Apart from having visited China several times to take on a full load of tea, what other connection does the Cutty Sark have with China? Going down into the Cutty Sark's cabins, one may be surprised to see a large-as-life Chinese crew member resting in the cramped crew's quarters along with his Western crewmates! What job did he do? You may have guessed already--yes, he was the cook. But I'm afraid he didn't cook appetizing and tasty Chinese dishes, for despite his Chinese features he was an Englishman through and through, and his job as ship's cook had nothing to do with his Chinese appearance.
His name was James Robson, but everyone called him Tony. In 1852 or 1853 he was found as a cast away as a small baby, drifting on a small raft in the China Sea. He was taken in and brought up by a sea captain named Robson. Tony was an excellent sea man, but later when the ship's cook fell ill in Australia, Tony tried his hand at cooking, and from then on took over in the galley. He joined the Cutty Sark in 1885 and worked on her for ten years.
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(photo by Vincent Chang)
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