Programming in Visual C 2008 3rd Edition Julia

Case Bradley pdf download

https://ebookname.com/product/programming-in-visual-c-2008-3rd-
edition-julia-case-bradley-2/

Get Instant Ebook Downloads – Browse at https://ebookname.com

Instant digital products (PDF, ePub, MOBI) available
Download now and explore formats that suit you...

Programming in Visual C 2008 3rd Edition Julia Case

Bradley

https://ebookname.com/product/programming-in-visual-c-2008-3rd-
edition-julia-case-bradley/

Programming in Visual Basic 2008 7th Edition Julia Case

Bradley

https://ebookname.com/product/programming-in-visual-
basic-2008-7th-edition-julia-case-bradley/

Beginning Visual C 2012 programming 1st Edition Karli

Watson

https://ebookname.com/product/beginning-
visual-c-2012-programming-1st-edition-karli-watson/

The First Miracle Drugs How the Sulfa Drugs Transformed

Medicine 1st Edition John E. Lesch (Editor)

https://ebookname.com/product/the-first-miracle-drugs-how-the-
sulfa-drugs-transformed-medicine-1st-edition-john-e-lesch-editor/
English for the Financial Sector Teacher s Book 1 Tch
Edition Ian Mackenzie

https://ebookname.com/product/english-for-the-financial-sector-
teacher-s-book-1-tch-edition-ian-mackenzie/

Introduction to Chemistry a conceptual approach 2nd ed

Edition Richard C Bauer

https://ebookname.com/product/introduction-to-chemistry-a-
conceptual-approach-2nd-ed-edition-richard-c-bauer/

Kantian Ethics 1st Edition Allen W. Wood

https://ebookname.com/product/kantian-ethics-1st-edition-allen-w-
wood/

Family Identity 1st Edition Vittorio Cigoli

https://ebookname.com/product/family-identity-1st-edition-
vittorio-cigoli/

Experiences of Depression A study in phenomenology 1st

Edition Matthew Ratcliffe

https://ebookname.com/product/experiences-of-depression-a-study-
in-phenomenology-1st-edition-matthew-ratcliffe/
How I Trade Options 1st ed Edition Najarian

https://ebookname.com/product/how-i-trade-options-1st-ed-edition-
najarian/
 Computer and Information Technology

Programming in Visual C#
2008

Bradley−Millspaugh

McGraw-Hill
=>?
McGraw−Hill Primis

ISBN−10: 0−39−017402−5
ISBN−13: 978−0−39−017402−4

Text:

Programming in Visual C# 2008

Bradley−Millspaugh
 This book was printed on recycled paper.

Computer and Information Technology

http://www.primisonline.com
Copyright ©2009 by The McGraw−Hill Companies, Inc. All rights
reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Except as
permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part
of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form
or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system,
without prior written permission of the publisher.

This McGraw−Hill Primis text may include materials submitted to

McGraw−Hill for publication by the instructor of this course. The
instructor is solely responsible for the editorial content of such
materials.

111 COMPGEN ISBN−10: 0−39−017402−5 ISBN−13: 978−0−39−017402−4

 Computer
and
Information
Technology

Contents

Bradley−Millspaugh • Programming in Visual C# 2008

Front Matter 1
Preface 1
To the Student 7

1. Introduction to Programming and Visual C# 2008 9

Text 9

2. User Interface Design 75

Text 75

3. Variables, Constants, and Calculations 115

Text 115

4. Decisions and Conditions 165

Text 165

5. Menus, Common Dialog Boxes, and Methods 225

Text 225

6. Multiform Projects 267

Text 267

7. Lists, Loops, and Printing 301

Text 301

8. Arrays 339
Text 339

iii
9. Web Applications 377
Text 377

10. Database Applications 419

Text 419

11. Data Files 459

Text 459

12. OOP: Creating Object−Oriented Programs 489

Text 489

13. Graphics, Animation, Sound, and Drag−and−Drop 543

Text 543

14. Additional Topics in C# 579

Text 579

Back Matter 621

Appendix A: Answers to Feedback Questions 621
Appendix B: Methods for Working with Dates, Mathematics, and
String Operations 635
Appendix C: Tips and Shortcuts for Mastering the Environment 643
Appendix D: Security 661
Glossary 665
Index 676

iv
Bradley−Millspaugh: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill 1
Programming in Visual C# Companies, 2010
2008

