The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-10-29
TOM SHARKEY
IN HONOLULU
Tom O'Rourke on the
Sailors Local
Battles.

Tom Sharkey was born in Dundalk.
Ireland. November 20. 1878. He stands
five feet eight inches and his weight
in condition is 1S5 pounds
This is the story Sharkey told to me
of his early career. I will not vouch
for it, as I think sharkey has Ananias
beaten forty ways from the jack:
Sharkey ran away from home when
he was u years old to become a sailor
He went to Queenstown. the nearest
port TO his home. and asked the mate
of a sailing vessel which was lying at
one of the docks if they would give him
a chance. 1t happened they wanted a
boy in the galley, and they shipped
Tom. The vessel was bound for China.
! Tom did not get along very we'll in the
scullery department, as in carrying the
soup to the sailors at mess he had not
got his sea legs yet and he would fall
and break SO many dishes that the
steward chased him and the captain
gave gave him a try before the mast.
Before the ship arrived in China Tom
was a pretty fair sailor.
When they arrived in port the mess
Tom belonged to was given leave to gu
ashore for twenty-four hours, but Tom
and another sailor did not return to the
ship. Instead they made their way in
land and mixed up with the natives OF
one of the many provinces. Tom said
he might have stayed there much long
er, and he might have been one of the
high mUcky-mucks today, as the kings
daughter wanted to marry him, as she
said he was such a nice little fat boy
she liked him. But he ran away and
worked his way back to Hongkong.
where he shipped on a Dutch Whaler,
which was gone for three years, and
which landed her cargo in England,
from where he shipped in an American
vessel on his first cruise to the States,
landing in New York
He did not stay ashore long, only
while the ship was loading the cargo
for India. Arrived in India he left the
ship and stayed in that country for
two years. Getting tired of land he
shipped again on a vessel bound for
Australia. He finished this cruise, re-
turning by the way of Honolulu, where
he stopped off and had a scrap with a
kanaka with whom he had an argu-
ment on the dock. This fight was OF
fifteen minutes. The kanaka was get
ting the best of Sharkey, when Tom
took the kanaka's ear between his
teeth, and after he had taken half Of It
off the boy quit.
Tom went from there to San Fran
cisco and drifted down to Vallejo, the
shipping station for Uncle Sam, and
entered the navy, where he stayed for
several years, becoming bosun's mate
before he finished with the service.
He drifted back to Honolulu, thinking
of settling down and going into the
saloon business with the money he had
saved up on his cruise with Uncle
Sam, but he changed his mind. He
had few scrub fights along the docks
and was finally matched to meet Nick
Burley. a fourth-rater, who had also
drifted there from the States to pick
up some easy money. Sharkey de-
feated Burley in eight rounds. He even
claims he boxed George Washington
there, the only fight George was ever
known to have before or after in the
priZering.
His first fight of note was with Alex
Greggains in San Francisco. March IL,
1896, which resulted in a draw.-Tom
O'Rourke in New York Telegraph.