After leaving the blooming mill the bloom travels along another roller line to the shears, where it is cut into two or three pieces, the number of pieces depending on the size of the rail which is to be rolled. The blooms are then lifted over the roller line at the shears by a transfer crane, and placed on a traveling roller line which connects with the rear of the reheating furnace. This furnace is about 35 feet long, and is so constructed that when the bloom is pushed in at the rear of the furnace, another bloom drops from the front or discharge end of the furnace.] [Illustration: THE INGOT BECOMES A RAIL The Ingot Becomes a Rail. The bloom dropping out, being sufficiently hot to roll into rails, travels along another roller line to the roughing or first set of rolls. Here the bloom is given five passes in the rolls, and is then transferred to the strand or second set of rolls, where it receives five additional passes; after this operation it is transferred to the finishing or third set of rolls, in which it is given one pass. The bloom has now been converted into a rail, and the rail travels on another roller line to the hot saw, where it is cut into 33-foot lengths, this being the standard length in this country for all rails. The rails when hot are cut by the hot saw to lengths of about 33 feet 6¹⁄₂ inches, the allowance of inches being made for shrinkage in cooling. It is difficult to believe that steel shrinks to this extent, but this is a fact, and while the rails are cooling on the hotbeds they have the appearance of being animated, as they move first one way and then the other. After the rails are on the hotbed a sufficient length of time to cool, they are taken from the hotbed and placed on a traveling roller line, which takes them to an endless chain conveyor. The statement that rails are put on hotbeds for cooling seems paradoxical, but the hotbeds are so called because the rails are placed on them while hot, and are left there until they have cooled. The endless-chain conveyor places the rails on another bed, from which they are picked up by an electric crane and distributed to the straightening presses, where all burrs (which have been caused by the hot-sawing operation) are removed before the rails are straightened. After straightening they are transferred to drill presses, where they have holes drilled into them for the accommodation of the splice bar, after which they are placed on the loading docks.] [Illustration: After being carefully examined by the railroad company’s inspectors they are picked up from the loading docks by electric magnets attached to a crane, and are placed in cars ready for shipment.] Who Made the First Felt Hat?