Captain, the rank designating a commander of a company in infantry, or of a squadron or troop in cavalry, or the chief officer of a ship of war. In most continental armies of Europe captains are considered subalterns; in the British army they form an intermediate rank between the field officer and the subaltern, the latter term comprising those commissioned officers only whose rank does not imply a direct and constant command. In the United States army the captain is responsible for the arms, ammunition, clothing, etc, of the company under his command. The duties of a captain in the navy are very comprehensive, and his post is one of great responsibility. In the British service he ranks with a lieutenant colonel in the army until the expiration of three years from the date of his commission, when he takes rank with a full colonel. In the naval service of the United States a captain ranks with a colonel. In the old French service he was forbidden to lose his ship under pain of death, and was to blow it up rather than let it fall into the hands of an enemy. The title of captain is also applied to masters of merchant or passenger vessels, and to various petty officers on ships of the line, as captain of the forecastle, of the hold, of the main and fore tops, etc.

The word is of Italian origin, meaning a man who is at the head of something, and in this sense it is often used as synonymous with general-in-chief, especially as regards his qualities for command.

Principal kinds of Capsules or. Three-valved Capsule. St. John's Wort. b. Silique, Capsule of Cress, c, d. Silicle, Capsule of Shepherd's Purse (c showing distribution of seeds), e. Pyxis, Capsule of Purslane.