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Charles P. McKeague
CUESTA COLLEGE
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Basic Mathematics, Seventh Edition © 2010, 2005 Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning
Charles P. McKeague ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this work covered by the copyright herein
Mathematics Editor: Marc Bove may be reproduced, transmitted, stored or used in any form or by any means
graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including but not limited to photocopying,
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Assistant Editor: Shaun Williams Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior
Editorial Assistant: Mary De La Cruz written permission of the publisher.
Index I-1
iii
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Contents
1 Whole Numbers
Introduction 1
1
v
vi Contents
3 Decimals
Introduction 203
203
5 Percent
Introduction 331
331
6 Measurement
Introduction 405
405
7 Introduction to Algebra
Introduction 457
7.1 Positive and Negative Numbers 459
457
8 Solving Equations
Introduction 519
519
Applying the Concepts Students are always curious about how the mathematics
they are learning can be applied, so we have included applied problems in most
of the problem sets in the book and have labeled them to show students the array
of uses of mathematics. These applied problems are written in an inviting way,
many times accompanied by new interesting illustrations to help students over-
come some of the apprehension associated with application problems.
Getting Ready for the Next Section Many students think of mathematics as a
collection of discrete, unrelated topics. Their instructors know that this is not the
case. The new Getting Ready for the Next Section problems reinforce the cumula-
tive, connected nature of this course by showing how the concepts and tech-
niques flow one from another throughout the course. These problems review all
of the material that students will need in order to be successful, forming a bridge
to the next section, gently preparing students to move forward.
Maintaining Your Skills One of the major themes of our book is continuous re-
view. We strive to continuously hone techniques learned earlier by keeping the
important concepts in the forefront of the course. The Maintaining Your Skills
problems review material from the previous chapter, or they review problems
that form the foundation of the course—the problems that you expect students to
be able to solve when they get to the next course.
Chapter Pretest These are meant as a diagnostic test taken before the starting
work in the chapter. Much of the material here is learned in the chapter so profi-
ciency on the pretests is not necessary.
ix
x Preface to the Instructor
Getting Ready for Chapter X This is a set of problems from previous chapters
that students need in order to be successful in the current chapter. These are re-
view problems intended to reinforce the idea that all topics in the course are built
on previous topics.
Getting Ready for Class Just before each problem set is a list of four questions
under the heading Getting Ready for Class. These problems require written re-
sponses from students and are to be done before students come to class. The an-
swers can be found by reading the preceding section. These questions reinforce
the importance of reading the section before coming to class.
Blueprint for Problem Solving Found in the main text, this feature is a detailed
outline of steps required to successfully attempt application problems. Intended
as a guide to problem solving in general, the blueprint takes the student through
the solution process to various kinds of applications.
Chapter Summary The chapter summary recaps all main points from the chap-
ter in a visually appealing grid. In the margin, next to each topic, is an example
that illustrates the type of problem associated with the topic being reviewed. Our
way of summarizing shows students that concepts in mathematics do relate—
and that mastering one concept is a bridge to the next. When students prepare
for a test, they can use the chapter summary as a guide to the main concepts of
the chapter.
Chapter Review Following the chapter summary in each chapter is the chapter
review. It contains an extensive set of problems that review all the main topics in
the chapter. This feature can be used flexibly, as assigned review, as a recom-
mended self-test for students as they prepare for examinations, or as an in-class
quiz or test.
Chapter Test A set of problems representative of all the main points of the chap-
ter. These don’t contain as many problems as the chapter review, and should be
completed in 50 minutes.
Chapter Projects Each chapter closes with a pair of projects. One is a group
project, suitable for students to work on in class. Group projects list details about
number of participants, equipment, and time, so that instructors can determine
how well the project fits into their classroom. The second project is a research
project for students to do outside of class and tends to be open ended.
Preface to the Instructor xi
A Glimpse of Algebra These sections, found in most chapters, show how some
of the material in the chapter looks when it is extended to algebra.
Enhanced WebAssign 1-Semester Printed Access Card for Lower Level Math
ISBN-10: 0495390801 | ISBN-13: 9780495390800
Enhanced WebAssign, used by over one million students at more than 1,100 insti-
tutions, allows you to assign, collect, grade, and record homework assignments
via the web. This proven and reliable homework system includes thousands of
algorithmically generated homework problems, links to relevant textbook sec-
tions, video examples, problem-specific tutorials, and more.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my editor at Cengage Learning, Marc Bove, for his help and
encouragement with this project. Many thanks also to Rich Jones, my develop-
mental editor, for his suggestions on content, and his availability for consulting.
Ellena Reda contributed both new ideas and exercises to this revision. Devin
Christ, the head of production at our office, was a tremendous help in organizing
and planning the details of putting this book together. Mary Gentilucci, Michael
Landrum and Tammy Fisher-Vasta assisted with error checking and proofread-
ing. Special thanks to my other friends at Cengage Learning: Sam Subity and
Shaun Williams for handling the media and ancillary packages on this project,
and Hal Humphrey, my project manager, who did a great job of coordinating
everyone and everything in order to publish this book.
