Show century plant believed to be oddest ice house the maguey or century plant is used in making ice at durango city mexico and Is said to be the only icehouse 0 of the kind in the world notes a writer in the indianapolis news when the century plant is about eight years old the leaves from which the pulque has been taken are spread out on straw in the plaza in the public gardens and other open spaces with the he concave sides of the leaves uppermost then about two quarts of water is poured into each leaf and while freezing Is unknown in the city under any other natural conditions the water freezes in the maguey leaves and in the morning hundreds of chunks of ice are gathered a and put in adobe ice holders each about CO 20 feet deep and 20 feet square the supply usually lasts until the of july or the first of august and Is large enough to be a commercial factor in the ice market marbet of the region of more than persons durango city is about feet above sea level and a at this altitude there Is rapid cooling after evaporation to which the water Is exposed by the broad shallow surface of the 1 leaves eaves this Is believed to be the scientific explanation of theoda ice plant there 1 Is 19 9 a legend that the ille method was learned in the seventeenth century by rather father jose lopez an elderly priest who also alao was a scientist |