 The long s started being phased out of English publications shortly after the turn of the 19th century, and by 1817 it was archaic.The Supplement To The Fifth edition, (see below), as well as the 6th edition, used a modern font with a short s.

While the 6th volume of the 5th edition was being printed, Constable became owner of Britannica, as well as Bonar's 3rd edition supplements.Legal disputes over the copyright of the 3rd edition supplements continued, however, and for this reason a new supplement was written by Constable's company, which was completed in 1824.