Did not the earliest usage of the word occur in the Gulf Ports?
In popular fiction the "usage" would be where the author wrote, not the fictional setting(s.) For all you know, Nordhoff stole it from another work of fiction, whilst sitting by the fire, feet up, in his office, with snow on the windows.

Was not one of the commonest spoken languages in those places French?
Creole and the colonial Spanish & French it is taken from. Roughly in that order but who is doing the talking: quarterdeck, midships, foredeck or alongshore will make a huge difference... in any one given task. It would sound a lot like 'English' calypso or junkanoo to the average European Francophone. "Champagne" & "chanteur" &c might very well come with more of a "j" sound.

OTH: If one is shopping for music or instruments, one could expect to hear more German & Yiddish than Spanish.