Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-03-04
PROBLEM OF ICE SUPPLY LOOMS
AS MENACE IN CITY AND STATE,
Continued from PAGE Onc

Continued from PAGE One
ammonia, out Of each 100 pounds of ice
sold here last year nincty-four pounds
was artificial icc and only six pounds
was natural ice
The manufacturers Of Ice i'm this cItv
say that there js no way by which thcy
can bring in more natural irc and use
loss artificial ice They have no room
III which 10 store more natural ice they
say, and there Is no way IN which addl.
touai storage space can he found. cor
Seducntly, Philadelphia must depend u.
usual upon artificial ice
The United States Government has 70.
peatedlN said that II must have the am.
mona used to manufacture ice. If it
takes TINS ammonia. how much ice can
DC manufactured hcrc this summer"
Second, The problem of inducing the
people of all communities to stor, up
enough natural icc to meet their needs
has been turned over by the GoN Ncrnmcnt
to tho Food Adminislratin ton. headed by
Herbert Hoover Ever since December
wv. Hoover has been warning the food
administrators of each state that the
situation is serious what has the food
administrator Of Pennsylvania Howard
Heinz, done in this state?
Inquiry made at the offices of t,r
state food administrator on February 9,
disclosed the fact that onI, one letter
from the food administrator at wash
ingion in regard to the threatened ic,
, shortage was on nic there u was dated
January ~ and was stamped ~ ha,i ing
been received in Philadelphia on Janu-
AIRY "". u contained n request to urge
upon the public the storage OF natural
ice in anticipation Of u shortage OF srti-
Iltp Il. ......
istrator issued an appeal along these
Hines under date OF February ~, twent,-
"ne days after the receipt of the reuuest
from Washington. so far ~ the clerical
1orre IN The Pennsylvania food admins
traitors offices could discover. no other
correspondence relating to the ice situa-
ton was on file IN the Office.
Charles W. Merrill. head of tho chem
Zeal department of the food admins.
tratlon. Washington, also says that only
/ one Letter was sent to tho PENNSYLVANIA
| administrator, 70 u staff correspondcut
! Of tho EVENING PUBLIC LEDGER he
/ showed that the campaign 10 conserve
/ ammonia has been conducted through
| general channels and not through and
! by the cooperation of State orgauiga
tons. Mr.. Merrill admitted that good
. opportunity in not working also in con-
junction with state organizations may
have been overlooked
NEW NOltK'S rIOMPTNESS
+ Third, What action was taken in
/ New York state to prepare for the
threatened shortage in artificial ice?
| ON receipt of the letters from the
food administration at Washington the
state OF New York went into the ice
business for itself \ bill was instantly
f1n tp1, t,n I i'll.
ing an office OF ice controller and pro =
viding him with authority to contra ct
for supplies Of natural ice. using the
financial credit Of the state to guarantee
payment for these supplies AS these
supplies would be purchased from the
state by ice dealers, there would be nc
ultimate expenditure of public funds
On February 25 Benjamin b. Odcl
former Governor of New York, tool
charge OF the business as lice con.
troller." lie promised that there would
be no ice famine in New York. and that
the New York housewife would pay ne
more for ice this summer than hereto.
fore.
On the other hand. lie announced that
no artificial ice can he made in that
state hereafter, either in ice plants
hotels, apartments or ice-sl<ati ting rinks
unless he has given a license.
The former Governor declared the re.
cent ice bill passed by the Lcgisla turc
was for the purpose of forcing the
harvesting of "A greater quantity OF
natural ice than heretofore, in order to
conserve coal and ammonia. both needed
by the Government in the war Nr Odel
said:
'Thc state of New York has beer
forced into the ice business because ot