Pirates led two, or sometimes three, different lives. Many who went to sea to seek their fortune left wives and families at home. When they returned they lived as ordinary citizens. But once on board, they were seamen, keeping an eye open for likely victims and busying themselves with the ship's maintenance.This meant cleaning weapons (rust was a continual problem with firearms), mending torn sails, swabbing the decks of salt and dirt, pumping out the bilges, and repairing broken ropes and spars. After a patrol, the pirates led yet another type of life. If they had been successful and had money in their pockets, they spent it on frantic sprees with wine and women. Drunken pirates were known to gamble away a fortune in a single evening.
FOOD AND HEALTH
At sea life was very harsh. There was no way of preserving fresh food on board ship, so seamen either had to take live animals with them, or made do with dried food preserved with spices. Once they had been at sea for a week or so, they ate little but
crackers and salt meat. For drink they had stale, slimy water and large swigs of rum or wine.
One of the major problems at sea was scurvy. This disease is caused by a lack of vitamin C found in fresh fruit and vegetables). A scurvy "Victim's skin dried up, his gums swelled, his hair and teeth fell out and eventually he died. Citrus fruit prevents scurvy, but this was not recognized until the 18th century.
CAPTAIN
Discipline on board a pirate ship was hard to maintain. Each captain had to run his ship as best he could. If he was successful, his crew might desert to return home with their loot, if not, he faced mutiny. Despite the job's danger, fights for the captaincy were c0mmon.
BELOW THE WATER LINE
A ship's hull soon became encrusted with barnacles and other marine life. This slowed the ship and made her difficult to handle. The only way to deal with the problem was to beach the vessel so she tipped over on her side, and scrape off the growth with sharp tools. This was known as "careening."
The rough underside of a ship gave rise to "keel hauling." A rope was attached to a victim's feet and hands, and unable to breathe, he was dragged around the sharp bottom of the boat. This torture was in fact used more by the British Navy than by pirates.