Finally, I am grateful to the following instructors for their suggestions and com-
ments: Patricia Clark, Sinclair CC; Matthew Hudock, St. Phillip’s College; Bridget
Young, Suffolk County CC; Bettie Truitt, Black Hawk College; Armando Perez,
Laredo CC; Diane Allen, College of Technology Idaho State; Jignasa Rami, CCBC
Catonsville; Yon Kim, Passaic Community College; Elizabeth Chu, Suffolk County
CC, Ammerman; Marilyn Larsen, College of the Mainland; Sherri Ucravich,
University of Wisconsin; Scott Beckett, Jacksonville State University; Nimisha
Raval, Macon Technical Institute; Gary Franchy, Davenport University, Warren;
Debbi Loeffler, CC of Baltimore County; Scott Boman, Wayne County CC; Dayna
Coker, Southwestern Oklahoma State; Annette Wiesner, University of Wisconsin;
Anne Kmet, Grossmont College; Mary Wagner-Krankel, St. Mary's University;
Joseph Deguzman, Riverside CC, Norco; Deborah McKee, Weber State University;
Gail Burkett, Palm Beach CC; Lee Ann Spahr, Durham Technical CC; Randall Mills,
KCTCS Big Sandy CC/Tech; Jana Bryant, Manatee CC; Fred Brown, University of
Maine, Augusta; Jeff Waller, Grossmont College; Robert Fusco, Broward CC, FL;
Larry Perez, Saddleback College, CA; Victoria Anemelu, San Bernardino Valley,
CA; John Close, Salt Lake CC, UT; Randy Gallaher, Lewis and Clark CC; Julia
Simms, Southern Illinois U; Julianne Labbiento, Lehigh Carbon CC; Joanne
Kendall, Cy-Fair College; Ann Davis, Northeastern Tech.
Pat. McKeague
November 2008
Preface to the Student
I often find my students asking themselves the question “Why can’t I understand
this stuff the first time?” The answer is “You’re not expected to.” Learning a topic
in mathematics isn’t always accomplished the first time around. There are many
instances when you will find yourself reading over new material a number of
times before you can begin to work problems. That’s just the way things are in
mathematics. If you don’t understand a topic the first time you see it, that doesn’t
mean there is something wrong with you. Understanding mathematics takes
time. The process of understanding requires reading the book, studying the ex-
amples, working problems, and getting your questions answered.
2. Read the book. It is best to read the section that will be covered in class be-
forehand. Reading in advance, even if you do not understand everything you
read, is still better than going to class with no idea of what will be discussed.
3. Work problems every day and check your answers. The key to success in
mathematics is working problems. The more problems you work, the better you
will become at working them. The answers to the odd-numbered problems are
given in the back of the book. When you have finished an assignment, be sure to
compare your answers with those in the book. If you have made a mistake, find
out what it is, and correct it.
4. Do it on your own. Don’t be misled into thinking someone else’s work is your
own. Having someone else show you how to work a problem is not the same as
working the same problem yourself. It is okay to get help when you are stuck. As
a matter of fact, it is a good idea. Just be sure you do the work yourself.
5. Review every day. After you have finished the problems your instructor has
assigned, take another 15 minutes and review a section you have already com-
pleted. The more you review, the longer you will retain the material you have
learned.
6. Don’t expect to understand every new topic the first time you see it.
Sometimes you will understand everything you are doing, and sometimes you
won’t. That’s just the way things are in mathematics. Expecting to understand
each new topic the first time you see it can lead to disappointment and frustra-
tion. The process of understanding takes time. It requires that you read the book,
work problems, and get your questions answered.
7. Spend as much time as it takes for you to master the material. No set formula
exists for the exact amount of time you need to spend on mathematics to master
it. You will find out as you go along what is or isn’t enough time for you. If you end
up spending 2 or more hours on each section in order to master the material
there, then that’s how much time it takes; trying to get by with less will not work.
Hydroelectric 42%
Wind 5%
Biomass 48%
Geothermal 5%
Solar 1%
As the chart indicates, the demand for energy is soaring, and developing new
sources of energy production is more important than ever. In this chapter we will
begin reading and understanding this type of chart.
1
Chapter Pretest
The pretest below contains problems that are representative of the problems you will find in the chapter. Those of
you studying on your own, or working in a self-paced course, can use the pretest to determine which parts of the
chapter will require the most work on your part.
3. Write eighteen thousand, five hundred seven with digits instead of words.
Round.
12. 513 to the nearest ten 13. 6,798 to the nearest hundred
Simplify.
14. 7 ⫹ 3 ⴢ 23 15. 4 ⫹ 5[2 ⫹ 6(9 ⫺ 7)]
16. Find the mean, the median, and range for 4, 5, 7, 9, 15.
TABLE 1 TABLE 2
Addition Facts Multiplication Facts
⫹ 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 ⫻ 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
0 0
1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
6 6
7 7
8 8
9 9
A Place Value
Our number system is based on the number 10 and is therefore called a “base 10”
number system. We write all numbers in our number system using the digits 0, 1,
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9. The positions of the digits in a number determine the
values of the digits. For example, the 5 in the number 251 has a different value Note Next to each Example
in the text is a Prac-
from the 5 in the number 542. tice Problem with the
The place values in our number system are as follows: The first digit on the right same number. After you read
is in the ones column. The next digit to the left of the ones column is in the tens through an Example, try the Prac-
column. The next digit to the left is in the hundreds column. For a number like tice Problem next to it. The an-
swers to the Practice Problems are
542, the digit 5 is in the hundreds column, the 4 is in the tens column, and the 2 is
at the bottom of the page. Be sure
in the ones column.
to check your answers as you work
If we keep moving to the left, the columns increase in value. The table shows these problems. The worked-out
the name and value of each of the first seven columns in our number system: solutions to all Practice Problems
with more than one step are given
in the back of the book. So if you
Hundred Ten find a Practice Problem that you
Millions Thousands Thousands Thousands Hundreds Tens Ones cannot work correctly, you can
Column Column Column Column Column Column Column
look up the correct solution to that
1,000,000 100,000 10,000 1,000 100 10 1 problem in the back of the book.
PRACTICE PROBLEMS
EXAMPLE 1 Give the place value of each digit in the number 305,964. 1. Give the place value of each
digit in the number 46,095.
