The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1883-10-19


Thaxter Shaw, under the name of f. Shaw 81
Bros. The Boston firm of f. Shaw & Bros.
FURNISHED large amounts of money to The
Vanceboro' firm, which were invested in land,
tanneries, extract works, permits for peeling
bark and in the business; and on July %,
1888, the balance Of the investment by the
Boston firm was 1867 ,4S3 o. All of the prop
erty In this manner invested became the
property of the Vanceboro firm, and on July
70, 1888, the whole property of the Vanceboro'
naI nrm y was at the commuters valuation $524,-
297.39 The liabilities of the Vanceboro firm
were at that date $135, ,313 50 including the
amount of $87 ,151.87 owing on drafts drawn
on and accepted by the Boston firm. This
Indebtedness which must be paid out of the
Sssets of the Vanceboro' firm, and being de-
Quoted from 1854, ,297 80, leaves $388 1888
net surplus, which belongs to the Boston firm.
By written contract dated Dec. /, 1878, made
between Fayette Shaw, Brackley Shaw and
William Shaw, copartners in Boston under the
style OF F. Shaw & Bros, and William e.
Plummer and John It, Mills reclting that the
firm of It. Shaw & Bros. were lessees for a
term of five years of the st. Lawrence and St.
Regis tanneries, and that the parties to the
contract desired to operate those tanneries and
dispose of the goods tanned upon what was
termed joint account, during the term of the
lease; and T. Shaw ~ Bros. agreed to supply
the joint account with hides and all necessary
supplies for the operation of the tanneries. The
rent of IL Q tanneries was to bs charged TO the
joint account, and the leather manufactured
at the tanneries was to be sold by +. Shaw g.
Bros. who were to be allowed five per cent of
the sales for commissions, guaranty and in
surauce, and Plummer and Mills and the firm
os =. Shaw & Bros. were entitled each to one
third of the net profits +. Shaw q Bros. be-
ing allowed seven per cent per annum on all
sums invested by them in the joint account,
whether for hides supplies or otherwise. This
contract was to continue five years. A like
contract was made on the same day between
the firm Of +. Shaw & Bros. and Plummer re-
lative to the Mills tannery. Under these con-
tracts Mills and Plummer in one. and Plum
mer 10 the other, are participants only in the
hides and other supplies remaining in the firm
of E. Shaw & Bros.
The committee find that the whole amount
of the property of #. Shaw & Bros, at the
valuations made by them is So, ,856 ,297 So; and
the whole amount of the Indebtedness to- the
payment of what the proceeds of this property
is to be applied is $5, ,344, ,627 40. Several con-
tiDgtnces may vary these figures, but not to
very great extent.
There are more than one hundred suits at
law and several equity suits now pending 10
Maine, New York, Massachusetts, and New
Brunswick, brought by creditors against f.
Shaw & Bros, or their assignee, or by him.
One suit, brought By S. e. SDring, for arge
amount, will not be prosecuted adversely to
the creditors. and the mortgage given to him
will not be used to gain any advantage over
the several creditors. Fogg Bros. q Co. have
a snit for $101 900 pending in Maine, and an
other for the same debt pending in New York
Most of the suits pending in Maine are for
comparatively small amounts In all these
suits in Maine, attachments of real or personal
property, or both, have been made, Richard
son q Dennie of Boston have brought suit in
Maine to recover hides sold by them to +.
Shaw & Bros, amounting to ,489. There
are five suits pending in New Brunswick but
no attachments. There are twelve suits in
New York,-one by Fogg Bros & Co., (the
same that has been brought in Maine,) for
,S10l 900; one by the National Park Bank for
$129 355 SO; one by the Metropolitan Bank for
$43. 326.5S; one by the Market National Bank
for $5.0l1.07; three by w b. Kendall for
5000; one by Richardson & Donnie (the
same as in Maine) for 500, ,4S9; one by Robert
S. Williams for $50, ,448.33; one by A. r.
Mitchell for So 600: one by Benjamin 3. Bea
for $131 78. In all these suits attachments
have been made on real or personal estate, or
both. The committee confidently believe tn at
If a favorable settlement can be made all, or
nearly all the attachments will be voluntarily
dissolved. Notes signed by @. W. Clement
and John F. Mills, which are long overdue.
and have not been protested, have not been in
cluded in the liabilities; If these are included,
the liabilities will be increased by $104, ,000 75
REPORT OF THE EXPERT.
