Is My White-Jacket; or, The World in a Man-of-War a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first edition is Richard Bentley's London printing, two volumes, issued in an edition of only 1,000 copies, bound in blue morocco-grained cloth blind-stamped with a square-rigged ship on the upper cover and an anchor on the lower cover, spines lettered in gilt, with yellow endpapers and pastedowns carrying publisher's advertisements
• It collates iv, [2], 322; iv, 315, [1] pages
• The Harper & Brothers New York edition followed about two months later in a much larger printing of 4,524 copies

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
5. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

London (Bentley, published either 23 January or 1 February 1850, sources differ) precedes the New York Harper & Brothers edition of 21 March 1850, giving the English edition bibliographic priority.P-036004

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Because sales of the Bentley printing were sluggish (under 400 copies sold by 1852), the publisher reissued unsold sheets under a cancel title page dated 1853, rebound in uniform red cloth; copies with this 1853 title page and red cloth are a later remainder issue, not the true first, which has the original blue blind-stamped cloth.P-036005

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of White-Jacket; or, The World in a Man-of-War a first edition?

A first edition of White-Jacket; or, The World in a Man-of-War by Herman Melville (Richard Bentley) is identified by: The true first edition is Richard Bentley's London printing, two volumes, issued in an edition of only 1,000 copies, bound in blue morocco-grained cloth blind-stamped with a square-rigged ship on the upper cover and an anchor on the lower cover, spines lettered in gilt, with yellow endpapers and pastedowns carrying publisher's advertisements.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. London (Bentley, published either 23 January or 1 February 1850, sources differ) precedes the New York Harper & Brothers edition of 21 March 1850, giving the English edition bibliographic priority.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

Because sales of the Bentley printing were sluggish (under 400 copies sold by 1852), the publisher reissued unsold sheets under a cancel title page dated 1853, rebound in uniform red cloth; copies with this 1853 title page and red cloth are a later remainder issue, not the true first, which has the original blue blind-stamped cloth.

I have a first edition of White-Jacket; or, The World in a Man-of-War — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.