SOLUTION Starting with the digit at the right, we have:
4 in the ones column, 6 in the tens column, 9 in the hundreds column, 5 in the
thousands column, 0 in the ten thousands column, and 3 in the hundred
thousands column.
Answer
1. 5 ones, 9 tens, 0 hundreds,
6 thousands, 4 ten thousands
Large Numbers
The photograph shown here was taken by the Hubble telescope in April 2002. The
object in the photograph is called the Cone Nebula. In astronomy, distances to
objects like the Cone Nebula are given in light-years, the distance light travels in a
year. If we assume light travels 186,000 miles in one second, then a light-year is
5,865,696,000,000 miles; that is
To find the place value of digits in large numbers, we can use Table 1. Note how
the Hundreds, Thousands, Millions, Billions, and Trillions categories are each
NASA
broken into Ones, Tens, and Hundreds. Note also that we have written the digits
for our light-year in the last row of the table.
TABLE 1
Trillions Billions Millions Thousands Hundreds
Tens
Tens
Ones
Tens
Ones
Ones
Tens
Ones
Ones
Hundreds
Hundreds
Tens
Hundreds
Hundreds
Hundreds
5 8 6 5 6 9 6 0 0 0 0 0 0
2. Give the place value of each EXAMPLE 2 Give the place value of each digit in the number
digit in the number
21,705,328,456. 73,890,672,540.
SOLUTION The following diagram shows the place value of each digit.
Hundred Thousands
Hundred Millions
Ten Thousands
Ten Millions
Ten Billions
Thousands
Hundreds
Millions
Billions
Ones
Tens
7 3, 8 9 0, 6 7 2, 5 4 0
B Expanded Form
We can use the idea of place value to write numbers in expanded form. For
example, the number 542 can be written in expanded form as
542 ⫽ 500 ⫹ 40 ⫹ 2
because the 5 is in the hundreds column, the 4 is in the tens column, and the 2 is
in the ones column.
Here are more examples of numbers written in expanded form.
3. Write 3,972 in expanded form.
which shows us that our work writing numbers in expanded form is consistent
with our intuitive understanding of the different denominations of money.
SOLUTION Notice that there is a 0 in the hundreds column. This means we have
0 hundreds. In expanded form we have
STUDY SKILLS
Some of the students enrolled in my mathematics classes develop difficulties early in the
course. Their difficulties are not associated with their ability to learn mathematics; they all have
the potential to pass the course. Research has identified three variables that affect academic
achievement. These are (1) how much math you know before entering a course, (2) the quality
of instruction (classroom atmosphere, teaching style, textbook content and format), and (3)
your academic self concept, attitude, anxiety, and study habits. As a student, you have the most
control over the last variable. Your academic self concept is a significant predictor of
mathematics achievement. Students who get off to a poor start do so because they have not
developed the study skills necessary to be successful in mathematics. Throughout this textbook
you will find tips and things you can do to begin to develop effective study skills and improve
your academic self concept.
Put Yourself on a Schedule
The general rule is that you spend two hours on homework for every hour you are in class.
Make a schedule for yourself in which you set aside two hours each day to work on this course.
Once you make the schedule, stick to it. Don’t just complete your assignments and then stop.
Use all the time you have set aside. If you complete the assignment and have time left over, Answers
read the next section in the book, and then work more problems. As the course progresses you 4. 200,000 ⫹ 70,000 ⫹ 1,000 ⫹ 300
may find that two hours a day is not enough time to master the material in this course. If it ⫹ 40 ⫹ 6
takes you longer than two hours a day to reach your goals for this course, then that’s how 5. 70,000 ⫹ 1,000 ⫹ 300 ⫹ 6
much time it takes. Trying to get by with less will not work. 6. 4,000,000 ⫹ 3,000 ⫹ 500 ⫹ 60
6 Chapter 1 Whole Numbers
TABLE 2
Number In English Number In English
25 Twenty-five 30 Thirty
47 Forty-seven 62 Sixty-two
93 Ninety-three 77 Seventy-seven
88 Eighty-eight 50 Fifty
The following examples give the names for some larger numbers. In each case
the names are written according to the place values given in Table 1.
STUDY SKILLS
Find Your Mistakes and Correct Them
There is more to studying mathematics than just working problems. You must always check
your answers with the answers in the back of the book. When you have made a mistake, find
out what it is, and then correct it. Making mistakes is part of the process of learning
mathematics. I have never had a successful student who didn’t make mistakes—lots of them.
Your mistakes are your guides to understanding; look forward to them.
Here is a practical reason for being able to write numbers in word form.
EXAMPLE 10 Write five thousand, six hundred forty-two, using digits 10. Write six thousand, two
hundred twenty-one using
instead of words.
digits instead of words.
SOLUTION Five thousand, six hundred forty-two
5, 6 42
Answers
10. 6,221
11. a. 8,004,200
b. 25,000,040
c. 9,000,431
8 Chapter 1 Whole Numbers
0 1 2 3 4 5
FIGURE 1
The arrow on the right indicates that the number line can continue in that
direction forever. When we refer to numbers in this chapter, we will always be
referring to the whole numbers.
STUDY SKILLS
Gather Information on Available Resources
You need to anticipate that you will need extra help sometime during the course. There is a
form to fill out in Appendix A to help you gather information on resources available to you. One
resource is your instructor; you need to know your instructor’s office hours and where the office
is located. Another resource is the math lab or study center, if they are available at your school.
It also helps to have the phone numbers of other students in the class, in case you miss class.
You want to anticipate that you will need these resources, so now is the time to gather them
together.
