Saga - 1987, Blaðsíða 167

DÝRAFJARÐARMÁLIÐ
165
mternational politics. He opposed vehemently the founding of a French col-
°ny at Dýrafjörður and at the meeting he fought with Jón Sigurðsson and
others. In a letter to his daughter, who lived in England, Repp said that he
had written to British authorities asking them to use their influence to curtail
the French attempts.
In the West Fjords the French request aroused great attention, not least
'n the county of ísafjörður, Jón Sigurðsson's constituency, which was
where the French wished to establish their colony. At a meeting held in
safjörður 2 December 1856 the majority of those present agreed to protest
strongly against the French colony. The meeting elected a committee
which was to draft a petition opposing French settlement. A great many
S1gnatures were then collected for the petition. The petition indicates the
aPprehension of its signatories regarding the possible effect of a French col-
°ny °n the fisheries in the West Fjords, and shows also that they feared
French domination and oppression. Those behind the petition felt that a
French
colony might ruin the local fisheries and thus paralyse their principal source
°f Hvelihood. In the face of this, reduced import taxes would mean little.
That the people of ísafjörður thus opposed Jón Sigurðsson's policy remained
no secret.
At Dýrafjörður another petition was signed opposing the French settle-
ment. Its wording however was not as strong as the ísafjörður petition. The
Dýrafjörður petition listed a number of conditions to which the French
w°uld have to agree if, despite local opposition, the settlement were
granted. They demanded among other things that the French be made to
Pay a special export tax - 1 rd. on each "ship-pound" of salted fish they ex-
ported. Had the French managed to increase their fishing according to plan
>f may be estimated that this toll would have equalled nearly the value of
5000
cows a year.
In the spring of 1857 the Danish government decided to refer the Dýra-
Jorður matter to the Icelandic Alþingi. It seems reasonable to conclude that
the Danes were trying in every way not to upset the French by flatly turning
down their request, but on the other hand that they would not want to insult
the British by granting the French permission for the colony. At the Alþingi
2 speeches were rnade on the subject and the members were not unani-
m°us in their attitudes. Those against the colony stressed i.a. the precedent
this would create, that it would be difficult to deny similar requests from
other nations if the French got their way. One Member of the Alþingi
Pointed out that this might mean that Icelanders would eventually only be
'slaves to the French."
A motion which contained an out-right refusal of the French request was
oteated by 11 votes against 9. Another one where the French request was
turned down "as it is now presented" was carried with the provision that
uegotiations on the matter could be considered only if special "profitable of-
ers came from the French side, specifically concerning the abolishing of
taxes.