re of about a hundred and sixty degrees.

"I should think the last baking would be enough to dry the stuff without
putting it outdoors a third time," ventured Peter to one of the men.

"Wouldn't you!" responded the laborer with a smile. "But no! Nothing
but the sun will do the business."

"It's strange, isn't it?" mused Peter.

"Strange, and almighty inconvenient," his companion assented.

That it was inconvenient Peter, after his months of experience at the
factory, agreed only too cordially. Many a shower had fallen and more
than once had he been forced to rush out into the yard at the sound of
the whistle and help the others drag the half dry stock to a place of
shelter. Since the difficulty was one not to be obviated it was accepted
good-humoredly as an evil necessary to this branch of leather
manufacture.

"I tell you what, Nat, some day science has got to find a way to get rid
of certain obstacles that stand in the path of making leather," declared
Peter. "Somebody must invent an unhairing device to do away with the
taking off of the white hair by hand. You'd better try your brain at
the puzzle. Another chance for you to make yourself famous is to think
out a machine for softening fine leather that will take the place of
knee-staking. Still another opportunity to write your name in golden
letters across the tanneries of the world is to perfect a patent leather
varnish that will dry indoors. Now there are three roads to fortune open
to you, old man. You'd better select one."

Nat grinned.

"After you, Peter," said he. "You choose your path to fame first and I
will follow."

"I'll leave the fame to you, Nat," laughed Peter. "Somehow I've never
aspired to be famous--it's lucky for me, I guess, that I haven't, too."

But fame came to Peter notwithstanding--came that very day, and in a way
he did not at all expect.

Directly after lunch he was sent by Mr. Tolman to the office in Factory
1 to carry some samples of finished leather to Mr. Tyler. Little
dreaming how eventful was to be his errand he set out, whistling as
he went. Mr. Tyler was busy that afternoon, so busy that he glanced
hurriedly at the samples of stock, gave Peter a roughly scrawled message
to take back, and dismissed him. Now it happened that the patent
leather plant was quite a little walk from the other factories, for the
site purchased for it was far less convenient than the old ball field
would have been. A dusty stretch of road interve