Do Norwegians Hate Whales?

Rauno Lauhakangas

October 16^th, 1996

Abstract

This research study tries to explains the Norwegian whaling policy based on the historical events which occured early this century in Finnmark area in the Northern Norway. Usually these events have been analysed by Norwegian historians based on concepts of class fights. But these events can be analysed also based on the extrapolation of Freud's subconciousness theory into a nation's subconciousness level. Or we can also apply pure ecological cell models based on Darwins's theory about "survival of fittest".

Introduction

The title of this arcticle looks a little bit provocative. Norway is one of the richest countries in a world. Why it does not stop it's aggressive whaling policy? This is a puzzle, an external observer cannot find any rational reason in it. The matter comes more difficult to understand, when we remember, for example, that the Chairman of Rio de Janeiro meeting was a Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Hartlem Brundtland. How western countries could be examples for the third world, if they cannot cease their own passions.

The Mehamn Case in 1903

Something happened in the beginning of this century in Norway. This incident, revolt, unrest or even a small revolution in Mehamn can be used to analyse present whaling policy of Norway.

Mehamn is the most northern point in a continent of Scandinavia in Norway. In 1903 the economy was based on fishing by local peasant fishermen.

Industrial whaling started in Norway in late 1860's. Aboriginal Norwegians have never whaled on purpose. Norwegians collected and used dead carcasses of whales which were driven ashore. [Jacob Fellman: Under min vistelse i Norden, 1828]

The Whales's Fishing Technology

The sea in high North was very rich in fishes. Especially there were a lot of candle fishes. Whales and cods like to eat candle fishes. Whales had developed a very interesting technique to catch fishes. They were chasing candle fish pods and forced them to swim inside fjords. In point of view of whales a fjord acts like a huge ryke. Then whales stayed in the mouth of a ryke and each time candle fishes tried to escape they asked for "a custom-fee".

At a same time a fjord was occupied with cods, who were also eating candle fishes.

The Peasant Fishing Technique

The coast of Northern Scandinavia was free of ice appr. 10 000 yrs ago, when ice period ended in Scandinavia. This was also the time human start to live there. It is evident that humans utilized the whales' fishing technology. When whales were after candle fishes humans start to fish cods. Both animals, humans and whales were living in a same ecological cell, not disturbing each others' job, but human mostly utilizing whales' behaviour.

We can conclude that local fishers fishing technique can be dated as far as 10 000 yrs old.

Industrial Whaling

Norwegians have never whaled in Northern Scandinavia (Jacob Fellman)

The industrial whaling invaded Mehamn area in 1883, when a whaling station was established in Mehamn by Sven Foyd with his monopol whaling company. Sven Foyd invented and patented his explosive granat-harpoon. This explains his practical monopoly in whaling in Norway continent. His rivals were Germans.

A Short History of Whale Protection in Norway

Norwegians started commercial industrial whaling in late 1860's. The fight for whale protection by peasant fisherman started at a same time. The first written document is dated in 1873, when fishermen made a protection proposal in the county government of Varanger fjord. Norwegian whalers realised their chances, when sawing German whalers catching whales in northern waters. They wanted to have their share. Also a new technology like explosive harpoon, high pressure cooking cattle and a lift bridge to drag carcasses inside ships were developed.

Though the first textual document is dated in 1873, we can speculate that ordinary peasant fishermen usually unable to read or write, had spoken about the influence of middle European whalers throughout centuries starting from 1600's. But before Norway's own whaling industry they had no address for their demands.

Finally the Norwegian government made a compromise law in 1880. It was a partial protection of whales. During a time from 1^st of January to 31^st of May the whaling was prohibited inside one mile from the coast in North-Norway.

This law did no satisfied fishermen, who demanded a complete whale protection. From 1880 to 1896 there were continuous mass meeting of fishermen in Finnmark area of Norway. In 1896 a new law for whale protection was under discussion in The Parliament.

