Daily Kennebec journal., 1899-05-17
KENNE:BEC BANKRUPTS.
Seventy-Four Have Petitioned Dur.
ing the Past Nine Months.
he'erte Lille Has " Discharged cases-
kennebec the Banner County.

| o'"ee VI ND me uuTlnS the paSt
nine months. 1t has been about tba,
length of time since the new bankrupt.
cy law went into effect on the frs,
DAY of last August, and in that time
| there have been filed in the Irnited
| states district court at Portland 36-
cases. OF these, "A are from Kenne-
bee county. sr" ~"
Though the number is large, the
amount of money involved is not great
and it is possible that $4,000 would
cover the entire list of liabilities for
which the Kennebec men have failed
| OF the assets, they are practically
nothing.
The bankruptcy law that should
nave gone into effect July of last
year. though no petitions could be filed
until August |, leaving a whole month
| with the United States without a
bankruptcy law, has not proved to be
Just what it was designed to be and
IL mas proven to be a loop hole out OF
| Whlch even men who have been pau
pers get rid of paying their debts.
Each county has a referee in bank
| fuptcy and the attorney who repre-
sents kennebec county is F. j. c. Lit
| tie of this city. Mr.. Little had the
honor of having the fourth case that
was filed referred to him by the United
states district Judge and he also had
the honor of having the first case dis
charged of any Of the referees. This
case was one that was filed by an Au-
gusta person through Williamson &
Burleigh Of this city.
L nave also had the smallest case
that IS on record referred to me- said
MT. Little, Tuesday afternoon. 1T
was tnat OF Sidney man who was
owing Sl04. His assets were about Sc
1t is supposed that every case costs
$50 so it can be seen how much he
gained in case he paid the full amount
for his case. You understand there is
fixed sum among the Kennebec
county attorneys Of $50 for putting a
man through. and no one Of them is
supposed to take less. Then they have
a fee of SO to deposit with the court
beside other expenses"
How many of your cases have been
discharged?" was asked
seventeen of them" replied Mr.
Little. Beside that number there is
one OF the cases that will never be
discharged as the petitioner has skip
ped the county since petitioning."
Inc referee receives no fees until a
case is discharged, so there was salts
faction to Mr.. Little when he received
notice of the first case that was dis
charged under the new law and re-
celVed at the same time a check from
the clerk of the court, countersigned
py the judge, which was his fee in the
first case
The man who believes he owes more
than he can pay. goes to lawyer who
makes out the necessary papers which
as everyone has heard are as voIumin
Gus as patent office report. These
papers are sent to the judge of the
United States district court in Port
land. Every Saturday morning at 10
o oclock, he looks them over and as
signs them to the different referees.
lhey are then sent to the referees who
assigns first hearing. Mr.. Little holds
all these hearings, Saturday afternoons
at o'clock At this first meeting be-
fore which all the creditors are given
10 days notice. they meet the debtor
and his attorney. At this meeting the
creditors prove their clames or if more
meetings are needed they can be held
upon the petition of a certain number
of the creditors. After this first meet
ing nothing is done by the referee as
the attorney for the debtor petitions
for the debtors discharge from the |
case. This may be done in case all |
looks straight and the man who once |
owed the money is out of the case en- |
tirely, though what assets he has are |
treated as though he were dead. They |
are taken to satisfy the claims of the |
creditors This settlement is made at |
final meeting before the referee. |
which in Mr. Little's district is held on |
a Friday. If all is arranged with no |
hitch in the proceedings, the report of |
the referee is sent to the judge who |
looks over the papers and declares the |
case discharged.
During Mr.. Lttle's term he has had |
occasion to issue but few dividends as |
there have been but few assets in the |
cases. He issued one dividend to the |
creditors of a certain party, one day |
last week. amounting to $50 which was |
per cent. dividend, divided among |
four creditors
As before stated the law has it's |
drawbacks outside the great amount of |
work it involves to make out the nee |
essary papers. 1t was not intended to |
be law by which scapegoats could go |
through bankruptcy, but the loop holes |
have been found and they are being |
used not only in this county but |
everywhere. A man who owes more
than he thinks he can pay. even if il |
is not more than a few hundred dollars |
can easily get out of paying for small |
enough to pay his fees. he can easily |
go through. He will file petition even |
if he has not the money to pay the fees, |
in case the lawyer will trust him. and |
then he will take a pauper's oath to |
avoid advancing the fee to the court |
His case can be conducted along all |
right without the fee until it reaches |
the discharging stage, and there it |
stops until the fee is paid. The fee paid |
and all is well.
A case is cited in city in Maine |
where a man went about for several |
days buying all that he could lay his |
hands upon where the dealers would |
give him credit. After procuring the |
goods he managed to transfer them to |
sCme person so that he still had the |
benefit and then he filed a certificate
in bankruptcy to avoid payment. or |
rather to pay the fees rather than to