why didn't crews of olden sailing ships catch fish for sustenance?

They are clubbed to death. Death is by a broken skull, or to use the nice word culled.

A club is used because it is close proximity killing no need for bullets or a licensed operator or another person getting shot up the arse by accident by human *****.

2 guys going clubbing and hits a seal over the head, Bang'-- blood shoots over the ice . The other guys says hells bells does that hurt. the guys says well only after a while and you get blisters.

 

Actually im wrong culling is not murder, not in the English meaning. Clubbing people would be murder or slaughter but if it were to keep numbers down it would be culling.

was war culling?

 

Frosty old boy you jest but in reality the whole process of killing another lifeform for whatever reason in whatever manner is distasteful. I find as i grow older it is more so. These days I often find myself side stepping an ant or returning a spider to the freedom of the outside world. I'm not defending the seal hunt as much as i am trying to educate that it is what it is,the hunting of animals by man. I don't even really disagree with the animal rights groups. Their origional basic mandate of preseveration and harvesting wildlife in a humaine manner is a good one. The problem is they have gotten off track by allowing anti hunting fanatics to hijack their operations and use false outdated information to collect huge donations from the nieve to do so. As they say in New York enough already.
Now back to the origional topic of hunting animals, this in the form of fish -- just curious as i think someone mentioned trawling with a 300lb. test line. What is the largest fish caught while you were dragging a line on the stern. I once caught a 55lb. cod while rowing a dory. Anyone with an interesting or big catch ?

 

Ive cought fish so big I never saw them. I looked down the gaping mouth of one once before it turned dived and twang crash bang all the lot went.

My missus does not agree with 25 dollar Rappa lures that cost more than the fish.

I have been told I can not buy any more lures,--not even a little one.

 

Fair enuff.
We'll agree to. etc.

But kids are kids. no matter where they come from. Seal or human or dog.

Regarding "protecting YOUR fishing stocks".
Whoops. Whose stocks????. Who made the fish in the sea wholly our supply....

They are in the sea for all that exist. Part of the inhabitants of this planet. and part of the food chain. Human. other fish. AND seals.
Actually seals were probably here on earth b4 we humans were.

and talking the control of volume of any overpopulating animal to restrict their eating of available food.
Look at us. OVER 6 Billion last time I looked.

WE. Humans. are the reason most of the stocks of everything are on the downhill slide on this planet.

I was a Decky on North Sea Trawlers out of the North East coast of England in mid 50's.
Saw the massive decline of cod etc stocks. The Cod war t'ween us. The Icelanders and the Russian.
Spanish and Japanese Gigantic motherships\Fish Stock Destroyers..
and have also watched the decline of most other species since.
Specially the deep water. core stocks. ALL Gone.
Compliments of human beings..

They should be culling us mate.
Not small groups of different species in different parts of the world. Who just happen to be eating the food that was put there. FOR them, as well as us..

I'm not a greenie. Nor conservationist.
Just an older fella. That's seen. and probably been involved with more death than you could imagine. Including fish by the ton. Every shot.

I was involved in West Germany in the 50's when the fence was up. Prior to the wall in early 60's.
When they were shooting their own women and children trying to climb over it to the West.
Those Bast--ds should have been culled. But our soldiers were issued with RUBBER bullets (.303) You tell me..

I've sat there with a Ruger.22 Auto with silencer. in middle of Paddock. Knocking over up to 500 and more Roos. A DAY.. EVERY DAY for a week.
and they kept coming...There's gotta be a better way??.

The seasons here control it. To a point..

Viking..

We used to drag a 200 whatever lb line behind the yachts with a large Spoon or lure
Mainly we caught Tuna, or Mackerel.
Occasionally there'd be a "Twangggggg".
And you'd have a Marlin. or Shark. We get 'em both to well over 1000lb here.
Bloody things could actually pull stern of yacht sideways at times.Or pull a coupla knots of your speed.
With the smaller boats.
Mainly by myself. I normally just cut the line. and set another one.

Biggest... From memory. a Tiger shark took a lovely 60ishlb Tuna I'd just hooked. and I was bleeding it out b4 putting it on deck. (less mess\Blood on deck)
Didn't know shark was there.
Shark was around the 15ft size. Possibly longer.
It didn't stay around long enuff for me to get a tape on it.
But 5mm and 1\2 thich steel hull and keel sides.I was pretty safe.
Even a container off Tassie only dented my hull 3 ft below waterline forward.
Which is why my last two yachts (25yrs) were steel only.

Slower. a little bit more maint. But steel dents rather than leaks.
Which often results in sinking out at sea...

You want all the advantages you can get on your side out there nowadays.
There are several fairly large shipping\salvage companies out there nowadays.
Doing nothing but salvaging floating containers. And making a good living off it too.
Don't be one of their easily fractured targets.
Macka

 

You were a decky from Hull?

Did you wear white socks?

 

No Mate

Suttons fleet.. Hartlepool.. HL.
First boat I served on was the old "Longscar" a steamer....
First trip was nice and warm in boilerroom. Learning to stoke and rake evenly for clean burn of coal.
Second trip up on deck..
Skip reckoned if you can do a trip down below. (chuckers heaven) you'll be fine on deck.
I was 13. But had already spent a coupla yrs going out on Day Potters\Set liners with mates dads..
Rollin' never bothered me. A great life...
Nowadays just lazin' around fishin' and getting fat.