The consequence was there were no changes compared with the old law. As a result it was considered a victory for whalers. This was a starting point in a procedure which finally led into an action in Mehamn in 1903. After Mehamn case a new bill for complete whale protection was realised in 1904 for the next 20 years.

In the course of an economy history of Norway the peasant fishermen dissappeared. (It was the first cetacean species which decayed into extinction). This led into a situation that there were nobody to protect whales in Norway any more and industrial whaling grew into a huge mass production in Norway by Norwegians as well as all over the world.

Whales acquired their protectors, because of economical needs of peasant fishermen. Whales were chasing candle fishes for fishermen's cods. Maybe nowadays whales can acquire their protectors, because of economical needs of whale-watching companies - fishermen of tourists.

A fight for a bill for whale moratorium

Local fishers started their work for whale moratorium already in 1860's. They have realised the potential thread of industrial whaling for their own economy. During the course of years there were several trial to have a bill for whale moratorium, but with no real success.

A rebel in Mehamn was not a single abrupt incident, but a logical end of their fight in protecting their own economy.

The Analysis of a Rebel

The rebel has been analysed based on the concept of class struggle. However this incident does not fit straight inside those concepts. The concepts are valid only, when they are used to understand contradictions between workers and onwners. We have to keep in mind that classical marxist theory can be utilised only in case of workers and owners. Because workers and owners are deeply dependant on each others.

Peasant fishers and industrial whalers can be considered as creatures living in same ecological cell. In such a system there might be antagonist contradictions, sometimes not.

An Ecological Cell Model

The earlier Norwegian analysis was based on marxist concepts mostly because local workers' union was supporting fishers. Peasant fishers were not workers, they were morely yeoman.

But Do Norwegians Hate the Whales?

The popular front was the largest ever since and after in Norway's history. To solve the problem the establishment was ready for massacre. There are written documents of military commands, where military was harnessing troops with ammunitions and weapons. Fishers had only hammers and sledges. The establishment used gunboats to control the situation.

To understand the case we have to keep in mind that in a popular front one of the driving force was workers' union. This union was later in 1920's formed into a communist party of Norway. When the moratorium of whales for 20 years was realized by a bill in 1904, it was a victory of fishers. It was one of those cases when the system had to comply with people's wishes.

If we extrapolate Freud's theory a little bit and apply it into a nations subconcious, we can come to the following explanations: Each time the moratorium is under discussions in Norway, this subconcious guides the thinking in Norway. Whales became weaved in a net of human passions in the rebel of Mehamn. They became as a scapegoat. Or more clearly: they became a taboo[A taboo means an item or a thing which has special powers, a rule numbers 1 is, do not touch, do not talk about it]. Each time discussion is going-on, whales represent something bad in nation's subconcious. The Mehamn rebel has been forgotten completely in Norway.

The Conclusion

We can conclude that whales are killed because they represent a national front.

Mehamn - 1903, Bjørnar Julius Olsen. Nordland Distrikshøgskole. Studentarbeide, BODØ, 1978