PREFACE

Visual C# (C Sharp) is a relatively new language introduced by Microsoft along

with Visual Studio. Its goal was to provide the ease of working with Visual
Basic with the flexibility and power of the Java and C++ languages. The syntax
of C# is similar to Java and C++ but the ease of creating a graphical user inter-
face and an event-driven application rivals Visual Basic.
C# is fully object-oriented, compatible with many other languages using
the .NET Framework. This book incorporates the object-oriented concepts
throughout, as well as the syntax and terminology of the language.
C# is designed to allow the programmer to develop applications that run
under Windows and/or in a Web browser without the complexity generally as-
sociated with programming. With very little effort, the programmer can design
a screen that holds standard elements such as buttons, check boxes, radio but-
tons, text boxes, and list boxes. Each of these objects operates as expected,
producing a “standard” Windows or Web user interface.

About This Text

This textbook is intended for use in an introductory programming course, which
assumes no prior knowledge of computer programming. The later chapters are
also appropriate for professional programmers who are learning a new language
to upgrade their skills.
This text assumes that the student is familiar with the Windows operating
environment and can use an Internet browser application.

Approach
This text incorporates the basic concepts of programming, problem solving,
and programming logic, as well as the design techniques of an object-oriented
event-driven language.
Chapter topics are presented in a sequence that allows the programmer to
learn how to deal with a visual interface while acquiring important program-
ming skills such as creating projects with objects, decisions, loops, and data
management.
A high priority is given to writing applications that are easy for the user to
understand and use. Students are presented with interface design guidelines
throughout the text.
This text follows essentially the same sequence as the Bradley/Millspaugh
Visual Basic text. Object-oriented programming (OOP) is introduced in Chap-
ter 1 and is used consistently in every chapter of the book.
The code for all in-chapter projects is available to instructors.
v
2 Bradley−Millspaugh: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Companies, 2010
2008

TEXT FEATURES
Object-Oriented Concepts Interface Design Guidelines
are presented throughout the text to offer are presented to offer students a better under-
students an introduction to object-oriented standing of meeting user needs and employing
design before learning to create their own industry standards.
classes.
Good Programming Habits
try
1. Always test the tab order on your forms. Fix it if necessary by changing
{
the TabIndex properties of the controls.
//C Convert
H A input
P T values
E R to numeric and 2. Provide visual separation for input fields and output fields and always
quantityInteger = int.Parse(quantityTex make it clear to the user which are which.
try
{
1priceDecimal = decimal.Parse(priceT
// Calculate values.
extendedPriceDecimal = quantityInte
3. Make sure that your forms can be navigated and entered from the
keyboard. Always set a default button (AcceptButton property) for
every form.
4. To make a label maintain its size regardless of the value of the Text
property, set AutoSize to false.
5. To make the text in a text box right justified or centered, set the
TextAlign property.

Introduction to
discountDecimal = Decimal.Round(
(extendedPriceDecimal * DISCOUNT
6. You can use the Checked property of a check box to set other properties
that must be true or false.
amountDueDecimal = extendedPriceDec
Programming and
totalAmountDecimal += amountDueDeci
numberTransactionsInteger++;
Visual C# 2008
// Format and display answers.
extendedPriceTextBox.Text = extende Tips
at the completion of this chapter, you will be able to . . .

1. Describe the process of visual program design and development. in the margins help students avoid potential
2. Explain the term object-oriented programming. trouble spots in their programs and encourage
3. Explain the concepts of classes, objects, properties, methods, and
events. them to develop good programming habits.
4. List and describe the three steps for writing a C# program.

5. Describe the various files that make up a C# project.

6. Identify the elements in the Visual Studio environment.

TIP
7. Define design time, run time, and debug time. Use two ampersands when you
8. Write, run, save, print, and modify your first C# program.
want to make an ampersand appear
9. Identify syntax errors, run-time errors, and logic errors.
in the Text property: &Health &&
10. Look up C# topics in Help.
Welfare for “Health & Welfare”. ■

Feedback Questions Hands-On Programming

give the students time to reflect on the Examples
current topic and to evaluate their
understanding of the details. guide students through the process of planning,
writing, and executing C# programs.
➤ Feedback 2.1
Create a picture box control that displays an enlarged icon and appears in a 3D
box. Make up a name that conforms to this textbook’s naming conventions.
Your Hands-On Programming Example
Property Setting In this project, Look Sharp Fitness Center needs to expand the clothing sale
project done previously in this chapter. In addition to calculating individual
Name
sales and discounts, management wants to know the total amount of sales and
BorderStyle the number of transactions.
Add exception handling to the program so that missing or nonnumeric data
SizeMode
will not cause a run-time error.
Visible Help the user by adding ToolTips wherever you think they will be useful.
Bradley−Millspaugh: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill 3
Programming in Visual C# Companies, 2010
2008