23. 68 24. 71
39. 40 40. 90
D Write each of the following numbers with digits instead of words. [Examples 10, 11]
59. Three hundred twenty-five 60. Forty-eight
61. Five thousand, four hundred thirty-two 62. One hundred twenty-three thousand, sixty-one
63. Eighty-six thousand, seven hundred sixty-two 64. One hundred million, two hundred thousand, three
hundred
67. Two million, two thousand, two hundred 68. Two billion, two hundred thousand, two hundred two
1.1 Problem Set 11
69. The illustration shows the average income of workers 70. Write the following numbers in words from the
18 and older by education. information in the given illustration:
Write the following numbers in words: a. the height in feet of the Taipei 101 building in
a. the average income of someone with only a high Taipei, Taiwan
school education
b. the height in feet of the Sears Tower in Chicago,
b. the average income of someone with a Ph.D. Illinois
71. MP3s A new MP3 player has the ability to iPod 72. Music Downloads The top three downloaded songs for
Music >
73. Baseball Salaries According to mlb.com, major league 74. Astronomy The distance from the sun to the earth is
baseball’s 2008 average player salary was $3,173,403, 92,897,416 miles. Write this number in expanded form.
representing an increase of 7% from the previous
season’s average. Write 3,173,403 in words.
‘07
‘08 $3,173,403
7% increase
12 Chapter 1 Whole Numbers
75. Web Searches The phrase “math help” was searched 76. Web Searches The phrase “math help” was searched
approximately 21,480 times in one month in 2008 from approximately 6,180 times in one month in 2008 from
Google. Write this number in words. Yahoo. Write this number in words.
Writing Checks In each of the checks below, fill in the appropriate space with the dollar amount in either digits or in words.
77. 78.
Populations of Countries The table below gives estimates of the populations of some countries for mid-year 2008. The first
column under Population gives the population in digits. The second column gives the population in words. Fill in the blanks.
Country Population
United States United Kingdom China
61,000,000
Digits Words
80. People’s Republic of China One billion, three hundred thirty million
Populations of Cities The table below gives estimates of the populations of some cities for mid-year 2008. The first column
under Population gives the population in digits. The second column gives the population in words. Fill in the blanks.
Digits Words
20–29: 2,262,694
30–39: 1,449,039
Examples now playing at
40–54: 112,432
MathTV.com/books
Source: National Center for Health Statistics, 2006
There is much more information available from the table than just the numbers
shown. For instance, the chart tells us how many babies were born to mothers
less than 30 years of age. But to find that number, we need to be able to do
addition with whole numbers. Let’s begin by visualizing addition on the number
line.
Facts of Addition
Using lengths to visualize addition can be very helpful. In mathematics we
generally do so by using the number line. For example, we add 3 and 5 on the
number line like this: Start at 0 and move to 3, as shown in Figure 1. From 3,
move 5 more units to the right. This brings us to 8. Therefore, 3 ⫹ 5 ⫽ 8.
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
FIGURE 1
If we do this kind of addition on the number line with all combinations of the
numbers 0 through 9, we get the results summarized in Table 1 on the next page.
We call the information in Table 1 our basic addition facts. Your success with
the examples and problems in this section depends on knowing the basic
addition facts.
SOLUTION This type of addition is best done vertically. First we add the digits in
165
⫹ 801
966 m888888888 Add ones place
m8888888
m88
Answers
1. 88
2. 947
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The Project Gutenberg eBook of Noel's Christmas tree
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world
at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under
the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org.
If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you
are located before using this eBook.
Language: English
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK NOEL'S CHRISTMAS TREE ***
Transcriber's note: Unusual and inconsistent spelling is as printed.
NOEL'S
CHRISTMAS TREE
BY
AMY LE FEUVRE
MADE IN ENGLAND
H2942
CONTENTS
CHAPTER
V. LESSON DAYS
X. THEIR PICNIC
CHAPTER I
A small boy with close-cropped brown head and dark eager eyes was drumming with his fingers on
the windowpane. He turned his head over his shoulder as he spoke, and his tone was impatient.
Dinah, or Diana as she was really called, lay flat on her chest by the schoolroom fire. Big sheets of
paper were before her, and with a good deal of sucking of her pencil she was writing rapidly. She
was very thin and pale; her nurse said she was wiry, and her fair hair was bobbed in the usual
fashion.
"How do you spell alarming, two l's and two m's?" she asked, without raising her head.
"Hurray! Here's the taxi! Such a lot of luggage! You're too late; you can't see it now."
Diana had dashed to the window. They were at the top of a high London house, in one of the quiet
roads of South Kensington, but try as they could, they could neither see the cab nor its occupants
now, and the windows were too heavy to be raised.
"Aha!" shouted the boy, dancing round the room. "I saw, and you didn't!"
"A monkey, and a parrot, and a black, and a huge bunch of coco-nuts!"
"I don't believe you. Did you see—Mother?" She added the last word in an awed whisper.
"I dare say she hasn't come. P'r'aps she's drowned in the sea."
Diana stole out of the room on tiptoe. Her brother Chris followed her. Hanging breathlessly over the
staircase, they vainly tried to see what was going on in the hall. How could Granny have ordered
them to stay up in the schoolroom till sent for, when an unknown mother and brother were arriving
from India! It was too tantalizing! They could hear a great bustle in the hall, and then a little shrill
voice made itself heard:
"Then Granny or Nurse will only send us to bed. Of course Nurse is down there. I hear her voice.
Mean old thing! As if we oughtn't to see Mother before she does!"
"You're to go down at once. Your mother wants to see you. She's in the drawing-room. Are you tidy?"
She passed her hands over their hair, pulled Diana's short brown velvet frock straight, then sent
them down. And strange to say, they went very slowly.
"My heart never thumps me!" he said. "I wouldn't let it!"
When you have looked forward to a thing very much and talked about it every day, and many times a
day, for quite a month, it is rather stupendous when it actually arrives.
