The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1883-12-26
TEMPERANCE CRUSADE.
The Beginning of the
Movement in
HillsbOrO,
SKETCH AND PORTRAIT
OF DR.. DIO LEWIS,
ITS ORIGINATOR.
The Story of the.Crusade by
Mrs. 2, J, Thompson, it's
Leader,
Minutes of the W0me18' First Prayer
" Hoot1g BY their Secretary
Mrs. FeHHsr.
From the NEWS Of Jan. /, 1874.
TEMPERRRCEi
Dr.. Dio LewiS'S Lecture and the
W0meH'S temperance H0r9-
meHt.

The Temperance lecture of DR..
Dio Lewis, delivered at Music Hall
on Thursday evening of last week,
drew out aver 'arge audience, filling
! the Hall almost TO its greatest ca
pacity. 1t is one of the most elo-
quent and effec i've appeals to which
we ever had IL. pleasure OF listen
ings and aroused every friend Of the
temperance cause who heard it to a
more vivid realization of the evils Of
the liquor traffic, and to a more earn
est determination to suppress or
check the unlawful sale of liquor by
every proper means which affords
the last hope Of success.
In his lecture the previous even
ling DR.. Lewis referred to a move
ment for the suppression of dram
selling, set on foot and triumphantly
carried out by the women Of his ma
tive place, a small village in West
ern New York, some 40 years ago.
| His father, like most of the men of
the village, was intemperate, and
their unfortunate children had to
work in the mills and factories to
support themselves and their parents
| At last the suffering wives anC
mothers, led by his own mother, re.
solved to 60 in a body to the liquor
sellers and appeal to their better
natures to stop a traffic which wa
carrying sorrow and degradation anC
poverty to so many of their homes
Before starting out in their nobl,
, undertaking, these good Christian
women met in the village church anC
asked God to aid and protect them
and crown their efforts with success
and kneeling before the altar. solemn
,I " pledged each other to persevere
= and never to abandon the costest un
til the victory was won. They wen
boldly into the enemy's strongholds
, armed with Bibles and hymn-books
and prayed, wept, sang, eXhOrted, al
gued and entreated, until the heart
and consCiences Of the guilty dealer
in the fiery poison were touched an,
b softened, and they yielded to the in
. vincible power of woman's pleading
. and wOman's tears The sale @
. liquor was stopped, and the more
. heroines who, with the Divine bless
. ing, achieved the great victory wer
. more than repaid for their noble sell
sacrifice by the return of Peace an
p plenty and happiness TO their love
. homes, once so jOyless and desolat'
+. From thatday to this, said DR., Levi
the baneful taraftic has never bee
. resumedin that peaceful and thrivin
village.-Once or twice attemp
y were made to revive 1t, but thOs
y wgilant women, like guardian angle
90 flew to the rescue, and again drOy
>. out the foe that threatened to distur
%. their Paradise,
o. And all this, continued the ell
e.. quent speaker, was the work of a fe
90 feeble delicate, sorrowful, but nobl
. DEVOTED and faithful Christian W
O.: men
" How did they accomplish it7 1
.. going forward bravely, asking &C
to aid them, and putting their tru
%" in Him, And why may not &
Christian women Of Hilsboro, q
asked) accomplish a similar work
the same way2 He was firmly co
vinced they could, and he trustl
'' they would at least make the effort
= He then put the question to Il
T. women present, whether they we
& in favor of trying the experiment
B. Hilsboro, and the response was una
& imousIY in the aRrmqtiYe. All vi
we're willing to act as a committee
a visit the liquors dealers we're then
quested to rise, and more than
Of promptly responded,
a. AT DR. Lewis's suggestion, it W
then moved that a committee Of
d least so men be formed, to stand
es the women in their movement, a
'ur render them all necessary aid a
support Papers wese immediat,
circulated, and in a few minutes {
4. names of so of our leading citizS
( where enrolled 70 a pledge 70 aid