Testimonies

Foord, John Ross | Day 18

Witness Type: Other

Party: Liberal

Witness Testimony:

• 19163.

  You say £400 a week for wages. Then, as regards merchants’ accounts, how much per week or what would be the average annual drawings ? — That is impossible to say; look at the drawings we have.

• 19164.

  What would you draw within a fortnight of that date ? — For wages?

• 19165.

  For anything from the Rochester account ? — I cannot give you that.

• 19166.

  (Mr. Jeune.) Your pass book will show it ? — You had better have the pass book and make it out yourself (handing the book).

• 19167.

  You pay wages on the Thursday ? — No, we pay wages on the Saturday.

• 19168.

  You take the money out upon the Thursday and pay upon the Saturday ? — Yes.

• 19169.

  You draw the money from the bank upon the Thursday in order to be able to pay wages upon the Saturday ? — Yes, and in addition to that we always have money in the house. Ours is a large business now, and it was a very large business, but when people get 60 years of age they want to take it easily if they can. We have had pretty good work, what with our business and trying to maintain party power in Rochester. I can tell you we have had a good dose of work.

• 19170.

  You say that the drawings for wages and accounts connected with the business are almost entirely from the Rochester account ? — Yes.

• 19171.

  In the same way I gather from the pass book that you pay more into the Rochester account than into the London Joint Stock ? — Yes, here (producing a book) is the London Joint Stock pass book, and you will see the sort of account it is.

• 19172.

  I gather from looking at the account that you could have drawn this amount from the Rochester Bank without any very great inconvenience ? — Yes, but see what a short balance there would have been to meet these large payments.

• 19173.

  £900 ? — That is practically nothing, and not only that, there is a little pride as well; the London and County Bank look to us to keep a balance there of from £1500 to £2000, and we like to keep up our dignity.

• 19174.

  You have about that balance ? — Yes, I always try to regulate it at about from £1500 to £2000, and if I want to put it a little straight, I get a little from the London Joint Stock Bank.

• 19175.

  Was there any impression upon your mind, or upon the mind of your brother, that it might be more convenient to have the money from London ? — No, it was my doing entirely, because I knew the state of the banking account.

• 19176.

  Do you mean that it was solely attributable to the state of the banking account, or was it that you thought it might be more convenient to have the money from London than from Rochester ? — I assure you it was solely attributable to the state of the banking account that my brother went to London.

• 19177.

  Was Mr Belsey present, do you remember, when the question was discussed as to whether you should get the money from London or not ? — I can hardly say that. I might have said, “I think it will be advisable that you should do so,” but I should not discuss such a matter before Mr Belsey.

• 19178.

  Can you remember, one way or the other, whether you did say anything about going up to London while Mr Belsey was there ? — I cannot remember positively, but I should rather think that I said to my brother Charles, “You will have to go to London for this money.” It might have been after Mr Belsey left that I said that, and I will not be positive about it.

• 19179.

  Do you remember whether it was before or after he left that any conversation took place with regard to whether it should be sent in gold or not ? — I think that Mr Belsey was there when it was discussed about sending it in gold.

• 19180.

  You think that took place before he left ? — Yes.

• 19181.

  (Mr. Turner.) What was that conversation ? — There was no conversation; only there seemed to be an impression that it should go down in gold.

• 19182.

  Why was that ? — It was understood that the money was wanted immediately to pay a lot of expenses for painting flags, and that kind of thing, which must be paid at once.

• 19183.

  (Mr. Holl.) What you heard in respect of that was, of course, from Mr Belsey ? — Yes.

• 19184.

  Did he suggest or desire that you should send it down in gold ? — Decidedly not.

• 19185.

  He did not suggest it at all ? — No.

• 19186.

  You are quite sure of that ? — Yes, I am sure of it.

• 19187.

  (Mr. Turner.) When did you first have any communication with Sir Julian Goldsmid about this £1500 that you sent in gold ? — About the first week in July I saw Sir Julian Goldsmid in Piccadilly, and he thanked me for sending down the money, and that was the only reference made at that time to the money. When again, early in September, I saw Sir Julian Goldsmid, he said, “I shall be shortly receiving some money, and I will send you down that £1500,” and I said, “Pay it just when you like.”

• 19188.

  Had you any other conversation with him when you saw him about the money ? — No, I had no other conversation in any way. I think I have related pretty nearly all that took place in regard to that £1500 in both instances when I met Sir Julian Goldsmid.

• 19189.

  (Mr. Jeune.) I think you did tell us the amount of your deposit at the London and County bank at Rochester ? — £1000 at the London and County bank, and £2000, or to be exact, £2378 at the London Joint Stock bank.

• 19190.

  You could have transferred the £1000 on deposit at the London and County bank ? — Yes, at seven days’ notice, and we are very particular about that: we always give the seven days’ notice. It is a bargain, and we always stick to it. No doubt, if it were absolutely necessary, and we really wanted anything from either at those banks, we could have it, but it is not our way of doing business; we do not ask any accommodation from anybody.

• 19191.

  Do you transfer amounts from one account to the other account ? — Yes, occasionally.

• 19192.

  How do you do that; you draw a cheque, I suppose ? — Yes, upon the London Joint Stock bank, and pay it in to the London and County.