And then he turned the door handle, and politely stood back and let his sister go in before him.
"Ladies first," was one of Nurse's favourite maxims. And just now Chris felt rather glad of it!
Granny was in her easy chair with her arm round a tiny fair curly-haired boy who stood leaning
against her knees. Standing on the hearthrug with her back to them, warming her delicate-looking
hands on which were many sparkling rings, was their mother. She was tall and slender, and wore a
close-fitting green cloth gown. She had thrown off her thick fur coat, but wore a little sable toque over
her sunny brown hair. And when she turned round and opened her arms exclaiming, "And here are
my big boy and girl!"
Diana felt a lump rise in her throat. Inwardly she said to herself: "My beautiful mother—"
Little Noel regarded them with a pucker in his baby brow. He did not quite like seeing his mother kiss
them as she kissed him.
"Now speak to your little brother. He has been longing to see you—haven't you, Noel?"
"I've see'd them now, Mummy, and they're just like uvver chil'en. Like the chil'en on board."
He did not offer to kiss them, but Diana put her arms round him and kissed him warmly.
"I think you're a dear little boy," she said. "I like your curls!"
"Take him up to the nursery or schoolroom, or whatever you call it, and you'll soon be friends. I think
I'll have a warm bath, Mother, before dinner. Noel and I had tea in the train. Oh, I'm tired!"
The children left the room, and climbed two flights of stairs in perfect silence.
This new unknown brother with his baby face and flaxen curls was amazingly self-possessed. Diana
tried to take his hand, but he pulled it away from her with a jerk. He seemed to find going upstairs a
great effort, and put his right foot foremost the whole way. When they reached the schoolroom, at
last, he heaved a little sigh.
Chris stared at him. He was going to show him the toy cupboard, but Noel suddenly found his
tongue. He stood by the fire looking into the red coals with thoughtful face; then he turned to Diana.
"I like fires," he said, "and puppy dogs, and sa'ngwiches that taste hot and have no sweet in them.
What do you like?"
"She likes paper and pencil best," said Chris. "Dinah writes lovely stories, Noel, about shipwrecks,
and fires, and floods, and earthquakes, and everything exciting, and her people are just going to be
killed and then they're saved, and the girls always have golden curls and blue eyes, and the boys
black flashing eyes and coal-black hair."
"What peoples do you know?" he asked. "I have two peoples always going about with me. Do you
know them? God is one, and the Devil is another. God takes care of me and loves me. I love Him
when I'm good, and I push the Devil away; but when I'm wicked, I make friends with the Devil."
"Oh!" cried Diana in a shocked voice. "You mustn't talk out loud about things like that. They're only
spoken in church on Sundays."
"What's church?"
"Have you never been to church?" asked Chris. "It's a house with a pointed roof or tower. Haven't
you got any in India? People go to hear the clergyman read and say prayers, and preach a sermon,
and everybody sings hymns."
"It's very dull," confessed Diana. "Grown-up people seem to like it, but there's a lot of kneeling and
sitting still. Chris and I would like to run away out of it often."
"Oh," said Noel with a smile, "then it's like what we have in a tent sometimes, when the padre comes
to see us. I went once, and they sang hymns, but we hardly ever have it. I'd like to see a proper
church. Is it like the temples where the idols are?"
"We don't know anything about them," said Chris. "You wait and see next Sunday."
"Tell us," she said, with a little hesitation in her voice, "what is Mother like?"
Noel stared at her with his big eyes.
"I mean—is she cross or kind? Does she laugh, or is she shocked? We don't know her, and grown-
up people are so very different, aren't they, Chris?"
"Yes; Granny says some things are wrong which Nurse sees no harm about! And Nurse is cross
about something when Granny is not a bit."
"Shut up!" said Chris, giving his sister a nudge. "I was only pulling your leg. I didn't see them really."
Nurse came into the room at this moment. She took possession of Noel at once.
"Come along, your mother says you'd best go to bed as you're tired out, and I'll bring you your
supper, when you've had your bath."
Noel put his hands in his pockets and looked at Nurse defiantly. She said nothing, but she was a big
woman and Noel a tiny boy. She simply took him up in her arms and carried him off to bed. And Noel
was so astounded that he said nothing. His ayah had been left behind in India, and a young girl who
wanted her passage home had taken charge of him on the voyage. The consequence was that he
had had things pretty much his own way.
"I rather like him," said Diana when the door had closed upon them. "He's a funny boy."
"He's too cocky," said Chris loftily. "I'll soon teach him!"
"But it's Mother I'm interested in," said Diana. "Oh, Chris, I think she's lovely, and she dresses like a
queen, and she's so tall and thin, not fat like Granny, and she had buckles on her shoes that were
sparkling like her rings. I wish we could see her again to-night. Do you think we will?"
"We're going away with her soon," said Chris. "Granny says she's going to take us with her to
Granny's old home in the country. It's that white house with green shutters in the big garden in the
picture over Granny's sofa."
"I know," said Diana, smiling in that soft dreamy way of hers that Chris always called "bunkum." "It's
called Wistaria Cottage, and it will be heavenly going with a strange mother into a strange country!
So many, many things might happen."
Chris laughed, but not derisively. He had had a feeling in his chest when his mother had put her arms
round him and kissed him. He thought he had heard her murmur, "My first-born," but he could not be
quite sure. He asked Diana now if he could be a "first-born."
"Oh," said Chris blankly. "I didn't know it meant that! I was thinking it was a Bible word. Wasn't it in
the plagues in Egypt?"
Diana nodded.
"I go by size."
