USA > Ohio > Memories of the crusade a thrilling account of the great uprising of the women of Ohio in 1873, against the liquor crime > Part 10
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Legal proceedings were at once instituted and two weeks afterwards the following dispatch appeared in the Cincinnati papers :
"WASHINGTON C. H., Feb. 4 .- Tell Beadle, of the Commercial, that my gounsel has had demperance meeting and tabernacle abated as a nuisance.
CHAS. BECK."
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It was too true. An injunction was granted and then the temperance people had recourse to law. A Mrs. Frazier brought suit against Sul- livan and Beck, under the Adair law, and the former was soon compelled to surrender. Mr. Beck held out for a short time, then yielded good-humoredly to the ladies, and the place was once more clear.
It was the first great victory of the campaign, the first demonstration of the power of women to do what men, with fifty years legislation, had failed to accomplish. The bells of the town rang out with joy. Great excitement prevailed and the chief business for a few days was the interchange of congratulations.
Wilmington, the county seat of Clinton county, was the next place to fall into line. As I see by the county paper of January 8th, Rev. A. C. Hirst, of Washington C. H., hastened over to tell the neighbors the glad tidings, that a way had been found by which the rum-seller could be reached, what the glorious result had been in Washington, and with fervid eloquence so wrought up the good people of Wilmington that they at once with enthusiasm set to work, men and women, to organize for the siege. I note the familiar names of those days: Revs. Bingman, Runyan, Richards, Kelly, Mary Hadley and Mrs. Runyan. On the evening of January 8th, the men effected an organization and adopted the following resolution :
BECKS LAGER BEER
LAGER BEER
SCENE AT BECK'S SALOON. WASHINGTON C. H. OHIO.
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" Resolved, That this meeting pledge its support to the ladies of Wilmington in the temperance move- ment, with our sympathy, prayers and means."
Whenever the men came and stood by the women with their means, moral, and if need be, legal support, it was found to be a very convinc- ing argument to the average rum-seller's mind. I have maintained, first and last, that the move- ment was not woman's nor man's, but God's; but that every man and woman had a duty to perform in forwarding it.
It will yet require the wisdom, prayers, means and labor of Christendom, men and women of whatever creed or station, to conquer this hydra- headed demon, the liquor traffic. The reason that we have not long ago conquered it is that we have not united our strength against it, as we should have done.
The day we do, the bells will ring out peans of gladness all over the land, for the victory will be ours.
The following preamble and resolutions, pre- sented by Rhoda Worthington, have a good, strong ring to them :
WHEREAS, We, the women of Wilmington, are called upon, we believe in the Providence of God, to act in the suppression of the gigantic evil, the sale of intoxicating drink in our midst.
WHEREAS, Not a single mother in our broad and otherwise free land, can fold her loved child in her arms, either son or daughter, and say without a fear, "My child is safe from the fell destroyer, my en- deared home is secure from its invasion " for the proudest, the noblest and bravest on earth share a like fate, once drawn into the whirlpool of this mon- ster, intemperance, and
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WHEREAS, The suppression thereof is not the work of a day or an hour, and when the places of sale are once closed the work is merely begun, and as we believe " in union there is strength," therefore be it
Resolved, Ist, That we keep ourselves organized, either to ourselves or in conjunction with the noble men who are alike with us interested in the cause, laying aside all conflicting opinions of different names, presenting a solid front to the foe, not only to sup- press this great evil, but to prevent it from ever again entering our borders.
2nd. That such organization shall meet as often as deemed necessary, at such time and place as may be designated, acting as a vigilance committee on the subject; and when any person may give reasonable ground for suspicion of being engaged in the traffic, care in the love of Jesus be extended to such an one without delay.
3rd. That whatever success may crown our efforts in this direction, all thanks, all praise, and all honor belongeth to Him alone to whom all praise and honor is due.
Would that all, everywhere, had always re- membered this third resolution.
