New-York tribune., 1875-02-25
THE ICE CROP.
THE HARVEST OF FROZEN FIELDs.

rur pxrrNr .ND rxCEIIENCE OF TIE ICE CROP
o,ruERED-TTIE LARGEST AND FINEST STORE
FOR MANY YEARs-THE WORK OF THE SEVERAL
CoMpANIEs-LOw PRICES ANTICIPATED.
The cold weather which has been so pain
fully felt during the Winter Will be remembered WIN
gratitude by ice consumers during the warm montnS
The houses of all the ice companies are already neo
v,th tina commodity in which they deal. Along the
h,nks of the Hudson River. where the ICE
gathering grounds of nearly all the metropolitan
the cold has been more severe
than i has the vicinity OF this city, ana ih con-
sequence tho harvesting waters were frozen unusuay
early In January, 1874 ice had been TAKEN OWING
10 tho exceeding frequency OF warm turns ana 'he
general mildness Of the weather. The dealers all join
IN saving that tho crop taken this year FAR superior
both as regards quantity and quah'y' 10 any
harvest that has been realized for many years.
The leo varies in thickness from IL to ~ lhches'
audIis perfectly clear and hard. The usual spongy
surface Is said to he lost sight OF this year. the COM
paules having avoided cutting such ice for storage.
Last wear they were glad to have an opportunity OF
getting ice OF any quality, and 30 great deal OF the
porous article stored IL Is found to be very uh
profitable, as It melts with exceeding rapidly Inis
year the cutters have had a great plenty OF ice
which to choose, and have only taken the pes''
The officers OF OF the cooperative companies say
that nm t within few years the bulk Of the transac-
tions In this branch of business has been monopozed
by ono company, the managers Of which have charged
whatever they wished for an article which ney
knew TO be necessary at almoss any price, III lce was
scarce the price went at once to an exraVagant sum,
ostensby on OF the scarcity Of the article IL
often happened that mild Winter was followed oya
bitterly cold one and large harvests were TAKEN When
the Spring and Summer arrived ice consumers found
that there was very little deviation from the prices OF
the preceding season. The controlling company,
knowing that unless people came to them the supply OF
the other companies must run out fixed their price
and carried point In 1870 the pree was liked az
$40 per to hotekeepers and other large consumers
few engaged In the hotel business Thought ths
price fundamentally large and Immediately set
to work organizing a cooperative company the
members OF which should DO hotelKeepers ana
market-men. A bill was passed by the Leg
islature Incorporating the organization, and the
capital stock was fixed at s2500oo There are now 2Oo
stockholders. Tho object OF the Company was 10 Sei
out to the stockholders at about advance on inc
actual cost OF cutting aud transporting 1t 70 Hew-York
When the Consumers Ice Company, established for this
PURPOSE first came into existence. the price charged
hoelkeepers 81 per ton. The KnickeroocKer Com-
pary saw that the hotel business wouiu DC
lost IL the Company did not Immediately take some &C.
csve STEP and so lowered their price to Sc per ton 70
hotelkeepers. The Consumers Company held TO ther
price, however and succeeded in gaining the patronage
of nearly all the public In the city. The Com
pany have containing 10 rooms at West Camp
on the Hudson and have stored there this season 6o
tons OF the best the Company have ever TAKEN On
Feb. is the Company fixed the price for 1915
at a per ton to all stockholders. The estimated
cost Of cutting storing and transporting tho
leo to the depot at Horatlo-st Is " per
ton Delivery and incidental expenses amount To about
Al more on the ton and 81 is left as clear profit Inc
officers Of the Company say they can Keep the price
down all Summer, that the private corporations VIII
be obliged come to the same terms DURING tue cu|
ting season this Company employ from $50 to 500 men,
0rto cLorC
supply at Rockand Lake than at any other one place.
Rocklend Lake is situated near the Hudson, opposite
Sing Sing 1t covers of about 283 acres On the
shores OF the lake the Company have two Icehouses OF
10 rooms each, with engines and cutting and storing
facilities for OOs tons. From the eehouses there Is
small railroad laid through deep ravlue 10 the rVer'
and by It the ice is transported to the barges where IL
is packed aud brought to Ncw-York. Both houses
are lled to the roof with ice Of rarely fine quality.
land company have purchss large quantity Of real
estate running from the pbore OF Rockaud Lake 10 the
Hudson River and arc seilng IL IN pioIs 10 pt'ae IN
dIyiduals who purpose tiag Summer villas there
The valley in which the Lake nesies Is 6eantltu, ana
affords opportunity for the establishments OF an
The KnlckerOocker Company for a number Of years
lee than any other organization IN tue
world. They employ III good season aDOnt 6VyO men
nodses on banks OF the Hudson They store about
$4,000 tons per season, and employ 5000 men. ine
years and has been in operation 81 wears.
Mr. Mocay President OF the Kntckerbocker Com
y,
ceen DUALITY ana & N quAy Odo nn ,'p durne the eo,p
ing ason Wnen asked If 1t had not been the custom
OF ice companies, having monopoly or the trade, 10
charge about the same price Tor tner mercnanqise,
the statement so often made, qua SAID great re-
ducton OF prices must lie made'ths year he as
serted that aly gentleman VINO possessed an zee
house, either in city or country, must necessarily
| spend from sl2S TO $500 TO MI IT, while for SO
or S35 a Dountul supply vi ice for anv family may De
obtained through the Company Thls was sad 10 De que
the magnitude VI the business doGS ny tho h9iGhef
hoe etgarE
kept high is that there so many small companies
business their hands they could afford TO sell 1t at
much lower rate, for the expenses remain about the
same without regard 10 the sales MI Macay stared as
an illustration OF tho point he wished to convey, that II
there many small coal companies as there are
ice companies in proportion the amount OF business
| done tue price OF coal would be about SO per
ton. He said monopolIes invariably reduced the pnce
| OF the article which they produced II lee is packed
In large quantities Tor shIpment, less waste occurs
from melting than when ~ Is ., seS. & 10 s,nS,ier ans
Besides tbs houses at Rockland Lake, the Knicker.
booker Company have depots at - other points IN .ae
$1,000 S1SSu ,OSs S At AsvPalIs $500 siaat:
Rdut $500 10000 toss a: R'sSsSs 81 sSsss
tons tons; at Eayesport, 10000 tons at Catskill:
% nsSsn isnai 1900 sans as Aae3 o S
| at Coxsackie, $4,000 tons; at Baltimore. T,Go
5000 tons stored on barges. 5000 The Ridge.
wood Ice Company OF Brooklyn have stored 29,Ooo
| The Ulster Company, u newly OrgdniLSu assO-
ciaon have gathered Wesoamp $1,000 tons Of ice.
The National Ice Company have stored AZ the same
place 4O 90 tons. StenUerg Cottier of Jersey CITY
| have in their possession $4,000 tons. Ine Mu-
| tual Benefit Ice Company have 100000 tons. John
Woofor has his houses at COxsackle 10000 tons.
Winch & Kemp, Cstskill, have stored $1,000 TONS
From these figures 1t viii be seen that there are now
gathered 35 500 tons OF ice. This is said TO be the
largest amount ever taken IN season. aud Is more
than enough TO stock the market sufficiently TO give the
poorer classes opportunity OF supplying themselves
| moro plentfully than for number OF years.
u1coap rDTTEHE