M r . William Verner, a gentleman of good discretion, not deficient in educational acquirements, but of no legal attainments. H e was of high social position, a territorial magistrate, and one w h o took an interest in public affairs, but a trusty henchman of Judge Willis, and between them a strong friendship subsisted. T h e Insolvent Court hitherto held in the Supreme Court building was, in 1842, removed to a small brick cottage, one of a row that ran along a right-of-way, off King Street, where n o w is Gallagher Lane, but then k n o w n by the fashionable designation of Roache's Terrace. T h e following year when the Supreme Court travelled away from the " red barn " to the newly-erected Court-house in Latrobe Street, the minor Court followed in its wake, and found shelter in an apartment afterwards turned into a Judges' Chamber. Originally the officers received no stated salaries, the Commissioner being allowed to retain all the fees, and remunerate his underlings as he liked, and for a couple of years, no doubt, he gathered in a paying harvest as shown by the following figures:—In 1842, there were 114 insolvencies, with scheduled liabilities amounting to ,£212,805 IS- 9^-> assets, ,£143,862; deficiency, .£68,943 is. 9d.; whilst in 1843 the sequestrations were 123; liabilities, ,£468,467 8s.; assets, ,£215,410 7s. 5d., and ,£253,057 os. 7d. as a deficit—the realised dividends are unobtainable, or they would show a curious result. I have c o m e across an old scrap, however, which I transcribe, as affording some queer information about the indebtedness of the olden time, when Melbourne was a very small place, and the population of Port Phillip numerically inconsiderable. T h e first sequestration of an Insolvent Estate was on the 8th of February, 1842, and during that and the next year the total was 237, whilst there were only 46 in 1844, and n in 1845, or 294a for the four years. T h e total liabilities were, for the same period, ,£812,785 7s. 6d. ; assets, ,£458,269 18s. iod.; balance, deficiency, £"354,515 8s. 8d. T h e highest dividend realised was in the estate of T. B. Alexander, which paid 20s. in the £, with 10 per cent, interest, and left a surplus of 1500 sheep for the (miscalled) insolvent. T h e lowest dividend was nil, and could not well be less. T h e two next lowest dividends were severally one halfpenny, and i^d. in the £. There was a "nil" dividend in 122 cases, and estates were indebted to official assignees in 63. In 17 instances the property was mortgaged to or over the full value—debts were not recoverable or no assets realised, and in two cases only the insolvents bolted. T h e largest amount of liabilities in an estate was ,£74,148 12s. 3d., and all the realised assets were absorbed in two actions at law, brought by the assignee. T h e minimum amount of liabilities in any case was ,£22 14s. 6d., and the dividend was nil. At the end of 1843, the " farming " plan of remuneration was altered, the Crown taking the fees and assigning certain salaries to the officials ; but as business rapidly fell off with the disappearance of the commercial crisis, it was a losing "spec" for the State, and after a year's experiment the old system was reverted to, but so modified that the Commissioner, Clerk, and Messenger shared the fees rateably. U p o n this principle, the Chief no doubt had the lion's share, but even his modicum was sometimes not worth acceptance by a gentleman. In the beginning of 1845, M r . Verner decided to pay a visit to Europe, and as he had no difficulty in getting leave of absence, M r . R. W . Pohlman was nominated his locum tenens, w h o entered upon his duties appropriately enough on Fools' D a y (1st April), for he was no sooner installed than Verner changed his mind, and the befooled Pohlman felt himself in honour bound to resign in his favour. H e was not m u c h of a loser, for during the year 1845, the insolvencies dwindled to eleven, and the fees shrunk accordingly. During November, about the best month, the takings reached only
- £5 11s. 6d., which sum was thus apportioned
- — T h e Commissioner, £3 16s. 8d. ; Clerk, _£i 8s. 9d.
Messenger, 6s. id. T h e Clerk was a Mr. James M'Connell, and this state of things drove him into private life, whilst the Messenger—a huge wild-looking North of Irelander—found that afifteen-pence-a-weekpittance would not only not keep him in bread and cheese, but it would not buy him oatmeal and water. His face gradually assumed a wolfish appearance, and as he strode starving through the streets, he would often stand opposite the butchers' windows, glaring at the uncooked carcases of beef and mutton, as if disposed to banish any vestige of Christianity remaining with him and turn cannibal. But the life was tough in him, and poor Jim was chastened by his enforced fastings and invalided for life in his acoustic organs. Business more than doubled the next year, and he was put on a one-and-nine-penny day wage, Sundays included, and after all his abstemious tribulation he n o w deemed himself happy as a king.
