Does anyone know the origin of this phrase. I know someone wrote a song using the already popular phrase, and I know it is used in poker. But, I remember a history teacher in high school taught that it began when a king in Europe was on a journey by ship to the orient, when there was either a coup from within, or an attack from without. Whichever it was, he lost his throne because he was on a slow boat to China and could not be reached with the news, and would not have been able to return in time to save his kingdom, even if he did get the news it time. Does anyone know the king, the country, time frame, etc?
geno_b. While you didn’t realize that this question was already dealt with as a report, I’ve moved it to Comments on Cecil’s Columns/Staff Reports. It’ll make more sense to let people respond there.
Geez Louise. I can remember when that song was popular. I think the next line is “All by myself alone…”
All TO myself, alone.
All by myself alone isn’t much fun, is it? 
I always thought it’s similar to the phrase “being Shanghaied”.
In the old days, many people found themselves hired as part of a ship’s crew by press gangs. The idea is that someone would get you drunk or slip you a mickey. When you woke up, you suddenly found yourself on a boat on its way to Shanghai (a popular destination for ships from Portland and San Francisco).
It was also a great way to get rid of a troublemaker without the legal hassle of killing them. Imagine if you were wooing a woman, and you had a rival. If you could get him on a boat to Shanghai, he’d be gone for months.
And, what could be worse than being merely Shanghai? Finding yourself on a slow boat to China.
No connection.