Programming Exercises Case Studies

test students’ understanding of the pro- provide continuing-theme exercises that may
gramming skills covered in that chapter. be used throughout the course, providing many
opportunities to expand on previous projects.
Programming Exercises
3.1 In retail sales, management needs to know the average inventory figure
and the turnover of merchandise. Create a project that allows the user to Case Studies
enter the beginning inventory, the ending inventory, and the cost of goods
sold.
Custom Supplies Mail Order
Form: Include labeled text boxes for the beginning inventory, the ending
inventory, and the cost of goods sold. After calculating the answers, dis- The company has instituted a bonus program to give of the store’s total sales. The amount of sales needs to
play the average inventory and the turnover formatted in text boxes. its employees an incentive to sell more. For every dol- be entered only for the first employee. (Hint: Don’t
lar the store makes in a four-week period, the employ- clear it.)
ees receive 2 percent of sales. The amount of bonus The Calculate button will determine the bonus
each employee receives is based on the percentage of earned by this employee, and the Clear button will
hours he or she worked during the bonus period (a to- clear only the name, hours-worked, and bonus amount
at the completion of this chapter, you will be able to . . . tal of 160 hours). fields. A Print button allows the user to print the form.
h ll ll h h ll b d d l h
1. Use database terminology correctly.

2. Create Windows and Web projects that display database data.

3. Display data in a DataGridView control.

Learning Objectives
4. Bind data to text boxes and labels.
tell students what will be covered in the chapter
5. Allow the user to select from a combo box or list box and display the
corresponding record in data-bound controls. and what they will be able to do after completing
6. Query an object using LINQ. the chapter.

Online Learning Center

Visit the Visual C# 2008 Web site at www.mhhe.com/C#2008/
for instructor and student resoures.
4 Bradley−Millspaugh: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Companies, 2010
2008

viii P R E F A C E

Changes in This Edition

This revision of the text is based on the Professional Edition of Visual Studio
(VS) 2008. The 2008 version of VS includes Language-Integrated Queries
(LINQ) for a more consistent means of querying a variety of data sources. The
Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) brings new dimensions to interface
design. AJAX also has been added to provide faster postbacks for Web pages.
Microsoft has made many enhancements to the integrated development
environment (IDE). The Editor now has a much richer IntelliSense. New tool
windows for creating, managing, and applying styles in Web applications are
now included in Chapter 9.
A new PrintForm component makes printing a form extremely easy and conve-
nient for a classroom environment. The PrintForm component is part of a Microsoft
download called the Visual Basic Power Packs, which can be added to the IDE for
use with a C# program. PrintForm is covered in Chapter 2 for output to either the
printer or a Print Preview window. Standard printing is still covered in Chapter 7.
LINQ is covered in Chapter 10 (“Database Applications”) and again in the
XML section of Chapter 14.
Chapter 11 (“Data Files”) includes a simplified method for writing small
amounts of data without performing an open operation.
Drag-and-drop for images is now covered in the graphics chapter (Chapter
13). Students learn the development techniques for this familiar operation.
Chapter 14 includes XML data files and an introduction to programming
with WPF.
The text narrative, step-by-step exercises, screen captures, and appen-
dixes have all been updated to Visual Studio 2008. The screen captures are all
based on Windows Vista.

Features of This Text

Each chapter begins with identifiable objectives and a brief overview. Numerous
coding examples as well as hands-on projects with guidance for the planning and
coding appear throughout. Thought-provoking feedback questions give students
time to reflect on the current topic and to evaluate their understanding of the
details. The end-of-chapter items include a chapter summary, review questions,
programming exercises, and four case studies. The case studies provide a
continuing-theme exercise that may be used throughout the course.
Chapter 1, “Introduction to Programming and Visual C# 2008,”
introduces Microsoft’s Visual Studio integrated development environment
(IDE). The single environment is used for multiple languages. A step-by-
step program gets students into programming very quickly (quicker than
most books). The chapter introduces the OOP concepts of objects,
properties, methods, and events. The elements of debugging and using
the Help system also are introduced.
Chapter 2, “User Interface Design,” demonstrates techniques for good
program design, including making the interface easy for users as well as guide-
lines for designing maintainable programs. Several controls are introduced,
including text boxes, masked text boxes, rich text boxes, group boxes, check
boxes, radio buttons, and picture boxes. A new section covers the controls in
the Power Pack including PrintForm and the Shape and Line controls.
Bradley−Millspaugh: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill 5
Programming in Visual C# Companies, 2010
2008

