New-York tribune., 1910-06-12
AS to Natural Ice
Dangers of Impurity Imaginary,
Saws Correspondent.

To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: Representing, as this assoclauoI
does. dealers in and harvesteTs OF hatui "a
ice IN II parts of the United states nave
been Particularly interested IN the arucies
(upsjgned1 IN vour issues OF May q and
June = concerning ice The writer ol
those articles is evidently giving but one
side of the case concerning the ice useo III
this city, and as an attack is being made
uron our business L venture TO hope that
you will give to the facts / present Deio"
space in your valuable paper
In the first of these plausible commun-
cations the writer speaks OF the unthinA-
ing. uninformed many who suH rely OF
the old adage water in freezing purlhes
itself" and says that 1t is now known OF
all who have examined into the matter to
be true only of water which has crystal
lized well below the surface"
Hero are two assumptions consider un-
warranted: That the old adage is untrue
and that water purifies itself In freezing
only below the surface. l can point TO
the results of the studies CT the Massachu-
setts State Board Of Health, the New
Yor!. State Commissioner of Health. the
investigations of DR.. Sedgwick, of the
Massachusetts, Institute of Technology:
DR.. Winslow Hull, of the Boston Board
of Health: DIR. w. H. Park, OF New York
City. as we'll as the United States govern
ment's hygienic laboratory. for proof Of
the truth of the adage and its scientific
correctness.
Indeed, until the work of these scien-
fists no one ever supposed the purif1ca-
ton OF the freezing process was so great,
as ii is now known TO be, when, as in the
case of all natural ice all the water whence
it is obtained is not frozen. The ice is
found by these authorities TO be from 80
to 90 per cent purer than the water on
which it formed And, If the writer has
authority for his assertion that the purifi-
cation by freezing is true only of ice formed
beneath the surface he does not quote 1t,
and in spite of a rather extensive acquaint-
ance with the works of those who have in
vestigated the matter I can recall none who
give any such opinion, and until I am
shown" I will continue to doubt it's truth
There is in the writings of those named
above ample authority to assert the exact
contrary, in fact.
Thus, too, in his closing para graphs of
that first article the author assumes that
the Bureau of Animal Industry of the
United States Department of Agriculture
in contact with meat or meat products.
Unless caution that butchers and packers
exercise care that the ice they use is clean
can be called setting up a standard the
government has set no such standard.
Is it likely that one department of our
government would condemn natural ice for
any purpose, when another Che Treasury
Department, through the Laboratory Of
the Public Health and Marine Hospital
Service, in Bulletin 3O has gone on record
that natural ice in the city of Washington
was found In excellent condition, while the
ice plants were condemned in the strongest
terms? Those examinations of ice plants.
made as shown in the above bulletin, and
which are a public record, would shake the
confidence of the author of your articles
did he once read them carefully, The gov
ernment never has declared in favor of the
use Of manufactured ice. II simply says.
and rightly, the ice used must be clean
and wholesome. So, again, your author
wanders from the straight path of truth, l
think.
In his second article the writer is much
disturbed over the possibilities of Contami-
nation of ice in transit by rail or boat. He
is unaware Of one or two features which
would, perhaps, relieve him from worry.
Most of the ice coming to New York by
water is carried in barges and canalboats
used for no other purpose. The ice is COW
cred with clean paper, top and bottom.
That is the modern way of transporting
ice. In cars the ice is almost invariably
covered with paper.
Then ice is melting continuously when in
a temperature exceeding % degrees r Top
Sides ends and bottom are all melting, are
all covered with a thin film OF water,
slowly trickling down to the lowest point.
whence it drops off. Whatever of dust is
in the air settles not on the Ice, but IN
the film of water between air and Ice and
is washed away. If 1t is so large IN
anount-straws, sand, etc.-as TO stick to
the ice and that is a most unusual condl-
ton. then it is washed off by the ice wagon
drivers before delivery. Besides all which,
does the author think manufactured ice
never is carried about on wagons, never Is
exposed to dust-laden air? 1t may be seen
I'm damp, dirty, if not filthy cellars, under
unspeakable covers of carpets and bed
clothes and paper, in a thousand places In
this city, where small pedlers keep it to
sell in small lots.
This letter is already longer than 1t
should be, sir but l have not said half l
might to discredit your authors state
ments 1 have no desire TO ges into
controversy with him, but if he will read
the opinions of the authorities L have
named he will avoid making you RESPONSE
BILE for statements rather wide of the facts.
In conclusion, may I quote just word
from Dr. Eugene H. Porter, Health Com
missioner of New York State, when IN
recent address, he said: "I am safe in stat
ing to you, as a general proposition, that
under ordinary conditions, there is hardly
q thing on the public market to-day, that
is consumed in the households of this
state. that is less liable to convey infec-
ton and is less dangerous to the commun-
ity at large than natural ice
HAROLD W. COLE,
Secretary Natural Ice Association OF
America.
New York, June 10, 1910.