Page last Updated: August 1, 2023


Un Capitaine de quinze ans - 1878

A Captain of Fifteen Years - 1878

[Voyages Extraordinaires #17 - 2 Volumes - L'Afrique]

Image used with permission from
Project Jules Verne Illustrations by Bernhard Krauth, www.jules-verne-club.de

Bibliographic
Reference
French
(J-M Margot)
Jules Verne
Encyclopedia
Myers
Bibliography
Galagher
Bibliography
 
CQ
V018
M15
A44

Alternate English Titles:

    A Captain at Fifteen
    Boy Captain: Adventures on Land and Sea
    Captain at Fifteen
    Dick Sand, or a Captain at Fifteen
    Dick Sands, or the Boy Captain

Plot Synopsis: 
(courtesy of D. Kytasaari - http://epguides.com/djk/JulesVerne/works.shtml)
A whale hunt in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and the Americas ends in tragedy and Dick Sands, as the only surviving crew member becomes Captain, a fifteen years of age. Not possessing the full skills of a sailor, Dick tries to get the ship east to the South American coast. However, the cook on board the ship has plans of his own and manages to get the ship diverted to eventually reach land in the country of Angola on the continent of Africa. The cook's plans involving killing Dick and selling the other passengers of the ship into slavery.

Book Collecting Information:
Hetzel Editions:
First UK Editon

Dick Sands, The Boy Captain
1879

Sampson Low, Marston, Searle and Rivington
London

Translated by: Ellen E Frewer

First US Edition (only 20 illustrations)

Dick Sand; or A Captain at Fifteen
1878 (publ. November 1878)
George Munro Publisher
17 to 27 Vandewater Street, New York

20 engravings

2 pages of adverts at the back titled "Munro's Elementry School Books"
Facing the copyright page is a list of 17 Verne titles published in the Seaside Library, listing #131 Michael Strogoff as the last entry
Green cloth

First US Edition in Wraps

Dick Sand; or A Captain at Fifteen - Part 2
1878 (publ. November 1878)
George Munro Publisher
17 to 27 Vandewater Street, New York

Seaside Library Edition
Vol XXI No. 414
Single Number

Image Courtesy of Dana Eales

First US Fully Illustrated

Dick Sands, or the Boy Captain
1879 (publ. December 1878)
Charles Scribners Sons
New York

91 illustrations + Fronticepiece

Translated by Ellen E. Frewer
Fully illustrated

A copy seen with a March 1879 presentation inscription

Illustration page 201 is missing in ALL copies, as there is NO illustration matching "Halt for the Night" (The same error is also in the "Uniform Edition" of Dick Sands, by Scribners!)

Collector's Note:
There is an error in the "List of Illustrations".It lists an illustration "Halt for the Night" at page 201.
The illustrations in this book are part of the pagination. i.e. illustration "Cousin Benedict....Page 7" is actually Page 7 of the book. (Text on page 6, illustration page 7, blank back of illustration is page 8, and page 9 is text again.)
There is NO missing page 201. There is text on page 201 and text on page 202.
Coincidentally, the illustration on page 221, is named "A halt was made for night beneath a grove of lofty trees". This is very similar to the title of the missing 201, "Halt for the Night".
Lastly, there is no "Halt for the Night" illustration in the French editions.
These is NO missing illustration.

Red copy, Collection Andrew Nash

Other Editions
1879
Jules Verne Encyclopedia:
"This work also appeared in the Boy's Own as The Boy Captain: A Tale of Adventure by Land and Sea in annual volume 2, which covered the period from October 1879 through September 1880."