On Monday, the 5th, the women marched out forty-three strong, while the church-bells pealed forth to the dismayed rum-sellers, "The women are coming." Thus under the leadership of that beautiful, sweet-spirited Quakeress, Rhoda Worthington, the women of Wilmington opened
up a battle. Mrs. Runyan, wife of the Metho- dist minister of the place at the time, was in- duced by the earnest entreaties of the good Quaker ladies to join them, and very soon her tongue was loosed and her hitherto buried talents brought into requisition in behalf of the glorious cause, as a popular lecturer. Though, as she has told me, she could not at first entertain the
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thought, it was too terrible, and she even brought her keen-edged sarcasm to play on the reverend brother who came to preach this new and un- heard-of mode of warfare. Very many ladies have said that at first they had a great struggle with themselves to evercome their prejudice and to see their duty, but, taking it up, such a blessed baptism came upon them as they had never experienced before, and which they would not exchange for all the previous religious expe- rience of their lives. Some who had been pro- fessors of religion long years, when going forth bearing the cross and the reproach, and kneeling in those dark abodes of sin for the first time in their lives, had their souls bathed in such a flood of ineffable bliss as they had never before con- ceived.
Very few of us, living in homes of ease and social surroundings, ever had occasion to prove our love of the Master in any work that did not receive the laudation of the world. Jesus now called to His hand-maidens, "Daughter, wilt thou follow me even into the haunts of vice and crime? Thou wilt find there many a wandering sheep." And responding, we received into our own souls the true riches of which the world knoweth not.
With the practical beginning indicated above, the Wilmington women made a short campaign of it. Among the women here was found our present talented State Secretary, Mrs. Antoinette Clevenger
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New Vienna, a small place in Clinton County, became quite noted because of the conflict the women had there, especially with one man. They began their work on January 13th, and in a weck all the saloons were closed but two, one kept by a German woman, the other by J. C. VanPelt, who, because of his low, coarse manners and ex- treme profanity, acquired the name of the wick- edest man in Ohio. He swore that all the prayers of all the women in New Vienna would never move him, and that he would baptize the women with beer if they came to his place. When they did come, he ordered them to leave within a specified time. They returned the next day, and while praying that the Lord would baptize him with the Holy Spirit, he threw a bucket of dirty water on them, saying with a profane oath, " I'll baptize you." More water was thrown, but the ladies kept on. Then he resorted to beer, throwing it up to the ceiling, and letting it come down where it would. The ladies con- tinued their devotions.
At length his beer began to get low, and he had to turn the vessel to one side to dip it. Just then one of the ladies sprang forward and with the utmost good humor begged Mr. VanPelt to let her assist him, and she held his vessel atilt for him, so he could the more easily dip his slop. This was so unexpected a turn, that it quite van- quished him, and his rage gave way to a half sup- pressed smile. The ladies drew off their forces and repaired to the Friends' meeting-house.
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The day was a very cold one, but the church was made warm by a large, red-hot stove. And as they gathered about it and began to thaw out, they have assured me that such fumes and perfumes as arose from their drab shawls, muffs and water-proofs certainly were unprecedented in a Friends' meeting. I have always had a sort of theory of my own, that the grimes and soils of earth would not stick to a Friend's garments, but I have to make an exception in the case of beer, for the ladies reported that those neat and tasteful bonnets of theirs, with the white ribbon ties, unmistakably bore marks of their conflict with sin.
On the morrow they returned to the charge. But the enemy flourished an ax and ground his teeth with rage. He was arrested by the men for illegal selling and put in jail, bailed out, re- arrested, and again bailed out. His bitterness and determination intensified. No surrender for him. But it was observed that his place was directly on the line of railroad land.
The ladies sent to railroad authorities and asked permission to occupy that particular position of ground directly in front of Mr. VanPelt's saloon, which of course was granted. Lo! Mr. Van- Pelt was checkmated, and the ladies went on with their devotions. He had indeed acquired a widespread notoriety, but it was not paying. Those women had sat down as Grant did before Vicksburg, determined to fight it out on that line if it took all winter and summer. They
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were regular, devout, persistent. They divided their time between the woman, Rice, and this last citadel by the railroad. The customers fell off. They could not crowd in past the women. Mr. VanPelt grew serious. He began to reflect. Was he struck under conviction ? We will give him the benefit of the doubt.
