NORWEGIAN LOBSTER-FISHERY AND ITS HISTORY. 235 



fisheries, because they had the price raised, and had not to lie in port 

 eating up their provisions," that the lobster-buyers who, after this date, 

 came to the ports in his district '' should pay 2 cents for every lobster, 

 either living or dead, great or small, just as it might come; but, if 

 it only had oue claw, 1£ cents, and not give either a higher or a 

 lower price. Any one acting contrary to this decree should pay a 

 fine of about 30 cents for every lobster, half of which should go to the 

 informer, and half to the sick poor of the parish ; and the lobster which 

 had been either bought or sold should be confiscated." The old cus- 

 toms, that the ship coming into port first should first take its full cargo, 

 &c, should remain. He also induced the governor of Stavanger to 

 issue the same decree in his district, but the governor of the South 

 Bergen district would not do so. When the lobster-traders in Zierikzee 

 heard of these regulations, they resolved to oppose them unanimously, 

 and agreed iii writiug not to give more than oue cent for each lobster, 

 and also to send their ships on one and the same day to those places 

 where they were accustomed to get their cargo, so as to prevent any of the 

 shippers from abandoning the agreement entered into and paying more. 

 They thought that if all the shippers were unanimous not to pay more, 

 the poor fishermen would finally give in if they saw that the shippers 

 made preparations for sailing and no one else was there to buy. Their 

 commissioner in Stavanger, Lauritz Smith, made great exertions to 

 induce the peasants to return to the old price, by traveling in person to 

 Tananger, where he had great influence, and by urging the clergymen 

 to induce their parishioners to sell at the old price, promising them some 

 extra presents from the Dutch if they should prove successful in per- 

 suading the peasants. All the custom-house officers also assisted him, 

 because they were afraid of losing their fees and small presents which 

 they were in the habit of receiving from the Dutch. He was, however, 

 only successful in one parish in the Tananger district, while in all the 

 others and in the districts of Lister, Mandal, and Stavanger the peasants 

 immovably stuck to their new price. In the Bergen district, the gov- 

 ernor had issued no decrees, and Smith succeeded, with the assistance 

 of the custom-house officers in Leervig, in furnishing the Dutch several 

 cargoes at the old price. The wealthy peasants were the most eager to 

 uphold the new price, forcing the poorer ones not to sell, so that all the 

 exertions of the Dutch failed; the new price soon becoming universal 

 everywhere, and prevailing till near the end of the century, but only for 

 living lobsters measuring more than 8 inches in length, while for the 

 smaller ones or those having only one claw only one cent was paid. 

 Lauritz Smith also made complaints to the government in Copenhagen 

 regarding Governor Juel's decrees, and as Juel was not in favor with the 

 government, his decrees for the benefit of the peasants did not meet with 

 its approval. In his report to the king, Smith complained very strongly 

 that the governor had attempted to change old established customs 

 which to all intents and purposes related to foreigners. The report 



