Rensselaer Republican, Volume 23, Number 31, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 April 1891 — SOMETHING ABOUT ICE. [ARTICLE]

SOMETHING ABOUT ICE.

Once it was aGr -at Ijax-irr, Now It usOommon Necessity. At bne time In the; world’s Astory Ice was considered a great luxury, and only the rich could enjoy which isnow looked upon as an absolue necessity. In ancient days snow was used as a substitute. It was brought from the mountains and stored away in pitsdug in the. earth, and was covered with non-conductors of heat and also pro* tected it from the air. | , Mention of this fact is made In the proverbs of Solomon, and it is frequently alluded to in the writing* of the an jient Greeks and Romans. It la i still in vogue in Italy, who re the snow' gathered in the Appeaines is brought by tbe peasants to the principal cities and stored in cellars made especially for that purpose. In many parts ot France and England the wealthy have ice houses built on their estates, and fill them with ice from the neighboring lakes and streams. It was not until 1815 that ice was publicly sold in London and then in very small quantities. . I known foe at least 200 years. They were at first very primitive affairs, being nothing more than deep cellars, th s flooring made of boards or stone, .•upon which was placed a layer of straw or sawdust. The sides were lined with boards set about a foot from the wall, and this space was filled in with sawdust, tanbark or straw.! A rough, thatched roof completed the structure, which was then filled with ice. between the layers of which tanbark or sawdust was strewed. I. As a matter of course, the supply of cut ice was very limited for a long time, and it was not until about fifty years ago that it became a commodity, admitting of purchase by persons of moderate means, In New York City alone, at the present day, the yearly consumption of ice amounts to about 1,000,000 tons. In addition to its employment for cooling water and other beverages, in the course of time its value a 3 an agent for preserving meats, fruits, etc., was recognized, and as a consequence the demand for it was greatly increased. Trustworthy authorities state that the use of ice for preventing the decomposition of dead bodies was known in the early -days, as there was a tribe in Finland which, during the latter part of the seventh century, preserved the bodies of their dead fpr mauy months without emoalming them,using either snow or ice for the purpose. The first person to attempt to export ice from this country to foreign lauds was an Arneric m named Tudor, and although his first shipment, in 1805, met with poor success, he at lost established the business on a firm bis is. Now it is shipped to tropical climes and proves a paying industry. In many warm countries, however,the sole supply of ice depends upon ita artificial manufacture, as it would bo impossible to export it without absolute loss. .Of late years the manufaos tore of artificial ice has assumed large proportions in the United States, the high price and scarcity at times of tho natural article requiring the employment of cheaper means of production.