Mehamn 1903 - fiskeropprør mot kvalfangstnæring	Mehamn 1903: fishers' resist against industrial whaling.
Nesten helt fra den moderne kvalfangsten begynte i Finnmark i 1860-årene, eksisterte det et sterkt motsetningsforhold mellom denne nye næringen og fiskerne i fylket (se side 22).	We can say that when the modern whaling started in Finnmark in 1860's, almost immedeately an antagonist contradiction aroused between whalers and fishers.
Kampen mot kvalfangsten i Finnmark	A Fight against Whaling in Finnmark
Fiskernes tro på kvalen som fiskedriver var neppe riktig, men den Klondyke-pregete ekspansjonen i kvalfangsten utover i 1880- og 90-åra ble etterhvert utvilsomt en trussel mot kvalbestanden ved Finnmarkskysten.	The fishers' belief in whales as the sheperds of the fish was hardly true, [Obs. Olsen's opinion, not a fact R.L] but when the Clondyke-brigade started, little by little, to extend the whaling in the 1880-1890, it became a threat to the existence of whales in the Finnmark coast.
Kravet fra fiskerne var total kvalfredning, og kampen for dette skapte en massebevegelse man vel knapt har sett maken til i Nord-Norge.	The fishermen demanded whales to be placed under a total protection and the battle for it started a mass movement never seen before.
Kvalsaken var det store samlingsmerket, men flere og mere omfattende spørsmål av sosial og politisk art ble etterhvert vevet inn.	The whale subject was a large common factor, but more or less it was about social and political goals, which got winded up with it.
Dette blir særlig markant fra århundreskiftet av, og kampen skiftet dels karakter.	This was especially clear during the changing of the century and the battle partly shifted its character.
Fra å være spontan, der stemningen delvis varierte med vekslingene i fisket, ble kampen nå organisert og mere bastant.	What was spontanious and changed with the fishing situation before, turned into a battle, that was perfectly organized and strong.
Gamle Venstre-foreninger omdannes til fisker- og arbeiderlag, og de første sosialistiske arbeiderforeningene gror fram.	The old Left-society was converted into a labour movement and the first socialistic union was established.
Fiskere og arbeidere solidariserte seg med hverandre, og kvalstriden ble oppfattet som en del av klassekampen.	Fishermen and workers were solidaric, and the whaling question or quarrel was linked as an element in the class struggle
Denne folkebeveelsen resulterte også i at de to første sosialister, Adam Egede Nissen og Alfred Eriksen, ble valgt inn på Stortinget.	This popular front was manifested, when the first two socialists, Adam Egede Nissen and Alfred Eriksen were elected into Norwegian Parliament (Stortinget)
Da Nissen ble valgt inn i 1900, ble det sagt at han hadde " ... redet til Thinget paa Hvalryggen".	When Nissen was elected as a parliament man in 1900, it was said at a same time "he was riding with a whale into Parliament"
Fra like før århundreskiftet og fram til 1903/04 ble kysten av Finnmark og Troms hjemsøkt av russekobbe (Grønlandssel).	Just before 1900 and untill 1903/04 a great number of Greeland seals invaded the coasts of Finnmark and Troms.
Det ble en katastrofal nedgang i fisket, ja man kan faktisk snakke om ren nød.	The fishing dropped dramatically, and we can speak about a case of extreme urgency.
Russekobbens tilstedeværelse ble satt i sammenheng med utryddelsen av kvalen, og fiskerne raste mot kvalfangstnæring og myndigheter.	The occurrence of a Greeland seal happened at a same time when whales were destroyed, and fishermen aroused against a whaling station and against government.
Et lovforslag som ville innebære total kvalfredning, ble utsatt i Stortingets vårsesjon 1903, og flere og flere av fiskerne snakket om å gripe til makt for å stanse kvalfangsten.	A bill, which consists of a full moratorium of whales, was presented in a Parliament in spring 1903, and the more fishermen were spoken to use power against industrial whaling.
Illustrerende i så måte er en resolusjon som ble vedtatt på et massemøte i Hamningberg 26. mai 1903. Her heter det bl.a.:	The resolution which was accepted in a mass meeting in Hamninberg in 26th of May, 1903 describes the sityuation very well. It was declared that:
