The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1901-01-09

elaborate plans Tor the construction
Of icehouses which would discourage
the eeonomically inclined farmer from
attempting TO build one, SO costly do
they seem. But the fact Is that the
erudest and most primitive structures
imaginable keep ice just as well as
the more pretentiOus buildings. We
know Of an instance where Ice was
Kept through the summer In a pen
made Of oordw0od. In building an ice
house a situation should be selected
with northern exposure. protected
BY building or a hill on the south II
possible. The spot should be wen
drained by bitches that will lead all
water from the building and not allow
Il 10 stand near 1t. as the sawdust has
tendency to absorb moisture. The
house should be built with an outer
ana inner wall with a space OF about
six inches between which should be
niied with sawdust well packed and
tamped. The floor should not be a
tight one but should have cracks suf-
ncientiy wide to allow any water from
melting ice 70 escape. The roof should
have a considerable slope. There
should be free ventilation from the
top, but none from the bottom. Hav-
ing the house ready, the floor should
be covered with a layer Of clean straw
on top Of which place a foot OF saw
dust cold day should be selected
Tor cutting and storing the Ice The
soiidest Ice procurable should be se-
lected. as that which Is porous or filled
with air bubbles melts much easier
than the solid article. with a "one-
man saw" or half OF an old crosscut
saw cut the ice In as large blocks as
can be handled conveniently and allow
them 70 freeze for an hour or two az
ter being taken from the water. Place
the Ice IN the house IN a square, COM
pact heap, leaving about a foot be-
tween the lee and the inner wall. As
the heap grows this space should be
niied with sawdust well packed. When
the house is filled place two feet OF
sawdust on top. pack it down well and
the work Is done. The house should
be examined at intervals and where
sunken places are found they should
be fillcd with fresh sawdust A house
lzxl2 feet win furnish ice sufficient for
the requirements OF a large family,
with some to donate TO sick neighb0rs
and the minister's donation party.
Those who do not care to 20 to the |
expense OF building a house with I
louble walls as suggested above can
Utilize any unused building with a /
single wall or can build a cheap 1
ihanty storing the ice a foot or more
rom the wall and using extra precau-
ions in packing the sawdust be-
ween the wall and the ice, leaving
he top open TO ventilation. and pre-
erve the ice very satisfactorily. In
ocalitles where 1t is impossible 10
lrocure sawdust. straw and chaff may
'e substituted. and IL well tamped
own VIII answer the purpose almost
3 We'll as the sawdust Those who
I've remote from ponds or streams are
dvised 70 experiment on storing snow,
Which makes an excellent substitute.
y many localities this has been done
18th satisfactory results and was the
ractice in California until the manu-
acture Of artificial ice became uni
erSal. The snow can be compressed
40 eompact blocks or the requisite
ne by a simple press which any per-
on with a little mechanical Ingenuity
an construct and II the work Is done
hen the weather is cold the blocks
an be saturated with water and al
WED to freeze, which renders them
lmost as good as solid ice. This
-eatment Is not necessary, however.
the snow. when placed In the house {
I'd well packed In sawdust viii
'lioify and become almost like ice. In
'ine continental countries the inhab-
ants secure their supply OF summer
'olness by rolling up huge snowballs.
uch as schoolboys do. and storing
lem IN the icehouse In that shape,
I'd Il is said they never have a fall
'e. This method has. at least. the
crit OF cheapness, as the material
N be found at the door OF the Ice
Iuse.-Jay-Em-see in Drovers' Jour
j. 9