At length he sent out his proposals of capitu- lation. The people could not at first believe he was sincere, or meant it in good faith. But he sent for the ministers and made a full surrender to them and the women.
He requested Rev. D. Hill and Rev. H. H. Witter to roll out the barrels, and seizing an ax he said, this was the same he had used to terrify the ladies, and striking it into one barrel after another, the liquor flowed into the gutter while the ladies stood by singing joyful songs of thanks- giving for this blessed ending of their siege.
A week later, VanPelt was in Springfield with Dr. Lewis, and addressed an immense audience in Black's Opera House. I made him a subject of close observation and study. I was disposed to believe him sincere ; but knew from all his previous life experience, he could not at once, if ever, rise to the high plain of the Christian prin- ciple of doing right because God demands it. I wasled to believe that the hope of bettering his condition financially had a good deal to do with his action. He had never before had any other means placed before him, and it is possible that from the assurance of the friends that they would
REFRESHMENTS.
ANDYO ENG CONY
VAN PELT'S SURRENDER.
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help him, and the encouragement given by Dr. Lewis to go into the lecture field, it may have oc- curred to him that it would pay even better than selling liquor.
It was certainly more respectable, and people made much of him. I felt much solicitude lest dis- appointment would disgust and turn him aside, and felt sure financial success was very essential, and helped him what I could.
Dr. Lewis had even raised his hopes of going to Europe with him in the interest of the temper- ance cause.
But the poor fellow was doomed to a great disappointment in the matter of money. He did not succeed as a lecturer. His own story, told in very poor English, and so tinctured with pot- house phraseology, soon became thread-bare, only being tolerated at any time by the hope of saving him. The people were not as liberal as they should have been, I fear; they are not apt to be. I was told of his going to one town to speak, but getting scarcely enough to pay his expenses, and that the saloon-keepers told him if he had spoken for them, they would have handed him five dollars apiece. It takes grace to withstand such pro and con arguments as these.
He was heard of afterwards in Wilmington, keeping a very low, disreputable place, and was suspected of setting fire to the house of the Friends' minister who had attempted to prose- cute him. The last I heard of him he was in a western penitentiary. Alas, the seed had not depth of earth.
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Waynesville, in Warren county, is a pleasant village on a beautiful declivity overlooking the Miami river and valley. Here the ladies opencd up the work with great energy on the 18th of January. Led by Mrs. Jane Jones, a minister of the Friends, they visited Raper's saloon. As they filed in, Mrs. Jones extended her hand to the saloon-keeper, saying, "How's thee?" and asked permission to pray with him, which he courteously granted; and leaning against the bar they all knelt, and Mrs. Jones, in a spirit humble and touching, cried, "Our Father in Heaven, who knowest the inmost thoughts of all hearts, who cannot be deceived, and will not be mocked, we come again in a sense of our own weakness, needing great help from Thee, to do what little is in our power for the relief and salvation of Thy creatures and to Thy honor. We come again in the name of Jesus, asking Thee to put words in our mouths and wisdom in our hearts, when we talk to this, our dear brother. We implore Thee to bless his dear family. We ask again, as we have often asked before, that Thou wouldst send Thy word with power into the heart of this dear brother, that he may give up this terrible sin that has so long kept him away from God. Thou who hast moved so many hearts, in mercy condescend to move upon the heart of this man, that he may no longer endanger his immortal soul. Oh, help him to say, ' Let others do as they may, as for me, I will get rid of this traffic, which is the cause of
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so much sin and suffering.' Oh, Lord, have we not seen and suffered enough of this great evil, which fills our land with ruin, till our country is trembling on the verge of destruction ? Often, we know this brother has trembled at Thy word, like Felix of old, but still stands where he did, saying, 'Go thy way for this time, when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee.'
Lord, bless this man who sits here writing. Give him wisdom, that he may know the truth in all its beauty and importance ; and grant him power to convey that truth unto others, to the good of their souls. Impress upon his heart that many, yea, very many are dependent upon him, that if his own soul were all that he imperiled it were enough ; but that thousands look to him for exact truth. He cannot say, 'Am I my brother's keeper?' for the souls of many may be dragged down to perdition by error and false- hood. Help him to realize the importance of his words. And may Thy blessing rest upon all this assembly, and finally may we meet again at thy right hand, we ask for Jesus' sake. Amen."
