The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1889-07-31
The Ice-Water Habit.

The warm season is upon us again,
bringing with it the old temptation to
indulge in our peculiar American drink,
ice-water. Upon no other one of our
characteristic habits as nation do for
eigners comment more wonderingly
than upon our constant and excessive
devotion to this beverage. In no other
country is it at all common, and visit
ors from abroad exhaust their vocabu-
larry in expressing their amazement at
the amount of it we consume during
the summer months. In one of his
most charming novels William Black
makes his hero excuse himself when
demonstrated with by his wife for drink
ing glass of beer before breakfast by
saying, Why, my dear, what could l
do? There was nothing anywhere
about but this horrible water of ice,
and could not drink that" To one
not accustomed to the sight it is GER
tainly astonishing to notice the unfail-
ing presence of the ice-water pitcher,
or bucket, or cooler" anywhere and
everywhere we go in this country. AS
the guest enters the dining-room of any
of our great hotels at meal-time he
will find a phalanx of goblets ranged
on every table, each filled with Jumps
OF ice floating in water. In ordering a
meal at restaurant the waiter first of
all brings huge tumbler of water, so
that the guest may regale himself
Herewith while his meal is being pre-
pared. When taking possession of a
room at hotel a large pitcher of ice
water is brought before the occupant
has had time to settle himself, and
every night on retiring an ample sup
ply is left outside the door. In making
a call, icewater is offered as a common
refreshment, and every store, counting
room, school and public waiting-room
has tall vessel of tin or galvanized
iron filled with the indispensable lux
ury to assuage the thirst of all who
pass by. When we consider what physi-
clans tell us about the natural results
of this pernicious habit of deluging the
stomach with this or any other chilling
liquid, at all times and seasons, it is
not remarkable that foreigners hold up
their hands in amazement and wonder
if Americans are a reasoning people.
1t would seem as if it were sufficiently
apparent how much mischief must en-
sue from such habit, and that it would
be supeif1uous to argue against it. On
the contrary, the deleterious effect it
must have upon health is as calmly
disregarded as if the latter were
blessing no one cared to enjoy. We
hear constantly that our national dis
ease of dyspepsia is but a consequence
of this flood of ice-water, constantly
reducing the temperature of the
stomach between the natural degree;
we read and hear of cases where
single draught, taken when the body is
very much heated, has produced death,
and we know by experience the pecu-
liar and uncomfortable sensation that
often follows drinking even a small
quantity, and yet we go on handing it
about on every side, offering it to
others and consuming it ourselves, as
if nothing more innocent could be
found to assuage thirst. Fancy an ami
NAL invited to plunge his nose into
bucket filled with Jumps of floating ice
when his drinking hour had come.
What a protest there would be- I'm
agine gourmet, who looks upon eat
ing as scientific pleasure, destroying
the delicate flavors of his various
dishes by chilling his palate with great
| VI lCS-WdlCIs NOuSIutl uOW
absolutely impossible the process of di-
gestion is without certain degree of
heat. Think how unpleasant and how
dangerous a sudden plunge into an icy
pond or river is, and how uncomforta-
BILE it is to have an ice-cold stream sud-
denly poured on any part of the body.
Why should we require the stomach to
endure it, or expect it to do so without
most unhappy consequences? Children
are constantly victims to this unwhole-
some habit of drinking ce-cold water.
How they will gather around the
" cooler" in the schoo-room, and what
quantities will they consume when
their faces are flushed and their bodies
at fever heat after some lively game I!
" 1t tastes good" Yes, but how many
things taste good that should be left
severely alone! There is no occasion
to drink tepid or lukewarm water. Let
it be of the temperature of the refresh
ing springs nature tucks away in wood
land groves and rocky crannies. One
excellent way of cooling water is to fill
bottle and place it on the ice. The
temperature thus obtained is thor
oughly palatable and not harmful. In
some manner let us heed the warnings
given us on all sides and abolish our
" water of ice." In any event, let us
remove it out of the way of the chill
1ren - Nom York Er01Ojnef