"Never came back? What do you mean?"
"I mean the day after the cast of the gun was made he disappeared, and never came back."
"Oh!" exclaimed Tom. He said nothing more, but he believed that he understood the man's actions. Failing to obtain the desired information, or perhaps failing to spoil the cast, he realized that his chances were at an end for the present.
With great care the gun was hoisted from the mould. More eyes than Tom's anxiously regarded it as it came up out of the casting pit.
"Bless my buttonhook!" cried Mr. Damon, who had gone with the lads. "It's a monster; isn't it?"
"Oh, wait until you see it with the jackets on!" exclaimed Ned, who had viewed the completed drawings. "Then you'll open your eyes."
The great piece of hollow steel tubing was lifted to the boring lathe. Then Tom and the manager examined it for superficial flaws.
"Not one!" cried the manager in delight.
"Not that I can see," added Tom.. "It's a success—so far."
"And that was the hardest part of the work," went on the manager of the steel plant. "I can almost guarantee you success from now on."