those
; which arc in the nature of fidMiary
trusts, and have been wisely cx-
; empted also under the present law.
The third section provides that
section 5O21 of tho present act be
SO amended as to enable any firm
, or corporation ip failing circuln
stances to make voluntary assign
ment Of all their property and assets
for the benefit of their creditors,
, and that it shall be no act of bank
| ruptcy to mako such assignment
, This is also accompanied with the
| proviso that the assignment shall
, be made in good faitlI, and without
any preference to any creditor, and
provided also that all attachments
sued out within four months prior
to such assignment OF voluntary
surrender shall be dissolved by the
execution Of such assignment.
The effect of this last clause is
thus explained. 1t is asserted that
the experience Of business men
throughout the country proves that
the present system OF settling mp
estates in bankruptcy courts OF the
United States is attended with great
expense and that the creditors really
lose large sums which go to the
court officials in the way of fees,
and so in the cases Of small estates
the creditors get very little. 1t is
proposed to do away with this
expense by permitting debtors in
embarrassment to GO through an
} assignment in the local courts,
where the charges are comparatively
light, and creditors can get much
better portion of their claims
When tho division has thus been
made, the assigncr can go for a
final settlement and discharge to