The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-10
AMERICAN ICE CREAM.
The Envy of EMete European Cater
From the - ZOE Sun.


Ice cream is pre-eninently an American
specially. All the Atlantic passenger
steamers plying between this port and
Europe take aboard in New York a sutli-
cient supply of ice cream for the voyage
back to New York as wen as for the out
ward journey, despite the fact that the
cost of the article is greater here than
abroad, and that il is expensive stuff 10
keep. The round trip occupies at least
three weeks, and the cream has TO last
that period, one week Of which the ship is
tied up in dock, with the cream eating
up Ice in the refrigerator at a prodgious
rate. When the autumn rush homeward
sets in and the steamers are crowded 10
the limit, the amount of ice cream thus
carried from this port and kept at least
two weeks for use on the return voyage
is big item in the provision account.
Many kinds of provisions and supplies
are cheaper in Europe than here and of
these the steamers lay in double stock
at the European ports. Ice cream. too
Is cheaper in Europe, but 1t has the
fatal disadvantage that il is not ice cream
as the American regards the article
Ice has come to be less of novelty on
the table in Europe in recent years, main
ly, doubtless because of the insstence of
the thousands of Americans who make Eu-
rope their summer playground. Ice cream
TOO, you can get in most of the big cities,
even in. England. But it usually lacks the
main, indetinable qualities that make 1t
so attractive at home Europeans may
talk about the inimitable bouquet Of their
wines, but the bouquet of American ice
cream is beyond them This is not a ma
ter of natural advantages and facilities, as
Is claimed for the wines and other things,
for Switzerland is full Of ice topped noun
tains and her valleys flied with cows
A va a.H ~. 4
Ice cream of Europe induces the concIu-
sion that only the ''sorbetto" one gets on
the piazzo of St. Marks in Venice APP
proaches the delicious perfection of the or
ordinary everyday ice cream of America
Perhaps this is because the Venetians
themselves eat ice cream, whereas in most
other European cities il Is regarded as an
outlandish connection, prepared only for
the peculiar palate Of the stranger. 1t is
a far cry and a strange one from s..
Marks to Madison square, but the de-
lighted exclamation Of a group Of Ameri-
can girls ordering ice cream there as they
had done all the way down from London
An, this is something hker' covered the
distance in no time.
One finds occasionally a solitary soda
fountain in Europe nowadays, but the
soda water. like the ice-cream. Is unsatis-
factory and saddening. Something is
wrong, either with the sirups the soda. or
the mixing of them. The drink is either
froth without flavor, or flavor without
fizz, or something else equally dlsappoint-
ing 1t Is almost always shadow without
substance and always a foreign oddity.
There is the consolation in regard to soda
water, however, that there are substitutes
for 1t, unsat isfactory perhaps, but stiH
wet, while there is no substitute for ice
cream.
There is nothing like the abundance Of
soft drinks to be had in Europe that one
can get in any American town or village
In England there are the peppery ginger
ale, bottled Lemonade and various mineral
waters, while on the continent there is the
everlasting sherbet. In Italy and other
southern countries one can get perhaps
half dozen different fruit sirups which
are served in small quantities in large
glasses the water filling up the glass from
the water bottle. The country folk Of the
north make various sorts of light beer
from roots and herbs but these cannot be
had at public places in cities, as birch
beer, root beer, sarsaparilla and the like
can be got IN the United States. OF course
the universal use Of beer and wine ac-
counts to a great extent for the lack of
variety In soft" drinks A more conpre-
hensive reason. perhaps, Is that no other
people on earth so persistently drench
themselves with drinks, in all seasons and
at all hours. as do Americans. Anything
like the scene at a big soda fountain in
any American town on a summers day Is
not to be found IN any other country