This was an insult that Chris could not stand. He was a year older than Diana, but she was as tall as
he was, and sometimes it seemed as if she were going to out-top him. Chris prayed in agony
sometimes:
He was always measuring himself, and had been found by Nurse one day lying flat on his bed, his
wrists and his ankles tied to the head and foot rail of the bed. "I'm trying to stretch myself," he said,
and Nurse had laughed at him, and told him he would grow in "God's good time." So now he made a
rush for Diana, and she fled round the room. Chairs were knocked over, and when Nurse came in to
see what was the matter, there was a writhing mass of legs and arms on the floor. Diana was kicking
and screaming for all she was worth. If she were inclined to be the taller, Chris was the stronger, and
he was on top of her now. Nurse soon restored quiet and order.
"You ought to be ashamed of yourselves," she said sternly; "the first evening your mother is here.
She'd be ashamed to own you if she'd seen you a minute ago!"
"No, not unless you're sent for, and I know your Granny won't do that."
But they did see her again, for when they were in bed she came to visit them in turn. Diana and Chris
had each a small room of their own, and Diana was the first one to be visited.
She sat up in bed with wide starry grey eyes, as she gazed in rapt admiration at her mother. Mrs.
Inglefield had changed her cloth gown, and was in a powder-blue velvet tea-gown edged with sable
fur. A string of pearls was round her white throat. Diana had sometimes hung over the banisters and
watched some of Granny's friends go into the dining-room when they came to dinner, but though she
had admired all their lovely clothes, none of them had ever belonged to her. She put her little hand
out and stroked her mother's long open velvet sleeve. And then her mother knelt by her bed and
looked at her with laughing eyes.
"Do you remember me, my sweet? Five years ago I brought you and Chris to Granny, and I thought
my heart would break. Hasn't she been a good kind Granny to take care of you and keep you for me
all these years? You were such a tiny girl, not three years old. I suppose you can't remember me? I'm
quite a stranger to you."
Diana gave a little gulp. How she wished she could remember! But she wouldn't tell a lie.
"I'm 'fraid I don't remember," she said with downcast head. "But you aren't a stranger, for we've had
your letters, and Chris and I have been counting the days till you came. And, please, we do belong to
you as much as Noel, don't we? But of course he knows you better than we do."
"Oh, we shall all know each other very soon and will be a happy family party! Good night, darling, I'm
very tired or I would stay longer. Where does Chris sleep?"
"My eldest son," his mother murmured, as she laid her hand caressingly on his short-cropped head.
"What talks you and I must have together! I'm very unhappy at being away from dear Dad, but you
seem a little bit of him. You have his eyes, Chris. Such frank truthful eyes your Dad has. He has
never told an untruth in his life, I believe."
Chris gave a little wriggle. He could not say that of himself, but he liked to think he had his father's
eyes. He gazed at his mother adoringly.
What a beautiful mother she was! And he was her eldest son. He smiled at the thought of it.
"Oh, no, not for another week. I have a lot of shopping I want to do in town, and I must see
something of Granny. She's my mummy, you know."
This was quite a new idea to Chris. He pondered over it, then he said suddenly:
"Is he? I dare say he may be, poor mite. He has lived very much alone in India, and ruled it over the
native servants. He's a very quaint little soul with decided opinions of his own, though he looks and is
such a baby. You must show him how English boys behave, Chris, and teach him to play fair and
give honour to others. Now, good night, darling."
Chris had never been kissed in such a tender fashion before. He lay back with rapt eyes after she
had left him. "I'm her eldest son," he murmured to himself.
The sound of it warmed and stirred his heart. He felt it was a new calling, a sudden incitement to
heroic deeds. He would take care of her, die for her if necessary. He was a bit of Dad: she had said
so. He must behave like Dad.
Then Mrs. Inglefield visited her baby. She thought at first that he was fast asleep, but Nurse shook
her head.
"He has been very restless and excited," she said in a low tone. "I suppose it is his arrival here. He
slept for an hour straight off and then woke, and I can't get him asleep again."
"Of course you can't," said Noel, hearing the whisper and opening his eyes wide. "It's dreffully hard to
get me to sleep. God has to send an angel to do it and he works at me for hours! And then, pop! Off I
go!"
"Yes, darling. What a happy boy you are to have a little sister and brother to play with!"
"I don't want them. They're too large for me. How many kisses did you give them?"
"Oh, Noel, you funny boy! Half a dozen each, I dare say. I never counted."
"Then you mus' give me double half a dozen. You don't know them like you know me."
"Noel, darling, I love my three children exactly the same. I have thought more of Diana and Chris
than of you when we were in India, because they were away from me. Now we are together, and I
am going to show my love as much to them as to you. You are all equal in my heart. I shall give you
half a dozen kisses now. Not one more. Now then, one on each cheek, one on each eye, one on the
top of your darling little nose, and one on your mouth. Good night, my blessing, God bless and keep
you."
"I fink God likes me better than them," he murmured. "Anyhow, I'll ask Him to."
CHAPTER II
Wistaria Cottage
The next week seemed full of delightful bustle to Diana and Chris. Their mother was very busy
shopping and arranging about their new home; so she did not see much of them in the daytime.
Nurse was packing, and fitting Noel out with English clothes. He continued to be a puzzle and
interest to his brother and sister. They found him a good playfellow, but difficult to corner. Nothing
seemed to shake his good opinion of himself, and he would never acknowledge himself to be in the
wrong. Yet he would talk like a little angel of the Unseen World Above, and had a firm, unshaken
belief that God was his Best Friend, and Jesus Christ His Saviour. His Indian ayah had been an
earnest Christian, and had taught him as she had been taught herself in the Mission School.
His grandmother regarded him with anxious eyes. She asked his mother one day:
"Are you bringing up that child in the crude modern fashion of letting him think himself of more
importance than us older folk?"
