1258 F1l<”l`Y-SIXTH concanss. » sSSS. 11. cn. 854. 1901. ,0*§§‘°’°”°*’S ‘° "° Sec. 440. Pnnrnnnnons TO nn vo1n.—Every provision in any voluntary assignment hereafter made for the payment of one debt or liability in preference to another shall be void, and all debts and liabilities _ within the provisions of the assi nment shall be paid ro rata from the _{fgf,'g'f‘gm__ existing assets:_ Rrovided, That nothing herein contained shall)be held to affect bgfoiegssinmenrun- the pr1or1ty of liens and incumbrances created bona fide and existing ° °° °before the execution of such assignment. €q‘f§‘?“°'S ‘ ° b ° Sec. 441. Cnnnrrons rro BE EQUAL. —Any proceedinginstituted under this law by one or more creditors shall be eemed to be for the equal benefit of all creditors, but the court may make such allowance to the creditor or creditors instituting the same, out of the fund to be distributed, for expenses, including counsel fees, as may be just and equitable. _ m§`!{*gS*}d“*°¤* “*i¥¤‘ Sec. 442. FRAUDULENT ASSIGNMENTS.-NOChiHg herein contained shall prevent any creditor otherwise entitled from attacking any assignment as made to hinder, delay, or defraud the creditors of the assignor, and whenever any such assignment shall appear to the court to have been made with such intent, the court may enjoin any proceeding thereunder, and upon finally decreeing the same to be void may appoint a trustee with power to take possession of all the effects of the debtor and may pass and enforce all orders necessary to put him in possession of the same, and said trustee shall qualify in the same manner and perform the same duties as the trustee provided for in the aforegoing sections. . N°*i°°¤‘°°"*d“°’s· Sec. 443. Nomons TO CREDITORS.—II1 all cases of assignment the court shall require the trustee or trustees, whether named in the assignment or appointed by the court, in pursuance of the sections aforesaid, to give notice as the court may think proper to all the creditors of the assignor to produce and prove their respective claims against the assi gnor before the auditor of the court, to the end that they may be fairly adju— dicated and the said creditors may share equally the assets of the insolvent assigno1·, subject, however, to any legal priorities created by Valid incumbrances antedating the assignment. m’§§§’§g§uc,$,§’€¥;§">' Sec. 444. Exnmrr rnornnrr Nor ro BE INCLUDED.—NO assignment for the benefit of creditors shall be construed to include or cover any property exempt from levy or sale on execution unless the exemption is expressly waived; and the court may direct the manner in which exempt property may be ascertained and set aside before any sale by the trustee or trustees. CHAPTER Tmivrnnx. ‘““‘°hm°””‘ ATTACHMENTS. <,§§§§‘g°f“‘*ld"v*‘i“ Sec. 445. CAUSES.—In any action at law in the supreme court of the
District for the recovery of specific personal pro erty, or a debt, or
damages for "the breach of a contract, expressed) or implied, if the plaintiff, his agent or attorney, either at the commencement of the action or pending the same, shall file an afiidavit, supported by the testi- ·<=°¤°€¤*S °£ mony of one or more witnesses, showing the grounds of his claim and setting forth that the plaintiff has a just right to recover what is claimed in his declaration, and where the action is to recover specific personal property stating the nature and, according to aifiant’s belief, the value of such property and the probable amount of damages to which the plaintiff is entitled for the detention thereof, and where the action is to recover a debt stating the amount thereof, and where the action is to recover damages for the breach of a contract setting out, specifically and in detail, the breach coinplained of and the actual damage resulting therefrom, and also stating either, first, that the defendant is a fore1 n corporation or is not a resident of the District, or has been absent ’§1erefrom for at least six months, and has estate or debts owing to said defendant in said District; or, second, that the defend-
