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Re: Longitude of Japan in 20K

From: Christian Sánchez <chvsanchez~at~arnet.com.ar>
Date: Tue, 8 Apr 2008 01:48:24 -0300
To: "Jules Verne Forum" <jvf~at~gilead.org.il>

If we go to the source, for example, the 1871 edition, we can see it is not a mistake, but only some kind of typo, because Nemo is just repeating the number:
  " Monsieur Aronnax, nous sommes par cent trente-sept degrés et quinze minutes de longitude à l'ouest...
  - De quel méridien ? demandai-je vivement, espérant que la réponse du capitaine m'indiquerait peut-être sa nationalité.
  - Monsieur, me répondit-il, j'ai divers chronomètres réglés sur les méridiens de Paris, de Greenwich et de Washington. Mais, en votre honneur je me servirai de celui de Paris. "
  Cette réponse ne m'apprenait rien. Je m'inclinai, et le commandant reprit :
  " Trente-sept degrés et quinze minutes de longitude à l'ouest du méridien de Paris, et par trente degrés et sept minutes de latitude nord, c'est-à-dire à trois cents milles environ des côtes du Japon. C'est aujourd'hui 8 novembre, à midi, que commence notre voyage d'exploration sous les eaux.
Firstly I wanted (just for fun) to think Verne omited the word "cent" on purpose, as if Nemo did not want to repeat the long number, but it is not necessary because Verne did correct the error!

For this later edition the line
  " Trente-sept degrés et quinze minutes de
was changed to:
  " Cent trente-sept degrés et 15 minutes de
(note the substitution quinze-->15 so as not to change the rest of the lines)

So I believe it is unfair to keep shouting "Verne's lapse!" when he corrected himself in later editions.

Best regards,

Christian Sánchez
chvsanchez~at~arnet.com.ar
Rosario, Argentina



  ----- Mensaje original -----
  De: BGYKrauth
  Para: Jules Verne Forum
  Enviado: lunes, 7 de abril de 2008 6:34
  Asunto: Re: Longitude of Japan in 20K


  Mike,

  everything at this Position is wrong. I think it is discussed several times somewhere else, but anyhow I am going to reply.

  The original text talks of only 37 degrees (not 137) 15 min. longitude of Paris and 30 degrees 7 minutes north.
   (I didn't found any french text giving 137, but I have seen english and dutch textes corrected to it but "West"; a modern german edition also is writting 137° West, the old ones from Hartleben have it like the french text. My chineese edition is indicating also 137 degrees, but as I am not able to read anything then the numbers I don't know if West or East, in my Japaneese and Korean édition I am not able to find the spot, probably they wrote it as in the french book in words and not in numbers.)
  Paris is 2 degrees 20 min east of Greenwich, so for a modern atlas we have to add it westerly and substract easterly. So corrected to Greenwich it will be 39°35' west approx. Looking in the chart we will be here in the center of the Atlantic, Southwesterly of the Azores some 650 miles...

  Corrected to the East we will be somewhere on the Costline of Israel, visiting Zvi Har'El on the cimetary...

  So consequently this position is wrong and the one or other translator should haved tried to correct it. You are totaly right that it must be an Easterly Position, as some 135° West is still close to half the way from North America to Hawaii...

  So fixing the position to 137° 15' EAST and correct the Meridian by 2°20' resulting in rounded 135° longitude EAST we will be (at this latitude uncorrected) some 400 nautical miles South of Osaka in Japan. So if in modern editions the startposition should be corrected by Longitude and direction it have to be 137°15' EAST of Paris.

  Brgds

  Bernhard

   

  mail from:
   
  Bernhard Krauth
   
  have a look at:

  www.jules-verne.eu

  www.jules-verne-club.de
   
  www.bernhard-krauth.de
   
  www.bremerhavenpilot.de

    ----- Original Message -----
    From: Michael F. Duke
    To: Jules%20Verne%20Forum
    Sent: Monday, April 07, 2008 10:37 AM
    Subject: Longitude of Japan in 20K


    I have a really dumb question, which shows my ignorance of navigation, but
    here goes:

    In every version of 20K I've looked at, the position of the "Nautilus"
    some 300 miles off the coast of Japan at the start of her epic voyage is
    given as 137 degrees, 15 minutes *West* of Paris. (See pp. 91-92 of the
    Miller/Walter Naval Institute Press edition of 20K; page 90 of Bill
    Butcher's translation [Oxford World's Classics]; and the French & Dutch
    hypertexts in the jvf virtual library.) Shouldn't those longitudes be East
    of Paris? Or am I mis-reading something?

    Mike

    --
    Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/
Received on Tue 08 Apr 2008 - 08:23:07 IDT

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