|
|
On 20 Nov. 1867 Senécal went bankrupt in his own name and in the name of Senécal et Meigs, and deposited “all his assets and personal effects, property, books, letters and documents” with the official assignee, Tancrède Sauvageau. The bankruptcy brought about the dissolution of the Wurtele et Senécal partnership, Senécal giving up his rights in the company. A provisional statement of the creditors – for, as Sauvageau noted, “M. Senécal in drawing up the said statement had recourse to his memory rather than to his account books, having not kept regular accounts” – evaluated the bankruptcy at about $410,000, without considering debts to at least 14 other creditors. The real reasons for this bankruptcy remain obscure. Contemporaries felt that the business crisis precipitated by the closing of the American market following the end of the Reciprocity Treaty in 1866 caught Senécal short: he had fixed assets and inventories but no liquid assets to meet his many obligations. He proposed a composition with his creditors by which he would reimburse fully the preferred creditors’ debts, amounting to $17,480, and pay 50 cents on the dollar, in semi-annual payments of $30,000, for the rest. He also agreed to the nomination by the creditors of three trustees to administer his property, with management expenses up to $2,500 annually to be charged to the estate. In return, he requested that Meigs and Vassal be discharged from liability for the notes they had endorsed. These terms were accepted by the 51 creditors at meetings held on 7 Dec. 1867 and 22 Jan. 1868, and on the latter date the property was officially transferred from Tancrède Sauvageau to the trustees. An important clause in the deed of transfer, however, declared that Senécal was to be employed at an undisclosed salary to administer and realize the estate under the supervision of the trustees, and to proceed with the business he had previously conducted. Senécal therefore was again in charge of his property, but under the vigilant eye of three trustees. With Meigs and Vassal, he continued his operations in the Pierreville Steam Mills Company, which had not been directly affected by this bankruptcy.
|
