He had a florid face, his head smattered in wispy White hair; he wore a White headband to keep the sweat out of his eyes. He looked up from the newspaper he was Reading. “Ambrose’s the name. Chief steward. The Coast relief, right?”.
It is a somewhat archaic way of describing the complexion of a middle aged man with Northern European ancestry who has a pinkish red complexion. Not sunburn, but just naturally red. There is an implication that they have that red face due to enjoying a bit of alcohol on a regular basis, as broken veins are one of the reasons the face might be red.