It was not long till Mr. Raper surrendered and gave up his business. When he notified the women that he proposed to give up, they came in procession, sang and praised God, while the band discoursed sweet music; and the cannon, having also been brought out for the occasion, sent the glad news reverberating up and down the valley between the hills for many a mile. Then it was not very long till another keeper
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yielded. His little son, some ten or eleven years old, taking a lively interest in the affair, in- sisted that the cannon must be brought out also for his father's surrender, and as much demon- stration made as over the surrender of their neighbor, which was done, greatly to the delight of the little fellow.
It was noticeable in many instances that the children of the saloon-keepers felt keenly the disgrace that attached to their father's business, and were glad as any one when they gave it up. One of the saloon-keepers here had sold liquor against the wish of his wife, who was a very worthy woman. She was so opposed to his busi- ness that she would notaccept any of his ill-gotten gain for her support, but worked at dress-making by which to earn her living. When her husband quit selling liquor and went into another busi- ness, she gave up her work. But the sad truth must be told, that it was not long till he went back to his soul-destroying business, and the brave-hearted woman took up her dress-making again.
To another man here, the ladies upon his sur- render presented a Bible appropriately inscribed. He seemed so pleased and so determined to live a new and better life, that he said he would treasure the gift always, and when he was buried he wanted it placed on his heart. But, in this case, the wife's influence was so adverse that he went back to selling liquor again, and it was not long till he died a violent death, the exact nature of which I cannot recall.
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It was in Waynesville that the Crusade found Miss Esther Pugh, who has since developed such grand talents, and is known by the White Rib- boners everywhere as our efficient and faithful treasurer. The man at Corwin, just across the river from Waynesville, and near the railroad station, did not surrender, though the women continued to visit and pray with him for a long time. In this case the word was verified which saith, ' The wicked shall not live out half his days." While dealing out the deadly poison to others, he imbibed it all too freely himself, and it was not long till fatal disease fastened itself upon him and he was laid on the bed of death. His wife, who had opposed him when he seemed disposed to surrender in answer to the pleadings of the women, now became alarmed, and asked him if she might send for the priest to pray with him. "No," he exclaimed, " it is too late. Oh, if I had only yielded when the Christian women prayed for me and begged me to give up my business ; but now it is too late." So he died. The wife went on with the business, and was still selling the last time I passed down the road. The great danger of tampering with sin is its hardening in- fluence upon heart and conscience.
Franklin began the Crusade on January 2Ist. There were seven saloons, and four were closed by the 3rd of February. I deem it important to mention that in Franklin a band of Christians had held weekly meeting for some two or three years before the great uprising, to pray for the
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overthrow of the liquor traffic in the country. Another evidence that the Lord was impressing on the hearts of his people in so many different places, that while He had borne long with the great evil and even had seemed to wink at the ignorance and indifference of the people, He was now calling them to repentance, and to active warfare against the great, overshadowing sin of the age, as works meet for repentance. The citizens raised a guarantee fund to sustain the ladies in any cases of prosecution that might de- velop out of their work. They also formed a Temperance Union to watch the future opera- tions of any who might attempt to intrude their traffic upon them. Pity that they so soon grew weary in well-doing.
On one occasion a band of eighteen ladies, one a devoted woman of eighty two years, visited a saloon-keeper, considered the hardest in the place, entering unexpectedly at 6 o'clock in the morning. They had only left him at midnight the night before. At 9 o'clock he locked his door, telling his clerk to let the ladies out when he pleased, but to let no one in, and left. A large and sympathetic crowd stood outside, awaiting the turn of events. And public senti- ment was setting so strongly in favor of the ladies that the least insult or rudeness shown them would have resulted in violence on the part of the men. The rest of the sisters, with the men, tarried at the church for their usual morning prayer-meeting.
