Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.1979, Page 121

Fyriskipanin frá 3.5.1723 um handil í Føroyum
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SUMMARY
As long as trade in the Faroes was a monopol in the gift of the
Danish king, prices were fixed by law. In deciding the prices, the civil
servants in Copenhagen had to take various factors into consideration.
One was to maintain the population and the economic life of the islands,
while another — especially when trade was the direct concern of the
Crown — was to ensure a profit. On the other hand the various groups
in the Faroes also had their special interests which were dictated by pro-
duction and consumption.
In 1691, at a time when the trade monopoly had been leased out,
the price of wool had been fixed at a very high level, over twice the
market price. At the same time, however, in order to limit the production
of hose (which was far greater than demand), a quota system was intro-
duced, according to which only a certain proportion of the wool could
be sold in the form of finished goods.
The high price of wool made the trade unprofitable, but at the same
time it was advantageous for the clergy and civil servants who had large
incomes based on wool on the one hand and for the wealthiest farmers
on the other. But the poorer farmers and people who did not own land
were most interested in producing finished goods from their wool; those
without land also wanted a low price for wool, as they had to buy it.
When, in 1709, the King took over the trade monopoly, the time was
ripe for change, and both during preparatory discussions on the new
charges of the 3rd May 1723 and in subsequent negotiations between
Faroese delegates and civil servants in Copenhagen on changes in the new
charges, the different interests in the Faroese community are clearly to
be seen.
The result of the negotiations was that the price of wool was not
reduced by so much as had originally been agreed; but this concession
never took effect as plans for leasing the trade came to nothing, and so
the civil servants came to the conclusion that there was no economic
foundation for the concession.