Pueblo chieftain., 1921-02-09
A POOR YEAR FOR ICE

far from dealers in ice to be able to
buy any. BY the time the ice is
shipped on the train and carted to the
farm the waste is enormous and the
cost prohibitivc.
The only way these farmers can get
ice is to cut II themselves, and that
is what the department of agriculture
has been urging them to do. Eighty
five per cent OF the dairy farmers 1.-Two
where ice can be harvested in normal
winters, and the dairy experts Of the
government hold that 1t Is a matter OF
economy in the long run for tho farm
ers to tako tho trouble TO store up ice
for the time when 1t Will keep their
milk from spelling.
The Dairy Division points out that
one milk plant received nearly 5000
gallons OF sour milk from farmers last
year. Another returned $2,soO worth OF
unsatisfactory milk to tho dairies from
which IL came.
This winter 1t looks as II tho chance
for dairyman to put away much OF
reserve OF ice will be poor-that IS
II he lives In tho middle section of tho
country. Farther north. conditions
are more favorable.
Requires Prolonged Free,iaG
Merely a short spell OF freezing
weather will not produce ice thick
enough to bc harvested. Ordinarily.
cutters do not handle ice less than
eight inches thick, and most commerc-
ial firms prefer to wait until II Is four
teen inches In thickness. To freeze this
much ice, zero weather for a week or
more is required. because after the
surface water is frozen. the ground
and warmer water below tend to sup
ply warmth and tho ice coating above
acts as an insulator.
leo is harvested normally In all tn.
upper half OF the United States OK
cept on the Pacific coast. This upper
section OF the country depends most
heavily on the ice crop. Farmers cut
few tons for their own use and com
marclsl firms with Elaborate machinery
work on the Great Lakes and large
rivers.
At one time ice was cut commercial
ly with as mucn hand labor the
farmer still has to use. Blocks wcrc
marked off, cut with hand saw.
tioated TO shore. loaded by hand and
driven to tho storage house. Now,
cake OF ice is not touched by hand
from the river to its resting place in
storage. Snow is scraped from tho
surface by gasoline driven machln-
cry. saws also driven by a gasoline en-
sine cut the ice into large blocks which
are hoated direct to the sawmiil and
cut by electric saws into small
blocks. The last step Is to chute the
blocks TO storage rooms and stack
them
Use OF machinery for all this has
greatly increased tho possible output
OF an ice harvesting plant, but II has
not decreased the cost OF handling ice
to any extent.
one big factor that boosts the pub
lies ice bill and Injuries business for
the ice companies az well is unncces
sary waste by melting. With the right
Kind of a refrigerator. and the proper
management Of ice. "A family can get
along with onc-half tho amount used
up by n moro reckless housckccpcr.
As for the ice man-you havc seen
him leave chunks of ice to melt in a
July sun, and there is often similar
loss all along the limo from factory
to consumer, so much that trade
journal says waste due To carclcssncss
amounts to so per cont. There is ncccs-
sarlly a natural shrinkagc, but not
TO this extent That is where there Will
have to he n tightening UP, II tho
winter slips along as IL has so far. and
II the weather prophets are right about
forcseoing "a long hot spell