In re Deuell

• Decision Date: 16 March 1900
• Citation: 100 F. 633
• Parties: In re DEUELL.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Western District of Missouri

100 F. 633

In re DEUELL.

United States District Court, W.D. Missouri, Western Division.

March 16, 1900

Karnes New & Krauthoff, Gilmore & Brown and Ellis, Reed, Cook &amp Ellis, for creditors--

Citing In re Salkey, Fed. Cas. No. 12,253; Id., No. 12,254; in re Purvine, 37 C.C.A. 446, 96 F. 192; In re Tudor (D.C.) 96 F. 942; inn re McCormick (D.C.) 97 F 566; In re Schlesinger, Id. 930; in re Mayer (D.C.) 98 F. 839.

James T. Burney, for bankrupt.

PHILIPS District Judge.

This case is certified to the court by the referee in bankruptcy for its action on a contempt proceeding against the bankrupt. On her examination, and that of other witnesses, before the referee, the referee found that she had failed to make a full schedule of the assets in her hands, and that she had in her possession and under her control goods, or their proceeds, of the value of $7,081.27, unaccounted for, and which she had failed to turn over to the trustee under the referee's order, and that she was in contempt therefor. The court has examined the testimony in this case, and has also examined the bankrupt fully in court respecting this matter. By her own statement she had on hand goods, about the 1st of July 1899, invoiced at $1,700. Between that time and the making of her deed of assignment, about the 1st of December, 1899, she had obtained on credit from a large number of merchants, at various distant points, goods aggregating $10,000. Of these she purchased, in October, $2,649, and in November, $2,282 for none of which she had paid up to the time of her assignment and the proceeding in bankruptcy against her in the forepart of December, 1899. Taking credit for every conceivable payment, outlay, and expenditure between July and the time of the assignment, it would not exceed $2,300. She claims that the value of the goods by her turned over to the assignee was $2,193.50. If this were conceded to be correct, the aggregate credit to which she is entitled would amount to $4,493.50. But the evidence shows that the cost price of the goods turned over to the assignee did not exceed $1,200, and the sum realized by the trustee in bankruptcy out of these assets does not exceed but little over $500. Some of the goods surreptitiously sent away from the store during the fall of 1899, which have been traced by the trustee, would amount to about, say in round numbers, $400. Adding this to the $2,300, as claimed expenditure by her, and the $1,200 worth of goods turned over to the assignee, would make an aggregate of $3,900; or, if she were allowed $2,193.50, claimed by her to have been the value of the goods turned over to the assignee, it would make an aggregate of $4,893.50, which, on the most favorable view to her, would leave unaccounted for $5,106.50. This leaves out of view the goods invoiced the 1st of July, 1899. She testified before this court that the goods shipped to her from July to the time of the assignment were put into the store, and sold. She denies that any of the goods thus unaccounted for were shipped or spirited away; thus leaving, according to her own showing, as already stated, $5,106.50 worth of goods, at their invoice price, unaccounted for. She kept no book account, from July forward, giving an...