["No More State Schnapper", The Sunday Times (Perth, WA), Sunday 31 December 1916, First Section page 1]
NO MOKE STATE SCHNAPPER
Yesterday witnessed the close of the hopeless State enterprise inaugurated by the Scaddan Ministry to provide "cheap fish" for the public in one or two centres. The miserable business has been a heavily losing proposition, and the present Government soon gave notice of its intention to terminate the existence of the several fish shops.
The supply of fish from the public's point of view is very unsatisfactory, but the entry of the Government into the business did not in any degree meet the situation. Sometimes the Government stalls had fish to sell which was brought down the coast in a Government vessel, but as often as not they had to obtain its supplies from other sources. The taxpayer without any benefits saw the State landed in a loss of several thousand pounds a year over these fish shops. One more Socialistic scheme has passed out without any public regrets.
