The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1874-01-13
ROUTING THE COHORTS OF SIN.

ROUTING THE COHORTS OF SIN.
HUNDRED WOMEN MARCH THROUGH THE
STREETS AND BEsIEGE THE sALOONs-sIX
DAYS LABOR, WITH PRAYER FROM NIGHT
TILL MORN, AND THE SPIRITS ARE VAN
QUIsHED.
A correspondent of the Chicago Tribune,
from Washington, Ohio, tells the remark
able scenes which were enacted there last
week: Washington is the county seat of
Fayette, is fiourishing town of some 5000
inhabitants, located on the Cincinnati and
Muskingum Valley Railroad, and about
seventy miles northeast of Cincinnati. For
years an effort has been in progress to BAN
ish from the place all intoxicating liquors,
or, at least, TO prevent the sale of it accord
ing to the laws of the State; but only with
partial success. For some two wears, an
/ ordinance prohibiting the sale of alcoholic
spirits within the corporate limits kept the
demon at bay; but the new board of cOun-
cilmen dropped this ordinance, since which
time our town has been at the mercy of the
dram seller, and young men and old, and
even women, were to be seen at all hours
staggering through our streets and alleys,
and there seemed to be no alternative or re-
demption tor us. But there was
| "a good time time coming which
we little dreamed ot-one that every town
can have the benefit of, and secure to itself a
life of happiness, just as easily as did this
place~-the plan of which was brought into
existence as follows: On Christmas Eve,
DIR. Dio Lewis of Boston, lectured before the
Literary Society of this place on the subject
of "Our Girls" at the close of which he Of
fered to deliver free lecture on temperance
at one of the churches on the following day,
and in that address he would give his hear
ers plan by which the women Of the town,
themselves alone, could abolish the liquor
traffic from their midst, and forever keep it
out. At the appointed hour on Christmas
morning, the citizens assembled en- masse at
the Presbyterian Church, eager to hear and
see what was to be done. The meeting OPEN
ed with singing and prayer; after which
came the address; then committees were APP
pointed
AN APPEAL TO THE LIQUOR SELLER,
Was drawn up, read, and adopted, and the
meeting sd iourned to meet the following
morning friday at the same place; and
then and there the women were to start out
upon their errsnd OF mercy. The hour. hav-
ing arrived the women--from the families
of the leading citizens of the place-met and
formed in procession, fifty or sixty of Them
and the march commenced; new accessions
being made to their ranks daily. Drug
stores and saloons are visited each day and
singing and prayers were held in them, until
the drug stores all signed the pledge, and the
saloons were broken up. w men q saloon
keeper surrendered, the fact was made
known by the ringing of all the bells in
town; people would gather at the scene OF
action to the number of several hundred, to
witness the destruction of King Alcohol.
Women whose husbands, sons, or broth
ers had suffered most were selected
as the ones TO demolish the whisky bar
rels, which deed was done with axes;
aud they never worked harder in more
noble cause. One man, who had suffered
much from the evil effects of intemperance,
while assisting in getting the barrels of
whisky into the street, mounted the top of
one and remarked that he had often been
under the stuff contained in the barrel. but
now he was on top oft. and he intended to
keep on top. His wife broke i'm the head of
the barrel and let the whisky flood the gut
Ter During the entire time that the women
have been praying and singingin the sa-
looms, the Christian men of the place have
been holding prOtracted prayer meeting at
the church; and that the women might bet
ter judge of the earnestness and sincerity
they feel in their behalf, they caused the bell
of the church to be tolled at the close of each
prayer. Tine work that is being done here is
creating quite a sensation throughout this
part of the State, and already the ministers
and several of the leading women in the work
have received letters from neighboring
towns, urging them to come and start the
ball TO rolling in those towns; and they
have consented to 60, and set the time for
the meetings.