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At the close, they formed their line of march to make their usual visitation. Coming to this sa- loon where their sisters were in prison, they stopped and joined them in singing the sweet songs with which they were whiling away the hours of their durance. At noon warm dinners were brought them. In the course of the after- noon the proprietor sent his attorney to offer a compromise. But he was assured that uncondi- tional surrender was the only terms. His saloon was closed. Miss Sarah Butler, quite a young lady, but a devoted Christian, did effective service here.
The reporter of the New York Tribune, of Dr. Lewis' party, was so struck with her devout, plaintive supplication, as well as with her remark- able utterance before Munger's saloon, that he reported the prayer entire to his paper.
At the Columbus Convention, among others being called out, she gave in such simple, unaf- fected, yet touching manner, an account of the work in Franklin, that in that great assembly of twelve hundred there was scarcely a dry eye.
CHAPTER IX.
Visit to Lagonda House-Dio Lewis and Van Pelt.
N SPRINGFIELD our work was grow- ing in numbers and influence, but all too slowly for my impatient heart. And I was coming between two fires, I might almost call it, for while some were growing very impa- tient to move out, others were either as yet de- cidedly opposed to the crusade method or un- able to bring themselves to the point of taking up such a fearful cross as it seemed to them then. To add to my trouble and perplexity, many of the brethren were doubtful of the expediency of the method in so large a place. I was not my- self sanguine of an ultimate success. But I could see that the whole community was in a state of expectancy, even the saloon-keepers were look- ing for us. It seemed that we had come to a point in our work where there was nothing left for us but to go forward, or lose much vantage- ground that we had now attained.
Other cities were waiting to see what Spring- field would do, and if she would be able success- fully to carry on the visiting method. The bur- den became almost too heavy to be borne. I
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really wished the Lord would lay me on a bed of sickness, that I might feel relieved of this ter- rible agony of suspense and responsibility. How I wept and prayed in the night-time, the walls of my chamber, if gifted with speech, could testify. Our morning prayer-meetings were well attended and much interest was manifest, but how to con- centrate this interest into a united, determined purpose of action, was the sore and perplexing problem. Frequently, as our meetings were in progress, word by letter, messenger or telegram would be brought in, of the success of the work elsewhere, and with the best logic and eloquence I could command, I endeavored to fan the spark of euthusiasm the news would excite into a flame. Several of our brethren also spoke very earnest and encouraging words. Among these I remember especially our Rev. Brother Clokey, of the U. P. Church and Rev. J. W. Spring, of the M. P. Church.
It was now announced that Dio Lewis was about to return to Ohio to give a month's campaign to help forward the work in various parts of the State. Our Executive Committee not thinking it advisable to invite him to Springfield, the La- dies Benevolent Society telegraphed him to come to us on February 1Ith.
But the fever of enthusiasm did reach a suffi- cient height by the 10th to enable a devoted band of twenty-two women to answer to the call for volunteers at the close of the morning meet- ing, to file out into the ante-room, where we,
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in a few hurried words of consultation, came to an understanding of the mode of procedure. The day before, indeed, feeling that I must take up the work if alone, I had visited some four places, the Lagonda House being one, and so got an understanding of the various entrances to the place. It turned out, however, that I was not the only one, for sisters Cosler, Schaffer and Kinney also made visits to three or four places, so that our work of visiting saloons may date from the 9th of February. But we moved out in band and solemn procession the next day. As we reached the door I turned to the brethren who remained in the sanctuary, and begged them to continue in prayer, and gave them our watch- word, "I will go in the strength of the Lord God, I will make mention of thy righteousness, Thine only." Ah, who that fell into line and marched out can ever forget that first moving out! The silent uplifting of the heart to God, the cry for strength, for wisdom to say the right words, for grace to meet in the spirit of our blessed Master whatever trial of faith or patience might come to us, the trepidation at the thought of visiting those low and loathsome places that we had always been taught were the haunts of the low, vile and abandoned. It was certainly a new and strange path in which to follow the Friend of sinners. Somehow, we had not before thought that the command, "Take up thy cross and follow me," had meant even into such dark dens of iniquity. What had it meant? In
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