ntary interest groups, Temperance reformers were able to raise funds and apply pressure directly on the political process. Exploiting the power of the printed word, a massive propaganda campaign was initiated through the distribution of millions of cheap Temperance tracts. After a large special interest network was established, the literature of protest continued through the mailing and distribution of annual reports, Temperance almanacs, special circulars, weekly newspapers, and Temperance journals (Mendelson and Mello 30-31).
The movement gained support in the 1830s and broadened its base, though it remained confined largely to women, the medical profession, and the clergy. The great Temperance reform of the 1830s reduced the per capita consumption of alcohol:
Consumption of both liquor and cider plunged to levels so low that by 1849 American adults were drinking 75 percent less absolute alcohol than they had drunk just two decades before (Mendelson and Mello 33).
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