The-Hong-Kong-Weekly-Press-1898-04-02 — Page 6

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[April 2, 1898.

Wong Yek Wing died in September or October, 1893. At the time of his death he was indebted to him in the sum of 600 taels and 170 dollars interest.

THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND was or was not to be extended beyond the land | in question. That had been the excuse for putting them off. He would suggest that the delay of 20 months had occurred mainly in con-

The Official Receiver-All the books are sequence, first of waiting for the return of the Attorney-General and afterwards with the view kept in taels. I have often tried to get these of getting, some answer from the Attorney-people to keep them in dollars, but they are General as to what he proposed to do. They unable to do so. They go actually into half had no assurance that after two or three months cash and half cents. had been allowed to elapse and another applica- tion was made they would get any different answer than they had got already. The At torney-General could have offered a definite suggestion and thrown upon them the onus of refusing. He understood the wish of the Court to be that there should be an immediate stay of proceedings.

The Chief Justice-The suggestion is that the new Governor should be given the opportunity of investigating, and your application for leave to amend should stand over.

After some little discussion on the point the Court adjourned to give Mr. Francis the op- portunity of cousulting with his clients.

On the Court re-assembling,

made the defendant in a suit which after being asleep for a long time was revived refreshed by its slumbers apparently and broken out into great vigour again. Supposing his learned friend were to succeed what necessity would there be for any mandamus to compel the Governor to do a certain thing until it was ascertained whether he was inclined to do it or not? The discretion of one Governor did not bind another Governor in matters of this kind. It might have been a very inconvenient thing some years ago for a Governor to have had an enquiry as to the damage done a person by the alleged silting up of the fore shore. Had such an enquiry been held and the damages assessed at $100 the same person might have come the following month and said "you have paid me $100, but you have not assessed future damages." Therefore, it followed that if the enquiry had taken place some years ago it must have been as to how much damage had been done up to a given date. There would have been nothing to prevent the man coming six months after- wards and saying that the silting up was con- tinued and in a rather aggravated form, and that he wanted more compensation. Continu- Mr. Francis said he had consulted with his ing, the Attorney-General argued that if Sir clients, and they were quite prepared to consent William Robinson had died this action would to the carrying out of the suggestion of the have been in abeyance, and the course to be Chief Justice, and he presumed that the order taken would have been to move the stay of pro-would be "that the argument and the cross ceedings. He was very glad that Sir William motions for leave to amend stand adjourned sine Robinson had not died, but for all practical pur- die, with liberty to either party to apply." poses what was the difference between his dy. Would his Lordship also permit him to ing and his ceasing to occupy the position of

him client specially asked

to say--bis Governor so far as that action was concerned?

say it that his client had been most As far as the motion went for staying proceed- anxious from beginning to end to settle ings, he should be quite willing to go in for the case without litigation if it could possibly be such a form as the Court might direct. On the done, and at different stages he had mentioned first blush he was inclined to make his motion the matter to him. say that the action should be dismissed, because he felt that unless an amendment was made unless somebody was substituted-there was an end to the action. He would have moved that the action be dismissed if he could have found anything in the code authorising the dismissal of the action. That they could do so in Eng- land was abundantly clear. The time had now arrived when unless an amendment was made farther proceedings in this particular action would be a pure waste of time.

The point was further argued between the Court and the Attorney-General, after which

The Chief Justice said there was no doubt that in a case like that a good deal depended upon the personality of the Governor. The plaintiffs alleged that Sir William Robinson, the late Governor, had refused to make an enquiry and investigate their claim for com- pensation for damages. They must take it for present purposes that that was so. Sir William Robinson had gone, and it was no use issu- ing a mandamus so far as he was concerned. The new Governor would be here shortly, and he should be very reluctant to order him to do a thing which he had never had the option of saying whether he would do or not. He suggested to Mr. Francis that it would be a reasonable and fair thing to make application to the new Governor. Of course if Mr. Francis declined to adopt this course they would hear any arguments he might have to advance.

Mr. Francis said he should certainly like to have the opportunity of considering the matter. It might be that there were matters known to him which it was difficult just then to refer to. It might be possible that there had been communications between the parties or between himself as representing the plaintiffs and the Attorney-General, that certain proposals had been made and had been refused, proposals of the character suggested by his Lordship-and it might be that the Attorney-General had taken up such an attitude which had led them to assume that the Government would act in the future as in the past. He would venture to suggest that it was possible that the late Governor might never have been personally troubled for ten minutes about the whole matter, and what had been done might simply have been the act of his Executive Council, or Colonial Secretary, or Attorney-General, who advised him and whose advice he accepted The prin- cipal difficulty was this: that they had no reason whatever for believing that any dif- ference whatever would be made in the advice given to the Governor, They had been refused any assurance whatever as to whether the Prays

The Attorney-General said he had just told his learned friend what he told him some time ago, and that was that when the reclamation work was carried on in front of Mr. Howard's godown then would be the time for the inves- tigation of the claim he had to damage by the interposition of the Reclamation Works be tween his godown and the harbour, and that when he made his claim for that damage the Attorney-General would have no objection to his making such further claim as he could substantiate for intermediate damage caused by the alleged silting up of his foreshore during the period before the Reclamation Works ac tually reached the front of his premises.

