HC Deb 22 May 1817 vol 36 cc819-22
Mr. J. Smith

rose to present a petition, praying for a revision of the Bankrupt Laws, from the principal members of the mercantile body of the city of London. To this petition the names of the bank directors, with those of the most respectable West-India and East-India merchants, were annexed. It was indeed so subscribed, that it might well be denominated a petition from the first merchants, bankers, and traders in the country, and it referred to a subject highly deserving the attention of that House. The petitioners complained, that under a commission of bankruptcy, bona fide creditors were too often defrauded, while fictitious claimants were allowed to partake of the assets of the bankrupt that the place in which the commissioners at present transacted business in London, was so inadequate for the purpose, that they were quite incompetent to discharge the duty assigned them, to the satisfaction of the creditors—that indeed, it was extremely difficult, if not impossible, for them to examine the conduct of bankrupts in such a way as to answer the object of the law. From the objectionable character and defective administration of such a system, it must be the wish of every considerate man to relieve the mercantile body, and with a view to the attainment of that relief, it was his intention on a future day to move for the appointment of a special committee to inquire into the subject.

Sir S. Romilly

was glad that this subject had been brought before the House from such a respectable quarter, and trusted it would experience the degree of attention which it loudly called for. The system of the bankrupt law was radically defective; and he was persuaded that nothing would serve to correct the abuses complained of but a very material alteration in that law. It was notorious that the grossest frauds were practised under the law, as it at present stood—that fictitious debts very often superseded bona fide claims—that indeed many persons entirely subsisted in this town by the fraudulent management of bankrupt concerns—by the superintendence of perjury and subornation of perjury. The system, then, which gave birth to such crimes, surely called for the consideration of the legislature; and he was firmly convinced, that those crimes arose principally out of the excessive severity of the law; for this was one of the many cases in which the excessive severity of the punishment defeated the object of the law. By the 5th of Geo. 2d. any bankrupt who did not appear to his commission, or who withheld any property to the value of 20l. was pronounced guilty of a capital crime. Yet how few were the convictions under this act, and yet how many might be supposed guilty of the latter offence. But the fact was, that men were unwilling to prosecute while the punishment was so excessive at least for withholding the property. But he was satisfied that if the punishment were less severe, a fraud, no doubt of frequent recurrence, would be considerably reduced. There were, however, other alterations which this system required. It ought to be made a substantive crime for any fictitious creditor to sign a bankrupt's certificate. Adverting to the bill before the House, he expressed his disapprobation of that measure, which he did not think likely to do any good, while it was calculated to produce much oppression. For the idea of authorizing a minute examination of the whole life of a bankrupt, and of proposing that if any exceptionable act on his part were detected, he should be therefore refused his certificate, was quite inconsistent with justice and humanity. But the main object of this bill was quite impracticable, and he hoped the hon. mover would not press its adoption. He had himself brought in a bill upon the subject in a former session, in which there was a clause to invest the lord chancellor with a power to sign a bankrupt's certificate in certain cases. But for this clause another was substituted in the Lords, of which he by no means approved, namely, that of authorizing three-fifths of the creditors to sign a certificate, and this was deemed an important concession, because four-fifths were previously required. That arrangement, however, did not at all answer the end which he had in view, namely, to protect the honest debtor from the oppression of callous or inconsiderate creditors.

Mr. Lockhart

said, that the object of the bill which he had introduced, was solely to distinguish between honest and fraudulent bankrupts, and to guard against fictitious claimants. As to the latter, he was sorry to understand, and he stated it without prejudice, that in London, at least, they consisted principally of the Hebrew nation, who, as he was assured, dealt largely in false oaths. For example a case had lately come to his knowledge, in which a Jew had sworn himself the creditor of a bankrupt to the amount of 5,000l., but, upon examination before the commis- sioners, it appeared that not one shilling was due to him. But as he (Mr. L.) was informed, those Jews, however they might be influenced by the penalty which the law annexed to perjury, had really no religious reverence for any oath not taken before one of their own rabbies, while such was their impression with regard to the latter, that a Jew happening to die some time ago, shortly after he had violated an oath taken before a rabbi, his fate was among his nation universally attributed to that violation. The rabbies should therefore be called upon to enlighten and instruct those Jews upon the subject of oaths taken in the administration of our law, and no doubt the call would be attended to.

Mr. Abercrombie

supported the views of sir S. Romilly, adding, that the commissioners of bankruptcy should be authorized to adjourn the final examination of any bankruptcy until he should be prepared to make a satisfactory disclosure of his effects, as such a provision, he was induced to think would operate materially to check fraudulent bankrupts.

Ordered to lie on the table.