Ice Houses in Italy

134.Ice-houses are common in Italy, and in that country, as in Britain, are generally under the care of the gardener. They are usually sunk deep in dry ground or rock, and their entrance protected from the exterior air by a quantity of loose straw. Besides the ordinary domestic purposes to which ice is applied in Britain, it is used in Italy to preserve fish, meat, and vegetables, fresh. These are carried to the ice-house in appropriate vessels, and set down upon the ice.