Rutland County herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1848-1850, 1849-03-07
Ice Cutting at Fresh Pond.

a
Pond, to view the process Of cutting us
world renountd ice, and particularly to To-
spcct The machinery employed 10 raising II
intothe house where d Is packed, ti.l wan
ted for expectation OF distribution. 10 in,
duce those who can TO 20 and see for them,
selves. and for tho editicallon OF those who
cannot, we wall attempt The description OF
On operation e0ilreiy unique, not to be seen
any where else On The round world Fusl
let Us premise, that We well remember ,ho
time when thossilvjng upnu the margin OF
the Pond ub.slned a small supply Of zee by
cutting Il with axes tie cakes being raised
In,o the lce.houses singlyi IN much the same
manner as a tub OF Goals is raised from the
hold Of vessel, i. C., by horse droWlug
upon rope passed over pulley at the top
OF frame, and through another al the bot
/ tom to change the direction Of the draughl
Then came the snow pillow, the ice pIow,
and other improved machinery, whi;h cut
the raw material faster than ii could be
packed. Now, Mr. Wyelh the patriarch
Of this business, has epplIed sleam--hol wa
/ ter versus coli--lo raise the blocks when
cut, the great object in securing the crop
/ being 10 &c, Isafely housed with oil possl-
! bic speed when il, i, Of a good thickness,
and free from any mixture of snow, which
/ If it does not spoil all, vastly increases the
expense Hence ice must be made while
the sun shines
The mode OF cutting is This 49, Two men
60 upon The pond wth 'ralght-eJfed
board, which they lay parallel to us margin
md Just outside the rough ice. which usu-
ally occurs next tho land This board be-
ing held firm by tae Two, another runs a
species Of saw, or coarse comb, with an iron
handle along us edge, maIuug groove az
( inch or two ia depth. The board is men
moved ln the direction of i's length, aud the
groove prolonged. When this base line,
as surveyors would call il, is laid out, the
plough drawn BY horse, IS employed to
make a series OF grooves parallel thereto
one share running in the channel Just cul.
while another cuts The next at the proper
distance. This operation is repeated until
they reach the limit proposed, when nno.h
er series OF grooves is made at night angles
TO the former, so that several acres may oil.
ten be seen divided into squares OF about
twenty inches on side. Then by means
Of whipsaws large mass thus prepared,
some hundred feet square, is separated, and
llobled along the cnnal made by the reno
val oil the ice already taken into the house,
until j, reaches the machine for eevatlng
= it, Here a few blows ola large chisel break
of cakes of the size Of an ordinary break
fast table containing nine of the CAKES as
chanelIed BY the plough, and usually seen
in our ice carts. These blocks are Heated
still further until they disappear by pass
ing inlo the house containing the steam en-
r glne which drives tho lifting apparatus
rhi. engine is the 'Philndelphin, Iocomo'
tive originally employed on the Boston and
Providence Rail Road, Standing, tender anc
all, precisely as # II were about TO shoot on
Of the house and away, and really when The
tinKe Of the bell which announces that al
is ready in The house, some hundred Tee
distant, 10 answered by the locomotives be!
and its puff and SNORT, one can hardly he'll
, clearing the track. A frICGd with Us wonI'
! not lrus, hmseIfln front OF the engine, unit
solemnly assured that there WAS no danger
MS the cGltler was tied. From the larg
driving wheels, on each SIDE, cham pnsst
down 10 drum on shaft below the surIac
Of the wafer From this shaft three cndles
chains, made like the chain on the bairt
n Of watch, but raIher ,,ouler, lying para
n led to each o,her pass up an ang lie oil lori
II or forty five degrees to drum about IhIH
J feet from The ground,
e To these chains, al intervals OF twelve o
fifteen feet, are attached transverse sln's
q wood, which, catching behind the cakes
ice, as thew are noated over tie chains mos
J. uncercmoniously draw them out OF their
IS tive element, and drive them through
. planning machine which reduces them
h uniform lhlckness-at present twelve on
n lhrec-elghls inchcs-ieavlng Two iougiu
o. dlnul bars on the upper surface an inch
ID height and FIVE inches IN width, by resln
on which they are prevented from irccz'n
into solid mass when packed. Go l"avn
this planning machine, they are shot Of npo
A speeies of aerial railroad, to the doors {
the packing house each cake sliding upo
frame balanced by n weight, which fran
slowly sinks unul reaches Ihc Ie'e4 oi %
ice in the house, when It discharges us lo'
upou liltletram- road ofwood. along wnlc
lpis propelled TO IT'S destined re'Iog p'ac
The large building OF Mr. Wyelh hol
about forty thousand tons though II l' rar
So ly more Than segen.eighIhs 6llcd. Son
4, ,dea Of us SIZE may be oLaioeI from
n knowledge Of the fact that a thousand
these large cakes, containing tven'y.h
eooie feet each, are required TO cover
hoor Be,woeu three aod four Ihousa'
IONS OF ice are raised daily, employing 10 q
a The operations from a hundred ADD '"en'
I'd FIVE TO O hundred mud 61y men, none
=, whom receive less than ado.lar a dav. b
he ing pad each nigh, IA tickets redeematIe
OIL The Charles River Bank The re was
4, yer bpusr lhao al present and our panu
,s advice is SIMPLY ths--be fore The wealth
A. changes. 60 out 70 Fresh Pond and see.
nd Yourselves NJ Wye,hs machn'y-i
h, membeuog that zee which vii bear a hoi
IA - not likely 10 give way under the wei
IA ola isdy, and that the moi, umd nerd
IA be Afrsn Of the locomotive - - rosH'