The Chief Justice thought this a very reason- able decision and hoped it would lead to very satisfactory results. They would bear in mind that the question of costs would have to be dealt with.

An order in the terms mentioned by Mr. Francis was then made, and the Court ad- journed sine die.

31st March.

IN BANKRUPTCY.

BEFORE HIS HONOUR SIR JOHN CARRINGTON,

Re THE SAMKEE FIRM. Wong Weng and his son, who traded under the style of the Samkee firm as foreign goods dealers at 259, Queen's Road Central, came up for their public examination. The statement of affairs showed the gross liabilities to be $17,448.59, the assets being put down at $8,383.83, leaving a deficiency of $9,064.76. Mr. Wilkinson represented the majority of the creditors.

Examination continued-Wong Yek Wing was his brother, and he took over his share.. Wong Sung Wi, who came from the same village as himself, retired in 1895, and he bought his share, paying him $700 in cash. He borrowed $20 from Wong Qwai In and $500 from Wong Tung Heng. The money was still owing. They had not pressed him for repay-“ ment because he paid them the interest every. He had bad nc other partners. On year. January 26th, 1895, he transferred one of his shares to one of his sons without any considera- tion. He valued the share at $700. At that time he owned four shares in the business, being the sole partner. His son was 14 years of age when he made him a present of this share, or 16 years of age according to Chinese reckoning, He wanted his son to learn the business and assist him in it. He was never in the Bank- ruptcy Court before and never in monetary difficulties until recently. The books pro- duced were all he had except one-the stock book-which was missing. He did not know where it was.

His son kept the books for

him.

His business had been going down since 1894 or 1895, at the time of the plague, losing $616 dollars in 1895 and $2,330 in 1896. His total liabilities at the end of 1896 were a little over $18,000. He continued to lose money from the year of the plague up to the date of his filing his petition, when his liabitities were $17,448:59. Hẹ accounted for the decrease in his liabilities, while at the same time he was making losses, by the higher price of goods. He went to his native country on December 4th last, eleven days before he signed his petition. He left his son in charge of the shop and four or five ser- vants. Business was carried on as usual; no writ been issued against him. He went had

collect debts and to repair the away to tombs of his father. and grandfather. He did not know of his own knowledge what fook place in his shop while he was away. He did not tell his brothers he was in difficulties and send them over to the shop to take charge. When he came back on December 15th he found the door of his shop closed, and his son told him he had filed a petition in the Bankruptcy Court the day previous.

By Mr. Wilkinson-He was the sole manager of the business, the partners he had mentioned being dormant partners. Up to 1894 there was a profit every year. He had carried his business ou in the same way during the whole of the time he had been in business. His business was both retail and wholesale.

The son having also been examined, the public examination was adjourned until Thurs- day week at half-past ten.

Ke T801 ON.

Tsoi On, who formerly carried on business at 364, Queen's Road Central, as an exporter of goods, silks, &c., to California and Singapore, also came up for his public examination. He had been in business at the address given for about 11 years.

The liabilities were set down at $23,000 and the assets at $24,000, Mr. Bratton represented creditors and Mr. Ewens was the debtor's solicitor. The examination was ad- journed.

THE RUSSIAN WITHDRAWAL In answer to the Official Receiver (Mr.

FROM KOKEA. Shepherd) the elder debtor said he was and carried on a foreign goods dealer

The Kobe Chronicle publishes the following business at 259, Queen's Road Central. He had translation of telegraphic despatches appearing carried on business in the same premises for 20 | in the vernacular papers

Seoul, 17th March, years under the style of the Samkee firm.

The Russian Minister has now replied When he started at first there were three other partners besides himself Lee Si Chien, Wong to the answer of the Korean Government the Note respecting the financial Yek Wing, and Wong Sung Wi. They each to put $100 in the firm. Lee Si Chien went out of adviser and military instructors. Bussis the business about January, 1895. Debtor bought informs Korea that in lending advisers his share and paid him $700, which was paid in and military instructors, the intention was cash. He borrowed the money from two of his simply to show favour and good will, and Rug- friends-Wong Tang Hing and Wong Qwai Iusia is glad to learn that Korea can now main. -but did not take them in as partners. They tain her independence without this assistan were relations of his. Hestill owed them this$700 Such being the case, Russia will withdraw the and also a sum of $500 to Wong Sung Wi. advisers and instructors lent to Korea.