" ... Dette krav som har vært fremsat stadig og med styrke i over en mannsalder maa en gang bli hørt.	"This demand, which has been put forward steadyly will be heard over generations.[Is the generation really now, or should we still wait for three or four generations, R.L.]
Det kunde ellers let hende at fiskerne - for hvem denne sak først og fremst er en livssak - selv nødsages til at ta den i sin egen haand med de midler som disse endnu raader over, selv om saadanne midler vil bli dømt som radikale."	In any other case fishermen - who considered this question of vital importance - will take the law in their hands and will use all means, which they still have, though these means could be condemned as radical."
Aksjonen i Mehamn bryter løs	An Action in Mehamn
Våren 1903 hadde vært det tredje svartår på rad for Mehamnfiskerne, og denne våren var det verre enn de foregående.	The spring 1903 was the third and worst year in sequence of the fish-crops failure among Mehamn fishermen.
Forholdet mellom fiskere og kvalfangere ble også mer motsetningsfylt denne våren idet fiskerne nå ble nektet slep av kvalbåtene ut fjorden på vindstille dager slik de før hadde fått.	Relationships between fishermen and whalers became strained in that spring, when whaling ships prevented fishermen from getting out of fjords in windless days.
Fiskerne hadde før om årene også fått utføre forskjellige reparasjoner på kvalstasjonens smie, men nå ble dette nektet dem av stasjonsbestyreren.	Fishermen were also allowed to use the the workshop of the whaling station in previous years, but now the managemant of the whaling station prohibited this.
Det gjæret blant fiskerne, og hele våren var det tale om å ta saken i sine egne hender.	During the spring the conflict deepened, and fishermen planned to take responsability for this matter in their own hands.
I pinsen skulle så opprøret bryte løs.	So, the revolt was planned to start in Whitsuntide (Pentecost).
Flere tusen mann lå oppe i Mehamn i helga, og stemningen var ikke akkurat preget av helgefred.	When thousands of men came together in Mehamn, there were left no sign of a peace in that religious holiday.
Dagen før pinse hadde en båt kommet opp etter å ha stridt hardt i uvær.	In the Whitsuntide Eve a fishing boat were returned to Mehamn with damaged by a storm.
Da fiskerne ba om å få låne stasjonens smie for å reparere skadene på båten, ble dette nektet dem av stasjonsbestyreren.	When fishermen asked a permission to fix their boat in whaling station's workshop, the management refused this.
Mye tyder på at det var dette som fikk begeret til å flyte over for fiskerne, og om formiddagen neste dag holdt de massemøte hvor det ble vedtatt at stasjonen i Mehamn skulle ødelegges om kvelden tirsdag 2. juni.	It is told that this was the last drop, and fishermen had a mass meeting in an afternoon day after. They decided to destroy the whaling station in Tuesday-evening, 2nd of June, 1903.
Urolighetene tok imidlertid til allerede mandag l. juni.	Fisherman unrest started yet in Monday, 1st of June.
Etter en dansetilstelning om kvelden, hadde en god del av fiskerne trukket ned i været og bort til kvalstasjonen.	There were a dancing in an evening of 1st of June and after that the most part of fishermen went to the whaling station.
To svære dampkjelen på 100 hektoliter hver, som ble brukt til koking av kvalspekket, ble rullet på havet, og fra berget over fabrikken ble vinduene knust ved steinkasting.	Two huge steam cauldrons of 100 hectolitres each, which were used to boil whale oil, were rolled into the sea and windows of the whaling station were broken by stones which were thrown from the hill behind the buildings.
Deretter ble dørene slått inn, og endel av fiskerne trengte inn i fabrikken. Her ble bare gjort mindre ødeleggelser på endel inventar.	Then the doors were broken and a part of fishermen entered the station. There they destroyed some components.
Stasjonens smie som hadde vært et stridspunkt denne våren, ble imidlertid heit ødelagt.	The workshop of the whaling station, which had been the bone of contention during the spring, were demolished totally.
