The evening times., 1898-12-21
A MONTANA ICE MINE.
How They Dig Out Concentrated
Cold in Custer County.

(trUm the san Francisco tal)
Seven miles to the north and little TO
the east OF Cheyenne Indian agency in
Custer County, Mont. is a We'll filed with
ice that excites much curiosity among the
ranchers and cattle men of that section.
Every cowboy who visits the well has
much to tell and invariably advances his
own explanation. Many ingenious theo-
ries are given which tend 10 indicate that
mankind of all degrees of scientific knowI-
edge put forth an effort TO find the origin
OF things; however, they all agree that
the ice forms in the well during the sum-
mer and that it actually thaws in winter
This apparent contradiction of the natu-
raj laws that govern the outside world
has carried the fame OF this we'll for miles
around and people have travelled great
distances to witness the formation Of ici-
cles during the hot weather of July
This we'll is within few hundred feet
of the summit of the Little Wolf Noun
tains, on the north slope. at the very be
ginning of Greenleaf Creek. which emp
ties into Rosebud eight miles from where
the Rosebud joins the Yellowstone River
This portion of the mountains is covered
with dense growth of tall pines.
Fourteen years ago men prOSpecIiE :
for silver. miStaking certain cOlors in the
rocks. began sinking a shaft; at fifteen
feet ii was disagreeabIy cold; at twenty
feet the cold had increased so rapidly
that they were thoroughly frightened.
They could feel currents of cold air rush
ing up from the crevises in the rock; they
imagined they were digging into some
mysterious underground cavern: they had
heard just enough of wonderful advent
ures of digging into caves and under
ground lakes, and being alone on this VII
derness, where the very stiffness permit
ted the ears to hear and the mind to i'm
agine all manner of grewsome powers hid
beneath the rock, thoroughly filed
them with the fear of impending danger
that they abandoned the work which has
since gained such renown-
If ice were to be put into the we'll dur
ing the winter ii would keep throughout
the summer nearly as we'll as il stored
away in an. ordinary ice house BY
chance nature has formed almost the
identical conditions that man has made
use of to preserve ice through the hot
weather. The shaft is the cavisS in
which to store the ice; the volcanic ash
failing into the open space between the
loosely piled rock serves the purpose of
sawduSt in keeping out the warm
draughts of air; the altitude and the
north slope are favorable to the preser-
vation of the ice: tall, dense forest pre-
vents the heating the surface rock by the
direct rays of the sun; the rocks are too
porous for the water to soak Up. so to
speak, from beneath; the facts are that
in many places near the tops of the
buttes on the sides where the rocks have
fallen loosely together they are perfectly
dry for many feet below the surface.
being moistened by the winter snow and
rain as it may fall and run down from
above.
1t is a fact that, if on a hot day. you
walk rapidly into the cave TO where the
ice is, it feels as though Il strong cur
rent of cold air were blowing against
your face The sensation is so decidedly
real that it requires careful demonstra-
tion to prove to the contrary, and even
then it almost seems as though the
demonstration has been a mistake. IL
can be easily tested by using smoked, or.
better still, rather heavy colored glass.
Again if one should stand without the
entrance to the cave on a very warm
day, near enough to feel any draught
that may be stirring, none can be fe.t
coming from the cave If one should
stand directly above the ice well on a
hot, still day. even putting the face down
to the very opening into the well no up
ward draught of cool air can be felt: but
go down into the we'll and one would
state positively that there was an up
ward draught of extremely cold air