"Not exactly."

"How then?"

"I may be foolish, sir, but it struck me that the waste gas might be used to operate some sort of machinery in the mills."

"Hm-m-m!" reflected Mr. Keating, not fully catching the drift of the Iron Boy's suggestion. "What machinery?"

"I visited the gas engines a few days ago, and I was very much interested in them. I took the liberty of inquiring how much gas was used to run them, and when I got home I figured it down to dollars. It came to a very large figure."

"You are getting into the business deeply, young man."

"Perhaps I had no business to do so, but I was interested."

"Go on; what do you propose?"

"My idea is that you might run part or all of those gas engines with the waste from your blast furnaces, sir," answered Rush boldly.