ICE-HOUSES. 



503 



whole of which was watered as the work 

 proceeded. This mound of snow and ice 

 afforded a regular supply till May 1845, 

 notwithstanding the mound was exposed 

 to the broiling sun of 1844. 



"No doubt but the situation of the 

 mound has considerable influence over 

 the preservation of the ice, and in some 

 situations it may be necessary to form the 

 ground where the ice is to be laid into an 

 ogee, that the water may drain from the 

 ice as it melts into the hollow or ditch 

 which surrounds the mass : the same ditch 

 will also prevent any water from foreign 

 sources finding its way to the bottom of 

 the ice. The spot where we generally make 

 our ice-mound is shaded by a large oak 

 tree, which has been considered by some 

 persons to act as a preservative to the ice ; 

 but it is probable that the same shade 

 which prevents any given amount of heat 

 from being directed against the mound by 

 day, also prevents radiation both by day 

 and by night— and this tends to make the 

 situation of about the same average tem- 

 perature as would be experienced in an 

 exposed situation of the same altitude. 



"Where fern cannot be got to cover 

 with, any non-conductor may be used, 

 such as dry refuse hay, straw, dead leaves, 

 &c, afterwards thatched to prevent the 

 rain-water from running through the 

 covering to the ice, which would melt it 

 away rapidly." Mr Pearson says, "We 

 never thatched our ice-mounds but in 

 one instance ; and I do not remember," 

 he adds, " that the ice either kept better 

 or worse for it. But then it must be borne 

 in mind that the fern we cover with is 

 always dry, and when placed 3 feet thick 

 over the ice, in the form of a cone, does 

 not in some summers get wet through ; 

 though this was the case last season — and 

 the ice was wasted more than usual from 

 that cause alone." At least such is Mr 

 Pearson's opinion, and there can be no 

 doubt it is correct. In forming ice-stacks, 

 the first thing to be considered is choosing 

 a dry situation, and one not much shaded 

 with trees. Most people agree in the 

 necessity of breaking the ice into as small 

 pieces as possible, and some recommend 

 introducing alternate layers of snow; 

 which we think a good practice so far as 

 ice for ordinary purposes is required, but 

 not when it is wanted quite pure for mix- 

 ing with water, wine, &c, as it fills up the 



spaces between the pieces of ice, and 

 thereby tends to exclude the air. Some 

 use the snow dry, and others in a melting- 

 state : in the latter state, particularly if 

 a sharp frost follows before the thatch or 

 covering is put on, the consolidation will 

 take place sooner and more effectually. 

 This is, however, at variance with Ameri- 

 can practice. 



" To keep ice in stacks or heaps in the 

 open air, an elevated circular platform is 

 raised of earth : on this the ice is piled 

 up in a conic form during a severe frost, 

 and the addition of water enables the 

 builder to form the cone very steep. On 

 this some wheat-straw is laid a foot in 

 thickness ; over this a stratum of faggots, 

 wood, or spray ; and, finally, another thick 

 stratum of thatch or long litter of any 

 sort. In this way ice will keep a year, 

 care being taken to expose it to the air as 

 short a time as possible in taking sup- 

 plies." — Encyclopedia of Gardening. 



In regard to situation for ice-houses or 

 ice-stacks, the prevailing opinion now is 

 that it should be dry, elevated, and fully 

 exposed, and by no means under the shade 

 or drip of trees, as formerly erroneously 

 recommended. 



Still there are others who advocate 

 "the good old plan;" and amongst them 

 the most scientific reasons for this system 

 are given by Mr Corbett of Pencarrow, in 

 a communication to " The Gardeners' 

 Chronicle." After expressing his opinion 

 in favour of situations shaded by trees, 

 &c, he says, "As the earth is warmest 

 in summer, being heated in a great mea- 

 sure by radiant heat proceeding from the 

 sun, it is at that period that the heat is 

 transmitted from the surrounding earth 

 to the ice-house with the greatest velocity; 

 and the melting of the ice takes place in 

 proportion to the difference in tempera- 

 ture between the stored ice and the sur- 

 rounding medium. This difference is 

 increased either by the earth which sur- 

 rounds the ice-house becoming heated by 

 the rays of the sun, or by the freezing 

 point of the ice becoming lowered by a 

 mixture of salt. It is, therefore, a desir- 

 able object to keep the surrounding earth 

 as cool as possible. If the ice-house is 

 surrounded and overtopped with large 

 trees, their effects will be — first, To shield 

 off the rays of the sun from the earth 

 below; and secondly, The great surface of 



