Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-09-17
qARCTTY OF ICE
'9HREATENS CITY
BECAUSE OF HEAT
n..lers Declare They Can
not Supply Demands
Much Longer
MILK SHORTAGE, TOO

conseouences OF the protracted
IN are beginning TO loom into sight
,srn,ne is threatened. and. unless
q decided break In the tempera-
amin the next few days. 1t will be
IN, 10 obtain ice anywhere in the
All dealers and manufacturers
=. today they could not stand the
..,..ore much longer
MIX supply is likewise Inadequate
i ,ss the needs of the consumer The
"'.s has increased tremendously and
'sp'," '',,rnlv has decreased in about the
lp proportion. Many Of the milk
n.rs are losing money b. having TO
~ exorbltant wholesale prices that
.htain. And the troubles OF the milk
! '.,,.rs are added to by the fact that the
r..z. weather requires the use OF large
...rtlty Of Ice to prevent the mix from
| spolllng-
~ facing the problem of keeping
..,r meats from spelling and are try
~ a get a larger quantity OF ice than
.sa,I The excessive heat also Is al
..srv handlers of all kinds of perish
i.,.'.s ,. ,,sroducts. who find their goods spoil
| hr rapidly.
| confectioners find themselves doubly
.s~s,cs nned. They are checked by their
,.a.es ~ get both milk and ice. At the
nc time the demand for ice cream
A. increased tremendously.
COWS FURNISH LESS MILK
u,e.use of the heat the cows are eat
\ 49, little food and are standing under
=. trees and in the streams most of the
az As a consequence they are giving
mont is per cent less milk than ordi-
,s,Tv The large milk dealers and ice
srsarn manufacturers have connections
whereby they can meet the emergency
MI the smaller merchants are not so
| iortunate.
MIX Is coming to the city from New
york state and Northern Pennsylvania,
nd tremendous prices are being asked
II ,be platform the wholesale price to"
day varied from 10 to II cents quart.
Ths regular wholesale price for milk is
svs cents- a quart Cream, usually H0p
can Il selling for from $40 to S12 AS
~ retail prices have not advanced. and
~ dealers are suffering a loss In order
10 satisfy their customers.
Tha normal consumption of milk in this
INV Il 10000 quarts a day. 1t is esti-
mated that the consumption has jumped
,mno quarts because of the hot weather
William Graham, of the Consolidated
Ice Company, said today:
,Td buy 800 tons of ice at once IL
could get II.
Makers OF artificial fee are rushing
heir plants day and night and taxing
thelr capacity to the limit. Still they
cannot produce enough.
III this thing keeps up another week
thsro won't be piece Of ice to be had In
the aty," said ]. E. Bircher, president Of
.hs Jefferson Ice Company. This opinion
Is unanimous.
HIGH PRICES ASKED.
Little natural ice can be obtained. and
What there is of 1t comes from the
Potono Mountains. Advantage is being
taken Of the scarcity to ask high prices.
and whereas the wholesale price for arti-
hcal Ice made in this city is $3.50 a ton.
The price on natural will come to about
$50 ton.
BY dint of great exertion the icemen
are managing to scare up enough ice to
supply their trade, but those consumers
Who do not regularly patronize one Arm
ere hndng trouble getting ice, for the
companies are taking on no new Gus
toners. confning themselves to supply
ing their regular trade.
The same is true of the milkmen. Many
Of them. however cannot supply the
wants Of even their regular customers.
and persons who ordinarily would use
three quarts a day have to be satisfied
with half that amount.
Fears are entertained that great suffer-
ing will enSue in tho cOngeSted 0ua rters
of the city II the ice famine becomes an