Klokka fem om morgenen stilnet det hele av, og fiskerne trakk seg tilbake til båtene som lå fortøyd på havna.	At 5 o'clock in a following morning fishermen stopped and withdrew from the whaling station into they boats, which were at anchor in a harbour.
Selv om urolighetene mandag var beskjedne mot det som skulle komme, så satte de et kraftig støkk i stasjonsbestyreren og værets oppsynsbetjent.	Through the unrest in Monday was just a foretaste what was coming, the management and the crew of the whaling station became scared.
Tidlig neste morgen iltelegraferte de til amtet og meddelte situasjonen.	Early in a following morning they sent a telegraph to administration of a province to report the situation.
Amtet telegraferte til Justisdepartementet at	The county administration forwarded the telegraph into the Ministerium of Justice as follows:
"...sammenrottede fiskere har avstedkommet optøier", og anmodet om " ... øieblikkelig militær hjælp".	"..joined fishermen ran riot", and we are asking " an immedeat military help".
Amtmann Graff, som akkurat på det tidspunktet befant seg i Kristiania, overtok saken fra Justisdepartementet, men foretok seg ikke annet enn å beordre oppsynssjefen i Vardø til straks å reise til Mehamn.	The county governor Graff, who was at that moment in Kristian, included the matter in his programme in the Ministerium of Justice, but he only ordered the ranking officer of Vardø garrison to travel to Mehamn at once.
Tirsdag 2. juni	Tuesday 2nd of June.
Tirsdag 2. juni braket det imidlertid løs for alvor.	In Tuesday it really started to happen.
Denne tredje pinsedag hadde det kommet flere båter til Mehamn, og kvalstasjonens endelige skjebne skulle nå besegles.	In this third Whitsuntide day several fishing boats arrived in Mehamn, and the whaling station met it's fate.
Klokka halv ti om kvelden lød det plutselig skudd på havna.	At 9.90 in the evening a shot was fired suddenly in a harbour.
Signalet var gitt, og fiskerne bega seg til kvalstasjonen midt i været.	The signal was launched, and fishermen started to go to the whaling station.
Først tok de seg inn i stasjonens redskapshus og forsynte seg med slegger og hamrer.	First they broke into a station's warehouse to get sledges and hammers.
Væpnet med disse redskapene gikk de så løs på stasjonens bygninger og inventar.	Harnessed with these tools they destroyed the buildings and contents of the whaling station.
Midt under aksjonen ca. kl 1200 ankret oppsynsskipet opp på havna, men fiskerne fortsatte nedrivingen upåvirket av dette.	They continued their mission even in middle of the night a military ship acnhored in a harbour.
De tok heller ikke notis av oppsynssjefens henstilling om å stanse.	They did not paid any attention when a duty officer came ashore.
Først klokka fem om morgenen anså fiskerne seg som ferdige.	Only at 5 o'clock in early morning they considered that they had finisihed their job.
Da sto bare enkelte nakne vegger tilbake.	Only mere walls were left.
Ingen av bygningene utenfor fabrikken var blitt rørt, verken bestyrerboligen eller arbeiderbrakkene fikk noen skade.	Buildings outside the whaling factory were not touched. There were no damages in houses of station's managements or workers barracks.
Det meldtes at " ... ingen drukne saaes, men der arbeidedes som i en begeistringens rus for en god sag."	It was informed that "there were seen no drunken men, but inspired were seen more than ever."
Da massen var ferdig med aksjonen, sang de nasjonalsangen.	When the job was done, a national song was sang.
For å hjelpe de fabrikkarbeiderne som nå var blitt arbeidsløse, ble det samlet inn penger.	The workers which now became unemployed, were collected money by fishermen.
Det skal ha kommet inn over 600 kroner til dette - såpass at de kunne kjøpe seg bruk, som det het blant fiskerne.	With 600 NKR, which was collected, they could buy a farm and to start farming.
Onsdag 3. juni - gjæringen brer seg	Wednesday 3rd of June - the revolt expands
