ABSTRACT
It is to me a very great pleasure and a very great honour indeed to have been asked to preside at this session to-day. And speaking on behalf of the organization which I represent here, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland, I wish to convey on behalf of my Institute our gratitude to the Congress for having permitted me to take the chair. The subject this afternoon, as you know, is tided ‘The Verification of the Existence of Assets’. Mr. Foye, in introducing the session this morning, referred to the fact that this morning’s subject was possibly somewhat more spiritual than material. Well, I think the operation is now reversed. This subject to-day decidedly is practical and very material and is one which we all have to deal with in our everyday practice and I am sure you agree with me that it is a very well chosen subject as a contrast to the subject of this morning. Now I would like first of all to introduce the persons on the platform with me and I would ask each one to stand when I mention their names so that you will be more familiar with them. Firstly I have to tender an apology from Mr. Lopez of Uruguay who was to be one of the Vice-Chairmen, but I received a letter from him last week, at home before I left for Amsterdam, saying that he very much regretted, through illness, that he was not permitted to travel and asking me to extend his sincere apologies for his absence. I propose, when I return home, with your permission to write to Mr. Lopez and say how sorry we were that he is not here, and wish him a speedy recovery.