"No, Mother, but he has an original mind, and I don't want him snubbed and repressed."
Diana heard this, and pondered over it. Another day her Granny said:
"I still doubt the wisdom of your burying yourself in the country. After your time abroad you will feel
the loneliness dreadfully. I couldn't stand the country, and came to town, as you know. You will have
very few neighbours."
"So much the better. I shall have my children, and I am sick and tired of society life. It is only a year
and then Gregory will be home."
"Not if I can help it," said Diana fervently; and she there and then registered a vow that she would
not.
Granny had some conversation with the guard at the station, and the result was that they got a
reserved carriage all to themselves.
The English country was strange to Noel; he was delighted to see some lambs at play in the fields,
and he took a great interest in the different churches which appeared.
"What a lot of houses God has!" he remarked. "How tired He must get of going round and round and
round to them all! Does He never miss any?"
"God is never tired," Diana said rebukingly, "and of course God is everywhere at the same time."
"Mummy," said Diana anxiously, "Miss Carr, when we wished her good-bye, said she hoped we
wouldn't forget our lessons. But we're going to have holidays for a little, aren't we?"
"Yes, I think so. I have a good deal to arrange, Diana, but I'm going to look to my little daughter to do
a lot of things for me."
"Dinah is only good for writing stories; she always forgets everything else."
"Shut up!" said Diana, stretching out one slim leg to give her brother a kick.
"Men don't fight women," he said; "they're too sloppy, girls are."
"I've got as much muscle as you," said Diana, baring her arm to the elbow.
It was a long journey; and all the travellers were glad when it was over. A car was waiting for them at
their destination. Mrs. Inglefield arranged that the luggage should follow in a cart, and then they
drove along a country road till they came to a pretty village with quaint irregular thatched cottages, a
corner general shop and post office, and a square green with a big oak tree in the middle of it.
There was an inn with a sign of a bright yellow dog hanging over it, and it was called "The Golden
Dog." The children wanted to stop and look at it closer, but on the car went, and never stopped till it
came to a white wooden gate a little way out of the village. There was a drive with trees and shrubs
on either side, and then a low white house came in view, and over the porch door was a winter
jasmine in full flower, and a red japonica was just coming out and was creeping up the house.
"Not a big house, but it is a cosy one," said Mrs. Inglefield, looking at it with content.
The children were delighted with the pretty little entrance hall and the white railed staircase leading
up from the middle of it. Nurse took them straight upstairs. She had lived here before with their
grandmother, and knew her way about. There was a day nursery, a bedroom out of it where Noel
was going to sleep with Nurse; beyond was a little room for Chris, and Diana was going to sleep in
her mother's dressing-room. All the bedrooms were on the same landing, and the windows all looked
out the same way. Chris and Diana were surprised at the one flight of stairs after their high London
house, but Noel found any stairs a difficulty.
"We never has them in India," he said; "and my legs don't like them."
It was nearly dark when they reached the house, so there was no exploring for the children to do out
of doors. But they visited every room inside. The pretty little drawing-room with the big round bay
window at one end of it, the long low dining-room with the square table in it, and some oil portraits of
Granny's family on the wall. The room they liked best was a little boudoir full of beautiful china and
pretty things.
"I s'pose," said Diana wistfully, "that we shan't ever be in the downstair rooms."
"My darling," said her mother quickly, "this is going to be your home. You are welcome to every room
in it; but the drawing-room I must have kept for special occasions. I shall be generally in the boudoir,
I think, until the summer comes, and then we shall all live out of doors." Diana danced up and down
softly on the tips of her toes.
"We shall be full, full, full!" she chanted almost under her breath.
"Oh," said Diana, waving her small hands in the air, "full of riches, and joys, and—and love."
Her mother gazed at her contemplatively, but Chris was standing by, and he was eminently practical.
"That's all her story-book stuff," he remarked. "Dinah is always full of words, that's what she's full of."
"Oh, you children!" laughed Mrs. Inglefield. "I suppose I shall get to know you soon. I hope I shall.
Now we're all tired. We shall have our supper very soon, and then bed. And to-morrow—well, to-
morrow we shall see everything. I'm longing to look at the garden."
The little people were very tired, but they managed to peep inside the kitchen, where a stout woman
called Mrs. Tubbs was bustling round and produced some delicious little hot scones from the oven.
There was also a very fat girl there, her daughter, whose name was Cassy. She was about fifteen,
and wore a funny little white cap perched on the top of her head like a big white rosette. Nurse told
them that she and her mother and herself were going to run the house together.
"Lizzie Tubbs and I are old friends, went to the village school here together. I never have liked
London. It seems coming home to be back here."
After Granny's big house and many servants, this new home seemed very small and cosy; but the
children were almost too tired to talk about it. They had a supper of boiled eggs, scones, and a rice
pudding, and then went to bed.
The next morning was sunny and bright. They had their eight o'clock breakfast with Nurse in the
nursery, and then to their joy she turned them out into the garden. "Your mother has a headache and
is having her breakfast in bed. I knew she'd feel it—she's been overtiring herself these last few
weeks, so don't you be making a noise in the garden."
"We shan't be making more noise than the birds," said Diana. "I heard them chattering quite early."
They flew off out of the back door, and found themselves in an old square walled garden. There was
a big lawn with a group of trees at the bottom. All round it were beds for flowers. Fruit trees were
nailed against the walls.
"It's quite large enough for cricket," said Chris, looking at the lawn with satisfaction in his eyes.
Diana walked on to the trees. She stopped beneath an old medlar tree with low branches almost
reaching the ground.
"I shall sit up there and write my stories," she said with a rapt smile.
