The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-07-27
HOME ICE TRUST2
Durham Out, Chapel Hill
Couldn't Buy.
Raleigh, Greensboro and Burlington
Had Ice, but Wouldn't Sell in "Dur.
l hams Territory"-.-Three Days
Without a "Chunk."
Especial to News and Observer }

NSpeclal TO News ana observer
Chapel Hill, n. c., July 26.-In the
middle Of the hottest weather that has
been known here in years, Chapel Hill
ran into an ice famine and inciden-
tally developed what appears to be a
veritable trust on the prime summer
commodity.
The ice supply of the town is OBJ
tanned from Durham where there is
an ice factory. Two dealers here get
ice from Durham daily and distribute
it to their customers. On Saturday,
no ice came. The customers COM
menced to fume The dealers made
enquiry at Durham. The reply was
that the consumption of ice during
the heated term had been so great
that there was no ice for export. A
supply was promised, however, for
Monday morning. The news went over
the village and those who had remain
ing a small lump used it most spar
ingly. Saturday and Sunday passed
with empty refrigerators, soured milk
and rancid butter, to say nothing of
parched threats that had nothing with
which to cool their agony. There was
water in plenty, but it had caught the
spirit of the summer time. In effect
Chapel Hill was much in the condition
of the rich man who wanted and could
not get. There was Durham mile
or so away; you could see her church
steeples, and you knew that under
meath lay ice. But that was the end.
Durham as a distributing point was
out of the business.
Immediately upon the failure of the
ice supply on Saturday morning the
two dealers and the drug stores tele-
phoned to Raleigh and then to Green's
boro. There was nothing doing"
Both of these places had ice in plenty
and the Chapel Hill folk were ready
and anxious to buy. Back came the
answer that they could send no ice
to Chapel Hill, since that was in the
territory of the Durham factory.
But" said the Chapel Hill people,
the Durham factory has no ice-and
we've are shrivelling!"
Cant sell you, sorry replied Raj
eigh and Greensboro in breath, and
so the panic continued.
Saturday, Sunday. Monday. the fam
inc continued On Monday night deal
er Leigh got in a small amount of
ice which was soon exhausted by eager
buyers The other dealer was yet
waiting for supply. 1t was said that
the ice that came in on Monday came
from Raleigh and that it had been
necessary for the parties obtaining it
to buy through third parties in that
city. Otherwise the supposed agree
ment would have operated to prevent
the sale.
One person in the village got a
friend who was going to Raleigh on
Monday morning to buy him there four
hundred pounds. which he distributed
among the ntedy on Monday night.
The ice famine, coming at the time
it did was a serious feature OF sum-
mer-life. There are several sick per-
sons in the town who suffered ex.
tremely. Ice could not be obtained
from Durham or from either OF the
near factories for love or money.
This morning Durham seemed to
have cooled off sufficiently 10 ship out
a little comfort and the famine was
broken.
In the meantime, it could be inter
esting to know the details of that
agreement or telepathic love or
what-not which seems to exist between
the Greensboro, Burlington, Durham
and Raleigh factories.