The Sun.
London, England, 1862-12-30 00:00:00

The Manufacture of Ice in India.

(From the Bengal Hurkaru.)
We published last year the official correspondence (which
had been placed at the disposal of the press) between the
Military Finance Department and the Government of India
originating in a suggestion made by the former to intro-
duce the machine for making ice into this Presidency, with
a view to supplying that luxury, or, in this country, ne-
cessary, to the European soldiers in barracks and in hospi-
tals, of better quality and in larger quantity, also with more
regularity, than is obtainable by the plain process of manu-
facture in vogue in the Mofussil, and which process, being
liable to be affected by the weather, was admittedly uncer-
tain. The correspondence, it may perhaps be in the recol-
lection of our readers, closed for the time with an order
from Government to the Finance Department to institute
inquiries as to the stations at which the machines, if im-
ported, could be turned to the best account, not only in the
supply of ice to the European soldiery but to the
community generally, European and native. The result of
the inquiries made by the several authorities who were ad-
dressed in the matter by the finance department, having
been submitted to Government, the latter has declared its
willingness to import these machines, to be set up at Alla-
habad, Lucknow, and Mean Meer, these stations being
considered to afford the fairest and best field for their use.
If the trials at these places prove remunerative to Govern-
ment, as the department believes they will, then the ma-
chines are to be sot up at others also, should private indi-
viduals not be willing to do so themselves. The cost of
the machine and the charges for importing it being heavy,
the experiment is to be made first at Lucknow only, and an
indent has been despatched to the home authorities for a
No. 1 machine, which is capable of turning out four tons,
or 8,9601b5., or 4,480 seers of ice daily. Ihe cost of the
machine is estimated at £1,365, but as it is worked by
steam, it will have attached a 10-horse power engine, with
gearing complete, the boilers of the engine being
adapted to burn firewood only, which is the only fuel pro-
curable at Lucknow. A supply of 15 cwt. of ether (which
is used in the manufacture of the ice, the amount being
equal to a year's consumption) and certain extra articles
have also been indented for. These—that is the engine,
ether, and extras—are estimated to cost £550. The entire
cost, therefore, of the machine, its appendages and appur-
tenances, will be a little over £1,900. Ten per cent. on
this amount is estimated to cover freight, insurance, and
transport charge to Lucknow. It has been ascertained
that the machine requires to be attended to by a prac-
tical mechanic, one who understands its peculiar con-
struction and working; and to prevent any breakdown
in India from ignorance of these matters it has
been suggested to the home authorities to place two men of
the Sapper and Miner corps at the service of the inventors
of the machine, who have expressed their readiness to
instruct the men in the details of the machinery. On
the article being put up in this country, these men will in-
struct others in the manner of its working. On arrival at
Lucknow it will be placed under charge of Captain Cham-
berlain, superintendent of Thuggee. The daily cost of
working it is estimated at 22,8. At this rate, and with the
daily out-turn of ice as 8,9601b5., the rate of sale will be
6-2-9, or three seers per pice, thus placing ice within the
means of the poorest who from sickness may need it. To
utilise the experiment as far as possible, it is proposed to
send ice during the seven hot months of the year, by relays
of bearers, or by Government cattle, from Lucknow to
Roy Bareilly and Seetapore (stations in the neighbour-
hood) for the use of the troops, and such of the commu-
nity at those places as wish for it. It is estimated, that
after setting apart a fair proportion of daily out-turn for
the consumption of the troops, full one-third will be avail-
able for the public.

THE SHOE PINCHING.—The import duty of
foreign white paper is 30 per cent., which under the
pre oat rate of exchange is prohibitory. And it is only in
consequence of this ditty that our own papermakers are able
to take advantage of a scarcity of rags, and by combining
together to force prices up to their present enormous rate. But
for the duty publishers could resort to the foreign market,
and by intt educing a new clement of competition keep prices
here within reasonable bounds. Bat under the existing
tariff such printing paper as we use could not be imported
and sold here for less than 22 cents a pound ; our manufac-
turers, therefore, feel quite safe in fixing prices at or even
above that figure. This bears not only upon newspaper
publishers, but upon book publishers, consumers of writing
paper, and everybody who uses paper of any kind. The
Government itself will suffer losses to the amount of hun-
dreds of thousands of dollars in consequence of the present
enormous price of paper of all kinds which they are com-
pelled to use. The tariff on paper meantime yields the
Treasury no revenue, because it prohibits imports. It in-
flicts immense injury, therefore, upon the great mass of theo an
reading community, while it does no good to anybody but
papermakers, the few
whom it aids in their exactionsy upon
th e public
We hope Congress will give some at-
tention to this s large,
matter
as one of very great and pressing in-
terest. There is no sound or substantial reason why they
should not at once repeal the import duty on paper, and
thus
give all consumers the benefit of access to the foreign
Tn,olcPt —New York