The report of the expert who has been ex-
amining the books shows that the books at the
Boston office were in fair condition Their
sales during the past three years have been
carefully and properly kept and the books
show that in 1880 their sales we're 50 377 291 Oh ;
in 1881 So 421 GAG. .92; in 1882 So 974 623 04: in
1888 l(seyen months) $2,O76, ,094.44. The ag.
gregate of the expense account for the fourteen
years (not including partners account) amount
to S222, ,828 10, and is the expense at the Boston
office only, the expenses at the tanneries ap-
pearing on the tannery books.
The interest account for the same time Tex
elusive of interest on mortgages on store prop
ertg) appears upon the books as 1881, ,957 &c.
This quito probably Will seem rdiculously
small in view of the fact that there have been
so many notes discounted and Sold and it is
explained in this way: 1t has been customary
for the firm to make up the aCcoants with the
respective tarneries SO far as interest account
was concerned, credit1ng the tanneries with
the number of pounds of leather received, at a
uniform rate per pound for tanning, and
charging them interest upon the yearly ac-
count. | find, says the expert, the aggregate
amount OF interest thus charged to be ST.
049 818.10, and of course the balance of in
terest account is thereby accordingly reduced.
should take no exceptions to their method of
making up in this way if they had gone a step
farther, and had taken yearly inventories of
the property represented by the several ac-
counts, thus showing the net yearly increase
or decrease in the Investment; but as no in
ventories appear, the only result has been that
the tannery accounts on the books are largely
swelied as assets, with a corresponding de.
crease in interest expense.
The item OF interest is thus shown to have
cost them 81, ,38l 1876, or an average of about
100000 per annum. The interest on land
notes is charged to the respective tannery
accounts. but forms no part of the item Just
mentioned.
The cash book Of the firm from January l,
1888, has been carefully verified, and every
b haxyo h1ar i
this period has been individually traced into
the cash book. After diligent and careful
inquiry feel confident that there is not
single note, the proceeds OF which were used
by Messrs. It. Shaw & Bros, which is not duly
recorded in their cash book, and thus account
ed for; and as the period examined covers
every note outstanding on which they are
liable, have not deemed it necessary to go
farther back. The cash payments are Salso
duly recorded, and show where every dollar
of money received has been uisbursed. The
cash balance as shown agrees with sthe balance
as called for on check books, all OF which have
also been examined. The total amount of
casl, receipts from January 1, 1888, to July 28.
have been S7,015, ,96479, and the disbnrse-
ments, $7,016,923 70.
OF the Cash receipts 1 find the amount re-
ceiyed from the discount and sale of notes to
have been $5, ,3S5 54S.2S; from cash borrowed,
1896 ,535 49; from all other sources, $1,033,-
S8l.02
The disbursements have been as follows:
Payment of notes, $3359, 1877 81; bills receiv-
able bought, S407 1881; payment of cash
borrowed 1886, 1881; sundry other payments,
$2,8f3, 1878, the latter item including loans
made to various firms from whom they have
received notes in settlement, tannery drafts,
partners accounts and merchandise open ac-
counts. OF the amount received from discount
and sale of notes find there was received in
April, 1885, 1861, 1890; May, 1861, ,155 83;
June, $1,1l6,9S2S2; July, $666, ,914 28; total,
So, los, 80; and also find that of these re-
spective amounts one firm of brokers sold in
April, 1888, 1921 ,261.24 May, S166, ,635 IS;
June, 1868 04691; July, S34S, ,31S.S0; total,
l,404. 262.51.
have learned of no money, which it has
been claimed the firm received which is not
accounted for. There is no Capital account,
nor do the books show any credit to partners
for capital at any time. The partners accounts
merely show the amounts Withdrawn from the
business
The total amount withdrawn by Mr.. Fayette
Shaw has been S272, 2,49S.20. Prior to 1880 the
account shows an average of about $3.50 per
annum; in 1880, 1881 and 1882, the average is
about S33 900 per annum; and in 1883 q mos.)
pos, 1871 900 OF the latter amount having
been drawn the day of and day before their
suspension). These figures do not include the
cost OF estate at Newtonville, standing on the
books at S96, ,637 .55. The amount withdrawn
by the late William Shaw, including that with
drawn by his estate ($26, 1850 86) aggregate
$l2o,594.5S find no account with Mr.. Brack-
ley Shaw upon the books, thus showing he
must have drawn his living expenses from
some other source than the Boston house,