Klokken 10.30 onsdag formiddag sendte oppsynsbetjenten ut et kommuniké til pressen hvor det bl.a. het:	At 10.30 on Wednesday morning a duty administrator sent a communique to the press as follows:
" ... I går aftes kl. 91/2 fortsatte hærverket. Maskinene ødelagdes, skorstenene og murene nedreves, kjelene og tranfatene rulledes paa sjøen.	".. Yesterday at 9 1/2 vandalism was continued. Machines were broken, chimneys and furnaces were torn down, cauldrons and whale oil barrels were rolled into sea.
Oppsynssjefen med mannskap forsøkte at stanse hærverket, men kunde intet udrette.	The duty officer with his crew tried to stop the vandalism, but with no success.
Tilstede ca. 2000 mann hvorav ca. 1500 deltok. Situasjonen kritisk, ytterligere uroligheter befrygtes."	There were 2000 men in Mehamn, 1500 participated in a rebel. The situation is critical, it is expected that unrest will continue."
Klokken 13 samme dag ble det sendt ut nok et kommuniké der det bl.a. het "...alle fiskere enige og vaktskifte ordnet.	At 1300 on the same day a communique was send stating as follows "all fishermen have unanimously organised watches.
Alt ser ut til i lengre tid at ha vært planlagt."	Everything looks like a longstanding plan
Fiskerne i Vardø bifalt aksjonen gjennom en resolusjon.	Fishermen in Vardø have accepted the action by common consent.
I Skjøtningsberg holdt fiskerne et massemøte om kvelden der man var innstilt på å fortsette der Mehamnfiskerne slapp.	In Skjøtningsberg hold fishermen a mass meeting in the evening, where it was proposed to continue the Mehamn fishermen action.
Resultatet av møtet var en resolusjon som sa at " ... hvis ikke hvalloven vedtages inden 24 timer skal fabriken i Oxfjord gaa."	As a result of a meeting was a resolution, inwhich was said that "..if the whale moratorium law is not accepted within the next 24 hours, the whaling station in Oxfjord will be destroyed."
I Båtsfjord ble det avholdt lignende møter " ... hvorfor stationen der ansees som truet."	In Båtsfjord was also a similar meeting "therefore a whaling station there is considered as threated."
NTB meldte at " ... oppe i Berlevaag er der ogsaa gjæring.	NTB announced that "up in Berlevaag it was seetheing.
Tilstede ca. 900 mann hvoraf de fleste bevæbnet."	There were about 900 men, most of them having weapons."
I Mehamn holdt fiskerne vakt ved stasjonen slik at det ikke skulle bli gjort forsøk på reparasjoner.	In Mehamn fishermen hold their eyes open and did not allowed any repainring in the whaling station.
Om kvelden og natten mellom 3. og 4. juni ble så fabrikken i Mehamn fullstendig jevnet med jorden.	In the evening and in the night between 3rd and 4th of June the Mehamn whaling station were in full razed to the ground.
Det som for noen dager siden var en av de største og flotteste stasjoner i Finnmark var nå en ruinhaug, revet ned med håndmakt og årelang forbitrelse.	What has just few days ago been one of the largest and most profitable whaling station in Finnmark, lied now in ruins, demolished by bare hands as a result of a bitterness from years to years.
Myndighetene griper inn	Authorities Start Marching
Amtmann Graff beordret straks politimester Ulve, politifullmektig Lundeval, sorenskriver Borch og lensmann Bertheussen å reise til Mehamn med dampskipet "Capella".	County governor Graff ordered police comissioner Ulve, chief of police Lundeval, Circuit Judge Borch and district police superintendent Bertheussen to travel immedeately to Mehamn with a steam ship Capella.
Samtidig ble underoffiserskolen i Harstad, ca. 150 mann, beordret oppover, og forsvarssjefen beordret marineskipet "Heimdal" med en besetning på 62 mann til Mehamn.	At a same time Harstad N.C.O. training college, approximately 150 men, was ordered to alert, the officer of the day ordered a gunboat Heimdal with its crew of 62 men to Mehamn.
Amtmann Graff utstedte følgende forholdsordre for å klarlegge forholdet mellom det sivile politi og de militære myndigheter:	Governor Graff gave the following orders to civil- and military authorities:
"Politimester Ulve bemyndiges læse oprørsloven to gange i Mehamn og Skjøtningsberg, og sorenskriver Nordang to gange i Vardø og Baadsfjord.	Police commissioner Ulve was given special powers to work in Mehamn and Skjøtningsberg and Circuit Judge Nordgang in Vardø and Baadsfjord.
