Codding the Trawlernien
The irrepressible Mr. Dawson has carried his private war against the Grimsby fish men one stage further. His first catch of Icelandic fish has been landed and disposed of, partly to very small part) at the Grimsby market (where there was only one buyer), partly at Billingsgate (Mr. Dawson character- istically drove through the night from Grimsby to see it sold), and partly to his own factory. At the same time he managed to add to the number of his opponents by crossing the port health authorities and despatching some of the catch before it was passed as fit for consumption. Mr. Dawson has declared he will undersell the Ross group's fish by sixpence a stone; they, in their turn, assert they will do the same by him. Evidently Mr. Dawson, the war surplus Galahad of Grimsby, a merchant baron born out of his time, is thoroughly enjoying himself. Equally evidently, for him l'appetit vient en mangeant: not only does he anticipate twelve trawlers a week of Icelandic fish by the end of November, but he is finding himself " forced into the distriqution side," and contemplates building a processing factory in Grimsby and probably two more in other 'places. Sidestakes of a hundred pounds a side and a threatened slander action help (if help were needed) to keep up the excitement. Meanwhile the housewife stands on the touchline and hopes for a repetition of last week-end's local price drops when Mr. Dawson's second con- signment arrives. But the unedifying squabble at Grimsby brings no nearer a solution of the eighteen-months-old dispute over the Icelandic fishing grounds. The trawler owners, by their embargo on landings of Icelandic fish, have made their point. Mr. Dawson has now made his point. It becomes increas- ingly evident that it is time that the Government (which nearly twelve months ago declared its powerlessness to intervene in a dispute between a British industry and a foreign govern- ment) made a positive approach to Iceland.
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