Norway Poems: Cod

COD
Tails tied and headless, they are yoked
Astride the wooden frame to dry,
To become food for months to come.
There was no romance in the trade
Hard exploitation was at work.
Cod brought riches to Lofoten
Money for churches, barter, style,
Owners of the fishing grounds played
Gods toying with the fishermen,
Sometimes paying, mostly charging
Til at last, a law decreed 
The seas are not 'property' 
They are fishing free spaces.