But Noel had trotted on; he had found between some high shrubs a little twisting path which led to
two gates. One gate opened into a small kitchen garden. Noel surveyed this, with his chin resting on
the top bar of the gate. It did not appeal to him; he turned to the other, opened it and disappeared.
Diana and Chris did not miss him, they were so accustomed to only having each other, that they both
climbed up into the medlar tree and began to discuss this wonderful new life of theirs.
"Isn't it perfectly lovely!" Diana said. "And when the summer comes, Chris, think of the garden with
the flowers and the trees, and Mums in a white dress trailing about, carrying armfuls of roses, and
looking like the fairy queen."
Chris nodded.
"And that fat girl Cassy bringing out a tray for tea on the lawn with strawberries and ices and all kinds
of cakes," went on Diana enthusiastically.
"And me on the lawn with a new hat, in white flannels, and a boy friend trying to bowl me out, and
Noel fielding for us," put in Chris.
"And I shall be in a hammock swinging backwards and forwards," said Diana, "and writing stories all
day long."
"I say, how thick these walls are! I could walk along the top if I could get there," said Chris. "I think I
could climb up if I got up that tree leaning against the wall. Shall I try?"
Diana was equal to adventure at any time; but Nurse appeared and called them in.
But they could not find him, and after calling for some minutes, they thought he must have gone into
the house.
"We don't know. Is the Order Book the Bible?" asked Diana.
"Oh, no, indeed it is not. But I must have my baby. Ah, here he is! I hear his dear stumping feet."
Up the stairs plodded Noel. He came into the room with shining mysterious eyes.
His mother took him on her lap. His curls were full of cobwebs and his knees and hands very dusty.
"You never tolded me that God was going to live next door to us," was Noel's astounding remark.
"I hope," said his mother gravely, "that God lives nearer to us than that."
"I went down the paff," said Noel in his little breathless way. "I sawed a gate and I went frough, and
there was a tiny paff and a wall of trees and anuver little gate, and then one of God's houses like we
saw in the train, and it's quite, quite close to us. And there are bumps all over its garden and white
stones with letters, and then I opened a very big door and went in."
"It was raver dark, but the sun came through a beautiful window all red and blue and yellow, and
there were most wunnerful fings in it. Seats, and books, and stools, and little steps into a high box,
and a very big book on a stand, and a stone idol lying on his back with a sword, and some flowers on
a table. And does it belong to us, Mums? It's a church, isn't it? I never sawed one in India."
"No, darling, we have been far away from a church these last three years. You are right. It is our
church, but it doesn't belong to me especially. But Granny was allowed to have a little gate made into
the churchyard when she lived here. It saved her a longer walk."
"And I went into a little room where there were white dresses hanging, and then I found anuver door
with steps up, and I went up and up and up near the sky, and there was a tangle of ropes like on
board ship, and some great 'normous bells, and I climbed and climbed and I came out right frough
anuver door to a wall where I sawed the whole world!"
"You got up to the tower through the belfry," said his mother. "No wonder you are dusty, and it was
dangerous, Noel: you mustn't go up there by yourself again. You might have fallen."
"Yes, to church. We'll all go together. Now I want you to be quiet, and I'm going to begin the Gospel
of St. Matthew, about the little Christmas Babe. I think Diana and Chris might read the verses with
me."
The children thought their mother's Bible reading very strange, but interesting. When it was over they
were sent into the garden again, and their mother told them she would join them there. Noel was
rather quiet till they got out of the house, then he said to Chris rather truculently.
"Oh, I see," said Diana; "but that won't make any difference to God."
"I'm a Christmas child," said Noel, staring at her gravely, "that's why I'm called Noel. It means
Christmas. It's a very grand and wunnerful thing to have the same birfday as Jesus Christ."
"Oh, come on!" exclaimed Chris impatiently. "You aren't grand or wonderful, Noel. Why, you hardly
know how to run! Race me to the medlar. I'll give you ten yards' start. I'll guess at it."
Noel did his best, but he certainly was not a good runner: he waddled and he panted, and several
times nearly tumbled headlong. But the run had taken his thoughts off himself, and when Mrs.
Inglefield joined them, he was as eager as the others to see everything, and to hear about the time
when his mother lived here as a little girl.
"This is where I used to have my garden," she said, taking them to a corner under the high wall. "I
remember quite well when I sowed some little shells in it which I had brought from the seaside, and
thought that fishes might come up out of the ground! Would you each like a garden?"
Mrs. Inglefield began to measure out ground in the large herbaceous border.
"Anything and everything you like. I know a dear old gardener outside the village who is a florist and
has a nursery for flowers and plants. Shall we all go and see him one day and ask him for seeds and
plants? I will give you three shillings each to lay out in seeds."
"Yes, don't let us wait," said Chris; "not a minute, as they might be growing."
"Perhaps this afternoon I can manage it; but I have letters to write. It is mail day, and poor Daddy
would be dreadfully disappointed if I didn't send him a letter."
"You can give him my big love," said Noel, "and tell him I'm going to be a church gardener."
"Are you?" said his mother, smiling at Diana and Chris, who always listened to Noel's statements
with open eyes and mouths.
"Yes," nodded Noel, "I've just made it up, but I aren't going to tell nobody how I'll do it. It's a secret."
He would say no more, but pursed up his button of a mouth till it looked like a marble.
Then Mrs. Inglefield showed them the kitchen garden, and a shed in it where they might keep their
gardening tools. An old man was in it, and Mrs. Inglefield spoke to him very pleasantly.
"Well, Foster, I see you have kept the garden in beautiful order," she said. "We're quite old friends.
You were here before I went to India."
"A've bin fourteen year in this garden this coming midsummer," said the old man importantly.
"And these are my children, Foster. I'm going to try to make them gardeners."