The practical advantages of this plan will readily present themselves to observing minds. An outfit of tools necessary to harvest, in good shape, one hundred tons of ice, will just as well harvest ten or fifteen times this quantity, and would really secure the larger quantity to better advantage than the smaller one. But, allowing that the labor in getting out one hundred tons of ice is the same per ton that it is for one thousand tons, the cost of the tools per ton of ice harvested is only one tenth as much in the latter case. The tools are durable, and will last many years. Ice plows which have been in use for fifteen or twenty years are still doing good service.
As the cold storage houses would be situated at several places, a brief outline of the methods in use for handling ice under similar circumstances, will be of interest. The ice is transported from the water to the houses by wagons or sleds. A platform is built near the edge of the water, in an easily accessible place, of a height a little above the bed of wagon boxes when they are backed up to the platform. The end of this platform is toward the water, and the teams are backed in on both sides. From the water end an inclined way or run is built down into the water. Upon this run the ice cakes are rapidly run up on the platform, quickly loaded on the wagons, and started on their way to the storage houses. Arriving at its destination, the load of ice may be deposited on the ground at the entrance of the house, and the team returned for another load. Meanwhile two men, with the assistance of a horse, can stow the first load in place in the ice chamber.
For such work the tools required on the ice field comprise:
One ice plow with guide.
One ice saw.
One ice chisel.
One ice floating hook, twelve to twenty feet long.
Three ice hooks, short lengths.
One jack grapple.
Two pairs of loading tongs.
At the ice house are required:
One pair hoisting tongs.
One pair drag tongs.
One pair edging tongs.
At this time the cash value of these tools is about sixty-five dollars for first-class goods, which are always the cheapest.
Cost of Ice in the House.—Regarding the cost of ice when stowed in place in the ice chamber, it would be difficult to quote an amount which would cover all cases. Locality and tact have much to do with determining this cost. Ice, twelve to sixteen inches thick, cut in small quantities and placed in the ice chamber, would cost, on an average, for labor, about fifty cents per ton. Where cut on a large scale the cost for labor in cutting and stowing is less than half of this amount.
FIG. 83. A LOADING PLATFORM.