The Wohldorf Shipment

During his childhood, Patrick O’Hara was brought up
by various people and in various establishments until he was old enough
to run away to sea. At fourteen his first ship was a passenger-cargo
liner out of London on the Latin-America run, on board which he washed
crockery and polished silverware. Later he served as Quartermaster,
Seaman and Fireman with Dutch, German and Danish ships — mostly in Far
Eastern and Pacific waters — an area of the world with which he has
formed a romantic and lasting attachment. He was introduced to books and
writing by an East End priest whose father was a director of a
well-known London publishing company.