/lit/ - Literature

This is a random entry in a tiny towns little newspaper from Brewersville, Indiana. Can you write this well? What happened to literacy in this world?

>A party consisting of some 25 ladies and gentlemen went from this place on last Saturday to visit the Hinchman Cave. We left here at 7 1/2 o'clock a.m.; and arrived at our destination at 11 a.m.; took a short rest, and spent a few minutes in viewing the surrounding scenery, when the ladies preceded to spread a lunch, and with appetites sharpened by our morning ride and exercise, we regaled ourselves with roast chicken and other good things, and as fun, frollic, merry-making, and some love-making was the order of the day, the company broke up into small squads, and for a half an hour the hills was made to resound with shouts of joyous laughter and songs. At a given signal the party reassembled, donned our hats and shawls, lit our lamps, and commenced the exploration of the cave. We are sorry to note that much of the beauty of this noted cave has dissapeared, the walls and ceiling of "Sylf's Temple" being badly discolored by the effects of smoke from lamps and torches; but to most of the party it was new, and consequently very beautiful; we spent an hour in climbing and wandering through subterranean passages. One young lady signalized her bravery and powers of endurance by climbing alone and unassisted the Naiads' stairway in search of stalactites. Two ladies and one gentleman tried to take the "giants cap" off but they signally failed. After we returned to the outer world, we passed a short time in wandering on the banks of the beautiful Muscatatuck, reassembled and listened to a chort speech on the designs and beauties of nature from J. B. Riggs, after which we all returned home, happy, merry-hearted, tired, and older if not wiser that when we started, and all expressed themselves well paid for the trouble and expense of the visit.