Bison back on nickels

[onehandle]

New five-cent coins featuring madeover Jefferson and a restored buffalo image.

snip...

Later in the year, the Mint will unveil a second 2005 series nickel. It will replace the bison with a portrait of a great scene from the American Northwest.

The subject of that backside will be the Pacific Ocean, inscribed with the words, "Ocean in view! O! The Joy!" The quote is taken from the journal of William Clark, who wrote down his emotions upon reaching the mouth of the Columbia river.

The problem: The words on the coin are not precisely what Clark wrote. In his journal, Clark spells it "Ocian," with an 'i.'

http://money.cnn.com/2005/02/23/pf/new_nickel_rollout/index.htm?cnn=yes

(And the dumbing down of America continues. I would hope that people would seek out the meaning of "ocian", if they couldn't figure it out on their own. But no, they have to assume that Americans are too lazy and moronic for this. They "re"-elected Bush, so I guess.....)

[Boomer]

1. Oh for god's sake, just chill

I'm as indignant about American stupidity and illiteracy as anyone, but I can't get too worked up about changing "Ocian" to "Ocean." Keeping the original spelling, from an era in which "correct" spelling didn't exist as a concept, would be rather quaint. But mostly it just looks like a typo.

[onehandle]

5. Yeah. Lett's all reed and rite 'merican.

Let's change the past as the future unfolds.

[onehandle]

6. ugh...sorry. nt

[proud2BlibKansan]

9. Have you ever read Lewis and Clark's journals?

They are almost illegible, the spelling is so bad. I am glad their spelling has been corrected. It almost hurts your eyes to try to read their original works.

[Boomer]

11. There was no such thing as bad spelling...

"Correct" spelling is a modern concept, but since it's one that contemporary readers are most used to, updating old writings can make editorial sense. The point is to communicate the intent of the author, and if variable spelling gets in the way of the message, then I'm all for using modern spelling conventions.

On the other hand, I wouldn't want the words themselves to be changed. "Ocean" instead of "Ocian" is okay, but don't use "Sea" instead.

[TahitiNut]

12. You're correct, of course. It takes effort to drive that home to folks ..

... for whom the dictionary and the Bible existed from the beginning of the world.

[NYC]

2. I'm glad buffalo nickels are back

even if they changed the front.

[DemoTex]

3. How much did this shit cost?

Over $300 billion for an illegal war and they are spending money on nickles-and-dimes (well, OK, nickles)? Coin-wise and billions foolish, IMHO! Know what I mean?

[jmowreader]

17. I don't think this is atrocious

Coin dies don't last forever. They have to change them every once in a while. And engraving a die with a buffalo doesn't cost that much, compared to some of the things they buy...like Tomahawk missiles and caskets.

And who says that occasionally, the government can't just spend a few bucks on something the citizens will like?

[Art_from_Ark]

18. The government actually MAKES money from new designs

Design changes spark interest in the both the new designs and old designs. That translates into big bucks selling special editions of new and old designs to collectors. The money that is spent to make the changeover, including the payment to the artist(s), is peanuts by comparison.

For example, let's say the government sells 6 million sets of collector-editions that include the new nickel, at $12/set. That's a gross income of $72 million, most of which is pure profit.

By comparison, the artists only get a few measly thousand dollars for their effort. The designer of the Sacajawea dollar, for example, only got about $5,000 for her design. But she got the last laugh-- she asked to be paid in the coins she designed, and the Mint obliged by sending her 5,000 coins with a special finish that collectors paid very handsomely (far, far more than the $1 face value) to get.

[paineinthearse]

4. OCIAN is important to 10,800 websites...

Results 1 - 10 of about 10,800 for ocian. (0.07 seconds)

ocian in view! O! The joy : lewis and clark washington
'Ocian in View' annual lecture event brings... ocian in view! o! the joy! ... 2004 ‘OCIAN
IN VIEW’ PROGRAM. lewis and clark wa . org. November 12, 13 & 14, 2004. ...
www.lewisandclarkwa.com/pages/ocian.html - 38k - Cached - Similar pages

ocian in view! O! The joy : lewis and clark washington
'Ocian in View' annual lecture event brings... ocian in view! o! the joy! ... 2004
‘OCIAN IN VIEW’ PROGRAM. lewis and clark wa . org. Gary Lentz. ...
www.lewisandclarkwa.com/pages/ocian04/lentz.html - 26k - Cached - Similar pages
< More results from www.lewisandclarkwa.com >

