Frank T BullenFrank Thomas Bullen British novelist, was born on April 5, 1857, in Paddington, London, to poor parents. He attended a dame school and Westbourne School in Paddington for a few years. At the age of nine, his aunt, who was his guardian, died. He then uit school to work as an errand boy. In 1869, he went to sea and traveled all over the world in various capacities, including second mate of the Harbinger and chief mate of the Day Dawn, under Capt. John R. H. Ward jun in 1879, when she was dismasted and rendered crippled. After spending 15 years at sea since the age of 12, he later described the hardships of his early life as follows: I was beaten by a negro youngster as big as myself, and only a Frenchman intervened on my behalf. Boys in Geordie colliers or East Coast fishing smacks were frequently beaten to insanity and jumped overboard, or were killed in truly savage fashion, and all that was required to account for their absence was a line in the log stating that they had been washed or had fallen overboard. Read More Read Less