British spelling in the US constitution

Kirk   Sun Jul 30, 2006 5:28 am GMT
<<<<is "chuse" ever used in the UK? >>
No, never seen it.>>

It's not current in the US, either. One thing to keep in mind is that back in 1787 when the Constitution was drafted (it took effect in 1789) English spelling was not as standardized as it was today whether we're talking about American or British writers. It was, in fact, the norm of the era for the individual writer to use different spelling variants within the same document or even sentence. It wasn't until the mid-1800s when spelling became really standardized. The idea of there being just one correct spelling for a word and being able to just run to the dictionary to check simply did not exist until well into the 19th century. For example, while for British people today the OED is often seen as an immutable, eternal source it hasn't been around all that long, comparatively. Preliminary work that would later become the Oxford English Dictionary did not begin until the 1850s, with the complete OED not being finished until much later in 1928.
euro all the way   Sun Jul 30, 2006 7:29 pm GMT
<<educated enough to know when to get offended and when not! >>

Seems to be the case for some americans too ;)
Uriel   Mon Jul 31, 2006 3:30 am GMT
Who was offended? Why would anyone care how things are spelled in the Constitution? Everything was spelled funny 200 years ago!
Kirk   Mon Jul 31, 2006 4:41 am GMT
<<No one is offended, Uriel. It is just that some people enjoy stirring up non-existent controversies on Internet forums.>>

Makes one wonder who would have the time and/or inclination to continue to try stirring up non-existent controversies while most of the rest of us are still obviously yawning at the attempts at flamebait.

<<Everything was spelled funny 200 years ago!>>

Hehe, yup. Like how back then they randomly put in "f"-looking "s"s (but not all the time).
Deborah   Tue Aug 01, 2006 1:42 am GMT
My favorite part of the Declaration of Independence: "Life, Liberty and the Purfuit of Happinefs".
Uriel   Tue Aug 01, 2006 9:58 am GMT
I know -- I purfue happinefs every day. But the little buggers keep getting away....
Deborah   Tue Aug 01, 2006 8:34 pm GMT
I suppose it's because you're purfuing them, and not pursuing them. Duh!