Boy's Own
The Boy Captain: A Tale of Adventure by Land and Sea

1879 (October) to 1880 (September)
Volume 2
Boy's Own Paper / The Boy's Own Annual
London

Noted in Brown and Green

1881
Dick Sands The Boy Captain
1881
Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington
Crown Buildings, 188, Fleet Street
London

Translated by Ellen E. Frewer

Second Edition

Illustrated

Images courtesy of Andrew Cox Rare Books

1882

Dick Sands or The Boy Captain
Part 1 and 2 in same volume

1882
Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington
London

Part 2 has a title page, 1882 also

Author's Illustrated Edition

Gilt Banner - Pears-Like Edition

1882

Dick Sands or The Boy Captain
Part 1 and 2 in same volume

1882
Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington
London

Part 2 has a title page, 1882 also

Author's Illustrated Edition

383 pages
14 Illustrations

Pears Soap Edition description

image and listing information courtesy of David Linton

Collection Andrew Nash

Dick Sands or The Boy Captain, Part 1
1882
Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington
London

Jules Verne's Works
Low's Authorized & Illustrated Edition

This is Part 1, but previous owner has tried to modify the I to a II! on the cover

1882
Dick Sands or The Boy Captain, Part 2
1882
Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington
London

Jules Verne's Works
Low's Authorized & Illustrated Edition

Images Courtesy of Dana Eales

1882

Dick Sands or The Boy Captain
Part 1 and 2 in same volume

1882
Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington
London

Part 2 has a title page, 1882 also

Author's Illustrated Edition

Pears Soap Edition

1883 ?
|
Dick Sand; A Captain at Fifteen
1883
George Munro Publishers
17 to 27 Vandewater St
New York

Seaside Library Pocket Edition - Rose Cover - No. 87
Double Number

Price 10 Cents

1886
Dick Sands or the Boy Captain
1886
Charles Scribners Sons
New York

Uniform Edition
Illustrated

1891


Dick Sands
1891
Sampson Low
London
1893

Dick Sand:
or A Captain at Fifteen

1893
Geo Munro's Sons Publishers
17 to 27 Vandewater St.
New York

October 15

25 Cents

No. 87

Seaside Library Pocket Edition - Navy Banner Cover

nd
Dick Sand, or the Boy Captain
nd
Hust
New York
nd
Dick Sand
nd
A L Burt
New York 
1908
Dick Sands or The Boy Captain
1908
Charles Scribner's Sons
New York

Scribner's Uniform Edition

Known Publication Dates:
1886 - includes map before Chapter 1
1893 Low-Hi-Low U
1902
1908 Low-Hi-Low U Reverse

Size: 208mm x 150mm
92 illustrations + Title image
+ Map (only 1886 edition *)
Note: image in List of Illustrations for page 201 does not exist in any edition!
Pages numbered 1 to 486
Note: illustrations are included in overall page numbering (ie image facing page 329 IS page 328 and with page 327 being the blank reverse of 328)
Ad: No
Uniform Edition on Title page: Yes
Spine Scroll = Low-Hi-Low
Cover Top Scroll = Reverse

* Important Note:
There is an 1886 edition in Red, that has an East Africa map!
The fold out map of Africa is right before the 1st page of Chapter 1 text. 
This is odd because the Scribners 1st US edition of this title does not have a map.  Neither does the Uniform Edition of 1893 or 1908.
The map IS in the Sampson Low 1st edition.

Is the 1886 Uniform edition of Dick Sands the only US edition with the map?

(Map information provided by B Kutzera)

Dick Sand
nd
A L Burt
New York

Explorers Climbing Series

Dick Sand
nd
A L Burt
New York

Canoe Series


Dick Sand
nd
A L Burt
New York

Shown with and without Dustjacket

Famous Books of Adventure

nd - circa 1915

Dick Sands
nd
Sampson Low, Marston & Company
London

316 pages

Sampson Low Celestial

Title in Black
Cover Celestial in Colour
(Like Red or Gray)
Spine in Matching colour
Spine Title Black


Dick Sands
nd
SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON & COMPANY LTD
London

ILLUSTRATED

NEW EDITION

All rights reserved

Cover: Authorized Copyright Edition

316 pages

Sampson Low Celestial Spine

A Captain at Fifteen
?
Street & Smith Publishers
New York

New World Library No. 101(?) .. 15 Cents

1976
Captain at Fifteen
1976
A Golden Grasshopper, Abelard-Shuman
London

Cover says: A Grasshopper Book

Appears to be translated by Berghs Forlag, and incorrectly claims to be the 1st English translation!!!

Published in Paperback, and Hardcover with dustjacket!

Printed in Hungary!

Shown in Dustjacket (Paperback, same cover)

Paperback Collection Andrew Nash

 

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