P R E F A C E ix

Chapter 3, “Variables, Constants, and Calculations,” presents

the concepts of using data and declaring the data type. Students learn
to follow standards to indicate the data type of variables and constants
and to use the proper scope.
Error handling uses the try/catch/finally structure, which is
introduced in this chapter along with calculations. The student learns to
display error messages using the MessageBox class and also learns about
the OOP concept of overloaded constructors.
Chapter 4, “Decisions and Conditions,” introduces taking alternate
actions based on expressions formed with the relational and logical
operators. This chapter uses if statements to validate user input.
Multiple decisions are handled with both nested if statements and the
case structure (the switch statement).
The debugging features of the IDE are covered, including a step-
by-step exercise that covers stepping through program statements and
checking intermediate values during execution.
Chapter 5, “Menus, Common Dialog Boxes, and Methods,”
covers the concepts of writing and calling general methods. Students
learn to include both menus and context menus in projects, display
common dialog boxes, and use the input provided by the user.
Chapter 6, “Multiform Projects,” adds splash forms and About forms
to a project. Summary data are presented on a separate form.
Chapter 7, “Lists, Loops, and Printing,” incorporates list boxes and
combo boxes into projects, providing the opportunity to discuss looping
procedures and printing lists of information. Printing is accomplished in
.NET using a graphics object and a callback event. The printing controls
also include a Print Preview, which allows students and instructors to
view output without actually printing it.
Chapter 8, “Arrays,” introduces arrays, which follow logically from
the lists covered in Chapter 7. Students learn to use single- and
multidimension arrays, table lookups, structures, and arrays of structures.
Chapter 9, “Web Applications,” introduces programming using
Web Forms, which are used to create Web pages that execute in a
browser application. Students learn to design and develop simple
Web applications. CSS styles and AJAX provide the ability to create
improved, more efficient Web sites.
Chapter 10, “Database Applications,” introduces ADO.NET, which
is Microsoft’s technology for accessing data in a database. This chapter
shows how to create binding sources, table adapters, and datasets.
Programs include accessing data from both Windows Forms and Web
Forms. Students learn to bind data tables to a data grid and bind
individual data fields to controls such as labels and text boxes. LINQ is
used to query an array and a database.
Chapter 11, “Data Files,” presents the techniques for data file
handling. Students learn to save and read small amounts of data using
streams. The StreamWriter and StreamReader objects are used to store
and reload the contents of a combo box.
Chapter 12, “OOP: Creating Object-Oriented Programs,”
explains more of the theory of object-oriented programming. Although we
have been using OOP concepts since Chapter 1, in this chapter students
6 Bradley−Millspaugh: Front Matter Preface © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Companies, 2010
2008

x P R E F A C E

learn the terminology and application of OOP. Inheritance is covered for

visual objects (forms) and for extending existing classes. The samples are
kept simple enough for an introductory class.
Chapter 13, “Graphics, Animation, Sound, and Drag-and-Drop,”
covers the classes and methods of GDI+. The chapter covers graphics
objects, pens, and brushes for drawing shapes and lines. Animation is
accomplished using the Timer control and the SetBounds method for
moving controls. Students learn to play sounds using the SoundPlayer class.
Video files are played using Windows Media Player. Drag-and-drop events
are used to transfer images and the contents of a text box to a list box.
Chapter 14, “Additional Topics in C#,” introduces some advanced
programming topics. This final chapter covers validating user input using
Error Providers and the Validating event of controls. Students learn to
create applications using multiple document interfaces (MDI), create
toolbars and status bars using ToolStrip and StatusStrip controls, and add
Web content to a Windows Form using the WebBrowser control. The
code-snippet feature is introduced. Reading and writing XML text files
are covered. The chapter also covers LINQ to XML.
An introduction to Windows Presentation Framework (WPF) includes
using WPF Interoperability with a standard Windows Form and creating
a WPF Form project.
The appendixes offer important additional material. Appendix A holds
the answers to all Feedback questions. Appendix B covers methods for
dates, math, and string handling. In the OOP programming style, actions
are accomplished with methods of the Math class and String class.
Appendix C gives tips and shortcuts for mastering the Visual Studio
environment, and Appendix D discusses security issues for both Windows
and Web programming.

