established. The Orpington Hospital, in England, was built as a gift from the people of Ontario. An increase in demand for electricity in Ontario led Hearst's government to commission the construction of the Queenston-Chippawa Hydroelectric Generating Station in 1917, which was one of the largest hydroelectric projects in the world. During the 1917 conscription crisis, Hearst supported conscription and the federal Unionist government. In March 1918, Hearst and the Ontario Liberal leader, William Proudfoot, agreed to extend the existing provincial government until Canadian forces returned home in 1919. Prohibition The Hearst government struggled to find consensus on the question of prohibition. Hearst personally identified with the temperance movement, but barkeepers and alcohol producers formed part of the voter base of his party. Hearst established the Board of License Commissioners (BLC) in 1915, which distributed licenses for businesses seeking to sell alcohol. In 1916, the Ontario Temperance Act (OTA) was introduced as a temporary wartime measure by Hearst, a temperance advocate and pillar of the Methodist Church. It made possession of liquor and beer outside one's home illegal. Although one could retain a cellar supply for personal consumption, it was illegal to sell a drink. As a result, the government shut down bars, taverns, clubs, and liquor stores. The establishment of the Acts were controversial among anti-temperance Canadians. In 1919, after Canadian soldiers had returned from Europe, Hearst called a plebiscite on prohibition, which was held the same day as the 1919 general election. Prohibition was approved by the voters, but his government was defeated in the election. Women's suffrage Beginning in 1915, Liberal representatives proposed bills enabling women to vote in Ontario. Hearst initially opposed suffrage but by 1917 had changed his opinion on the subject. Ontario was the fifth province to pass legislation permitting women to vote, and Hearst's government was the first Conservative provincial government to do so. 1919 general election In the election of 1919, Hearst was surprised by his loss to the United Farmers of Ontario. Historians have varying opinions on the reason for the result of the election, including federal conscription, the OTA, and poor opinions of the industrial workers and the rural population. Later life After his loss in 1919, Hearst remained in Toronto, where he had lived since 1912. Hearst served as a member of the International Joint Commission, which had been formed to settle international boundary waters disputes between the United States