Erklærer det civile politi sig ute af stand til at gjenoprette orden, læses oprørsloven for tredie gang	If the civil authorities cannot manage the situation, the fishers shall be warned for the third time.
og ansvaret og myndigheten til at gjenoprette orden og beskytte lov og eiendom lægges i henderne på de militære schefer, som dertil kan bruge væbnet magt."	If this doesn't produce the desired result the commandship shall be given to the military forces, which are allowed to use weapons.
Fredag 5. juni startet rettsundersøkelsene.	June 5th Friday investigations started.
Fra denne dagen ble Mehamn erklært i beleiringstilstand, og ble holdt strengt avsperret såvel til lands som til vanns.	From that day on Mehamn was proclaimed a state of emergency and was isolated both from the continent and form the sea.
Natt til søndag kom også dampskipet "Senjen" opp med ytterligere 30 soldater fra Harstad.	On Saturday night a steamboat called Senjen came from Harstad with 30 reinforcement troops.
10. juni overtok "Heimdal" vaktholdet, og sperret havneinnløpet.	On the 10th of June Heimdall arrived for watch and closed the harbour.
Fiskerne kom ikke ut på feltene og tapte store penger.	The fishermen couldn't get fishing and suffered major economical losses.
I forbitrelsen over dette sendt de et telegram til Stortinget der de krevde at blokaden skulle oppheves, ellers ville de selv sørge for at så skjedde.	Embittered they sent a telegram to the Parliament, (Stortinget) demanding the removal of the block or else they would do it themselves.
Etter noen dager ble så havna åpnet, men "Heimdal" ble liggende i Finnmark sommeren over for å "dæmpe gemytterne".	After a few days the harbour was reopened, but the gunboat Heimdal stayed for the whole summer ready for action.
Etterforskningen i saken ble en nokså betinget suksess idet de som var innblandet hadde reist fra Mehamn før politi og militæret kom.	In the investigations held afterwards was revealed that those, who had been involved in the event at Mehamn had traveled away before the police- and military forces' arrival.
Det var derfor kun 24 personer som ble tiltalt.	Because of this only 24 persons were arrested.
Av disse ble åtte satt i Vadsø kretsfengsel i påvente av rettsak.	8 of these went to the Vadsø county prison to wait for the trial.
Disse ble betraktet som folkehelter i Nord-Norge, og rundt om på bygdene i Troms og Finnmark ble det holdt basarer og innsamlinger for de fengslede og deres familier.	These 8 men were considered as national heroes in Northern Norway and all around Troms and Finnmark money was collected for the prisoners and their families.
Da saken mot de tiltalte kom opp neste vår, ble 12 frifunnet, 10 ble dømt til fra 10 til 20 dagers vann og brød, og to fikk bøter.	When the trial was held in the next spring 12 of the men was released, 10 were senteced for 10 to 20 days in prison with bread and water and two were punished with a fine.
Altså en særdeles mild dom som nok ikke var upåvirket av stemningen i Nord-Norge.	So a pretty lenient punishment, which was influenced by feelings in the Northern Norway.
Avslutning	A conclusion
Ved juletider 1903 var det klart at det gikk mot flertall i Stortinget for lovforslaget om kvalfredning.	By Christmas 1903 it was clear that the majority of the Parliament (Stortinget) started to take up a position in a bill of whale protection.
Og endelig, 7. januar 1904 fikk lovforslaget flertall i Odelstinget.	And finally January the 10th 1904, the proposed bill got the majority in Odelstinget (Odelstinget is 3/4 of Stortinget or it can be cosidered as the Upper Chamber)
Loven innebar total kvalfredning ved Norges kyster i 20 år.	The bill consisted a complete protection of whales in the coast of Norway for the next 20 years.
Over hele Nord-Norge vaiet flaggene som tegn på at en over 30-årig kamp var kronet med seier.	The whole northern Norway was flagged, the more than 30-years fight for the protection of whales led to the hoped-for result.

A reflection of Mehamn incident in literature.