Thank You
Many people have worked very hard to design and produce this text. We would
like to thank our editors, Scott Davidson and Alaina Grayson. Our thanks also
to the many people who produced this text, including Marlena Pechan and
Betsy Blumenthal.
We greatly appreciate Robert Price and Peter van der Goes for their thor-
ough technical reviews, constructive criticism, and many valuable suggestions.
Thank you to Theresa Berry for her work on the exercise solutions. And, most
importantly, we are grateful to Dennis and Richard for their support and
understanding through the long days and busy phone lines.

The Authors
We have had fun writing about C#. We hope that this feeling is evident as you
read this book and that you will enjoy learning or teaching this outstanding
programming language.
Julia Case Bradley
Anita C. Millspaugh
Bradley−Millspaugh: Front Matter To the Student © The McGraw−Hill 7
Programming in Visual C# Companies, 2010
2008

TO THE STUDENT

The best way to learn to program in Visual C# is to do it. If you enter and run
the sample projects, you will be on your way to writing applications. Reading
the examples without trying to run them is like trying to learn a foreign lan-
guage or mathematics by just reading about it. Enter the projects, look up your
questions in the extensive MSDN Help files, and make those projects run.

Installing Visual C#
For the programs in this text, you need to install the .NET Framework v 3.5,
Visual C# 2008, and the MSDN (Microsoft Developers Network) library, which
contains all of Help and many instructive articles.
You can download the Express Edition of Visual C# and Visual Web De-
veloper from msdn.microsoft.com/express. Using these two products, you can
complete most of the exercises in this text.

Format Used for Visual C# Statements

Visual C# statements, methods, and functions are shown in this font. Any
values that you must supply are in italics.
As you work your way through this textbook, note that you may see a
subset of the available options for a C# statement or method. Generally, the
options that are included reflect those covered in the chapter. If you want to
see the complete format for any statement or all versions of a method, refer
to Help.
J.C.B.
A.C.M.

xi
8 Notes
 Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill 9
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

try
{
//C Convert
H A input
P T values
E R to numeric and assign
quantityInteger = int.Parse(quantityTextBox.T
try
{
1priceDecimal = decimal.Parse(priceTextBox
// Calculate values.
extendedPriceDecimal = quantityInteger *

Introduction to
discountDecimal = Decimal.Round(
(extendedPriceDecimal * DISCOUNT_RATE_
amountDueDecimal = extendedPriceDecimal -
Programming and
totalAmountDecimal += amountDueDecimal;
numberTransactionsInteger++;
Visual C# 2008
// Format and display answers.
extendedPriceTextBox.Text = extendedPrice
at the completion of this chapter, you will be able to . . .

1. Describe the process of visual program design and development.

2. Explain the term object-oriented programming.

3. Explain the concepts of classes, objects, properties, methods, and

events.

4. List and describe the three steps for writing a C# program.

5. Describe the various files that make up a C# project.

6. Identify the elements in the Visual Studio environment.

7. Define design time, run time, and debug time.

8. Write, run, save, print, and modify your first C# program.

9. Identify syntax errors, run-time errors, and logic errors.

10. Look up C# topics in Help.

10 Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

2 V I S U A L C# Introduction to Programming and Visual C# 2008

Writing Windows Applications with Visual C#

Using this text, you will learn to write computer programs that run in the
Microsoft Windows environment. Your projects will look and act like standard
Windows programs. You will use the tools in C# (C sharp) and Windows Forms
to create windows with familiar elements such as labels, text boxes, buttons,
radio buttons, check boxes, list boxes, menus, and scroll bars. Figure 1.1 shows
some sample Windows user interfaces.
Figure 1.1

Graphical user interfaces for

application programs designed
with C# and Windows Forms.
Labels Text boxes

Check box

Radio
buttons

Picture Buttons
box

Labels

Menu bar

Group box
Drop-down list
List box

Beginning in Chapter 9 you will create programs using Web Forms and
Visual Web Developer. You can run Web applications in a browser such as
Internet Explorer or Mozilla FireFox, on the Internet, or on a company intranet.
Figure 1.2 shows a Web Forms application.
You also will become acquainted with Microsoft’s new screen design tech-
nology, Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), which is covered in Chapter
14. WPF uses its own designer and design elements, which are different from
those used for Windows forms.
Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill 11
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

C H A P T E R 1 3

Figure 1.2

A Web Forms application

running in a browser.