National Geographic: Lewis & Clark—"Ocian in View!"
... "Ocian in View!". October 08-December 07, 1805 Carried along by the river's
breakneck current, the corps rode the Clearwater. They ...
www.nationalgeographic.com/ lewisandclark/journey_leg_13.html - 24k - Cached - Similar pages

National Geographic: Lewis & Clark—"Ocian in View!"
... WILLIAM CLARK Thursday, November 7, 1805. "Great joy in camp we are in view of the
Ocian... this great Pacific Octean which we been so long anxious to See. ...
www.nationalgeographic.com/ lewisandclark/journals_maps_13.html - 32k - Cached - Similar pages
< More results from www.nationalgeographic.com >

Lewis & Clark Event - 'Ocian In View' -
Lewis & Clark Event - 'Ocian In View' -. 'Ocian In View' - 11/9/2003 -
11/9/2003 Chinook, WA. Contact Info: Pacific County Friends ...
www.tourism.wa.gov/lewisandclark/lc_event_C10081.html - 12k - Cached - Similar pages

Lewis & Clark Event - 'Ocian In View' - Bus Tours
Lewis & Clark Event - 'Ocian In View' - Bus Tours. 'Ocian In View' - Bus Tours
11/8/2003 - 11/10/2003 Ilwaco, WA. Contact Info: Pacific ...
www.tourism.wa.gov/lewisandclark/lc_event_C10082.html - 12k - Cached - Similar pages
< More results from www.tourism.wa.gov >

iB::Topic::Ocian in View! Letterbox
» Welcome Guest < Log In :: Register >. Letterbox Clues » Washington » Southwest
Washington » Ocian in View! ... Topic: Ocian in View! Letterbox, Ocian in View! ...
www.leecomputers.com/letterboxing/ cgi-bin/boards/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST&f=17&t=6 - 41k - Cached - Similar pages

"Ocian In View"- Oregon Coast
Ocian In View! O The Joy. ... “Ocian in view, O! The Joy.” The last 16 miles down
the Columbia River took 10 days because of bad weather. ...
freepages.family.rootsweb.com/~schuckwj/ocin/ - 11k - Cached - Similar pages

2004 Ocian in View to Mark the One Year Countdown to the ...
File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - View as HTML
... ‘Ocian in View’ Program Will Launch One-Year Countdown for the National Lewis ... The
2004 ‘Ocian in View’ program will feature two evenings of lectures. ...
www.lcbo.net/press/cultural.pdf - Similar pages

more.....

[gristy]

8. hmmmm. Good point.

[gristy]

7. I can almost agree with you

But I can agree only if the correct spelling of ocean at the time was ocian.

[Boomer]

10. Apples and oranges

There wasn't any "correct" spelling at all when that passage was first written. Now there is. So it's really a judgment call whether you impose modern standards on literature, but there is no right or wrong answer to that call.

Updating the spelling to match our contemporary expectations is just as legitimate, although not quite as romantic, as leaving the prose in its original form.

With a long passage in a book, the reader soon catches the flavor of the time. With a few words on a coin, it just looks like a typo. So I'm more in the "Ocean" camp, myself.

[TahitiNut]

13. Moreover, at that time the mark of a person's education ...

... was in their style of spelling. The most educated and cosmopolitan were inclined to adopt a highly personalized style of spelling. Their admirers would then often emulate them.

[Trillo]

14. I agree, his words should only be corrected if they have his permission,

or if his copyright has expired, in the latter case, the newly-respelled quote shouldn't be attributed to him because it's not his words that are quoted.

Is his name on a by-line?

[doubleplusgood]

15. anyone notice ? Buffalo & Jefferson face RIGHT on new nickel

OK, maybe this is being picayune, but it reminds me of 1981 when Reagan came in, James Watt had the Interior Dept. logo changed to have the buffalo face to the right. Also, PBS had to change their logo to have the "P", originally with a nose on it, facing left, changed to have it facing right, superimposed above the letters "PBS".

[Slyder]

16. Lewis and Clark were both bad spellers

Spelling was pretty much standardized by 1804. Samuel Johnson's dictionary was published in 1755 and was the standard even in American until Noah Webster published his. While I cannot access Johnson's dictionary tonight, I suspect he spelled it "ocean". The journals of the L&C Expedition are full the some of the most awful spelling imaginable.

But, hey, let's not grade this guys on spelling. Their accomplishment (at the loss of only one man) was one of the great moments in the human experience. Of course, it also signaled major changes and the disruption of just about everything for half a continent!

I would have left it "ocian" on the nickel !