The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-01-31
SPECIMEN ARGUMENTS.
Both Sides of the Assignment LAW
Presented by Experts.

Presented by Experts.
Austin, Texas, January S0.-The follow
ing is the argument made before senate ju-
dietary committee No. l Thursday by T. A.
Altman of Fort Worth against the pre-
ferred creditor law now in fcrce
Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen OF the
Committee: AS citizen OF your State and
as one who has had abundant opportunity
to observe the beautiful and picturesque
working of our insolyent laws, | desire to
offer few suggestions on the general plan
OF the measures proposed. BY way of iu
PRODUCTION and information of those of the
committee whom | have not the honor to
know personally, | will modestly suggest
that | hail from the city where the pan
Their was supposed 10 have laid quietly
down at the feet of one j. Peter Smith
and a city from whose borders from that
time hence all wild beasts and birds of
prey bied themselves hither; and whose
| people, from that time forward, begun to
| reach out for the things that were good.
| and having taken hold. continued to push
it along until we now have a city of 49,
| 900 people, refined and progressive, with no
| bad besetting sins unless II be attending
| Sunday baseball. and in our gushing hospi-
| tally that visitors take on" too much
: when they get to our big brewery, and
| having taken too much. find it difficult to
| turn loose the hilarious jag thereby con-
| tracted. | nave reference 10 IOrt worth.
| Senator Bailey is from my city. as you per-
haps know but he is one of those who will
never permit friend to tarry long where
| reproducing fluid runs riot and runs free.
| | do not feel ii important to explain TO
| this committee in whose special INTEREST l
| appear. 1t is hardly necessary to state
| that many OF our Fort Worth jobbers, for
whom my law firm are attorneys, desire a
| change or that foreign creditors who place
| business with us. | understand that this
| committee is ready and anxious to hear
any citizen who, from business or pro-
fessional experience, can indicate conditions
and suggest remedies to the end that the
committee may arrive at correct conclu-
sions. Accepting then the opportunity Of
fered by the committee, ! appear as pri-
yate citizen to make a few observations,
| which | take from professional experience
in this particular branch OF our laws. >,
Away back in 1879, when our people II
nossible. were more honest than they are
now and certainly when they were less
selfish and avaricious, our legislature In
its wisdom enacted into law what is known
as the general assignment law rms
law provided for an equitable and pro rata
distribution OF an insolvent's estate II
provided all necessary safeguards TO Sc
cure to creditors a full and complete in
fventory: IL made the failing debtor swear
IN his schedule and put in all his property
not exempt from execution, and made
case OF "hold out penal onense on the
other hand. It provided that creditors mus,
nrove and file their claims In formal
manner. that II the failing debtor so de
sirod he could require a full release OF his
accenting creditor in the event as much az
80 l-s per cent was paid on claims. ana
under this most humane provision, the un'
fort,nate who from bad credit losses or
cotton or other causes incident TO retal
trade found himself unable TO continue
might make an honest and equitable dis'
trbution of his property get releaseu ilon
all liabilities and start over again, am
nrofitiug by his experience, retrieve MS los
fortunes and again become usetui mem
,'n. 80 our great commercial machine. II
tho concluding part OF the act 1t was pro
vided that any attempt on the part o
such assignor to prefer one creditor aboV'
another should be null and volo'
, our business men, merchants, bankers
iobbers and lawyers say that homes, ths ,.
. right. Everybody expected "ha' APP ,raav
"a hs the evident purpose OF our law man
orc ard when insolvency entered the uop
81 onr business man he Went to his lawyer
vino took down his Revised Statute OF ls''
5 road the requirements therein ana ~ha
y our law makers said what ought 10 DC uga
in such cases. and in accordance ,neIs" y.
Q wrote A general assignment supuia'eu ~
y oosss. the merchant hustled around
hn,ned the assignee get good price 10
Il ~ make close collections OF the note
y and accounts, made the estate pay the 90 ,,r !,
II ,ar cent. got his releases. and aiter TIM
! ppened ND again in his own name. s,,.
n Things went on this way TOT a" my ny
q Times were not SO hard then and We ma
q tawer failures Of course. but those we u
I have we're above suspicion. Occasionally
na,lnsiye attachment would be run put ON
oo,,rts frowned down the practice ios
u cpeditor would get gay, and encouraged o
!, yenturesome attorney run an altacnuness
"a
T. w rexas was worth more than MS stoc
~ Goods affirmed some big judgments 70
:, exemplary damages. and the foxy creni 1c
% .herasfter was sorry thai he spoke othe
# dealers saw attachments were not an
~ fourht shy. except in cases where ,n , 'rs ar
y .,as evident. patent and apparently cen
~ ,s,,,o One day several years ago an a.
70 torney thought he had got on TO some some
thinr' so he wrote ons OF our modes