The Windows Graphical User Interface

Microsoft Windows uses a graphical user interface, or GUI (pronounced
“gooey”). The Windows GUI defines how the various elements look and
function. As a C# programmer, you have available a toolbox of these ele-
ments. You will create new windows, called forms. Then you will use the
toolbox to add the various elements, called controls. The projects that you
will write follow a programming technique called object-oriented pro-
gramming (OOP).

Programming Languages—Procedural,
Event Driven, and Object Oriented
There are literally hundreds of programming languages. Each was developed to
solve a particular type of problem. Most traditional languages, such as BASIC,
C, COBOL, FORTRAN, PL/1, and Pascal, are considered procedural lan-
guages. That is, the program specifies the exact sequence of all operations.
Program logic determines the next instruction to execute in response to condi-
tions and user requests.
The newer programming languages such as C#, Java, and Visual Basic
(VB) use a different approach: object-oriented programming (OOP).
In the OOP model, programs are no longer procedural. They do not follow
a sequential logic. You, as the programmer, do not take control and determine
the sequence of execution. Instead, the user can press keys and click various
buttons and boxes in a window. Each user action can cause an event to occur,
which triggers a method (a set of programming statements) that you have writ-
ten. For example, the user clicks on a button labeled Calculate. The clicking
causes the button’s Click event to occur, and the program automatically jumps
to a method you have written to do the calculation.
12 Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

4 V I S U A L C# Introduction to Programming and Visual C# 2008

The Object Model

In C# you will work with objects, which have properties, methods, and events.
Each object is based on a class.

Objects
Think of an object as a thing, or a noun. Examples of objects are forms and
controls. Forms are the windows and dialog boxes you place on the screen;
controls are the components you place inside a form, such as text boxes, but-
tons, and list boxes.

Properties
Properties tell something about or control the behavior of an object such as
its name, color, size, or location. You can think of properties as adjectives that
describe objects. TIP
When you refer to a property, you first name the object, add a period, and The term members is used to refer to
then name the property. For example, refer to the Text property of a form called both properties and methods. ■
SalesForm as SalesForm.Text (pronounced “sales form dot text”).

Methods
Actions associated with objects are called methods. Methods are the verbs of
object-oriented programming. Some typical methods are Close, Show, and
Clear . Each of the predefined objects has a set of methods that you can
use. You will learn to write additional methods to perform actions in your
programs.
You refer to methods as Object.Method (“object dot method”). For exam-
ple, a Show method can apply to different objects: BillingForm.Show shows
the form object called BillingForm; exitButton.Show shows the button object
called exitButton.

Events
You can write methods that execute when a particular event occurs. An event
occurs when the user takes an action such as clicking a button, pressing a key,
scrolling, or closing a window. Events also can be triggered by actions of other
objects, such as repainting a form or a timer reaching a preset point.

Classes
A class is a template or blueprint used to create a new object. Classes contain
the definition of all available properties, methods, and events.
Each time that you create a new object, it must be based on a class. For
example, you may decide to place three buttons on your form. Each button is
based on the Button class and is considered one object, called an instance of the
class. Each button (or instance) has its own set of properties, methods, and
events. One button may be labeled “OK”, one “Cancel”, and one “Exit”. When
the user clicks the OK button, that button’s Click event occurs; if the user clicks
on the Exit button, that button’s Click event occurs. And, of course, you have
written different program instructions for each of the button’s Click events.

An Analogy
If the concepts of classes, objects, properties, methods, and events are still a
little unclear, maybe an analogy will help. Consider an Automobile class. When
Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill 13
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

C H A P T E R 1 5

we say automobile, we are not referring to a particular auto, but we know that
an automobile has a make and model, a color, an engine, and a number of
doors. These elements are the properties of the Automobile class.
Each individual auto is an object, or an instance of the Automobile class.
Each Automobile object has its own settings for the available properties. For
example, each Automobile object has a Color property, such as myAuto.Color =
Blue and yourAuto.Color = Red.
The methods, or actions, of the Automobile class might be Start, SpeedUp,
SlowDown, and Stop. To refer to the methods of a specific object of the class,
use myAuto.Start and yourAuto.Stop.
The events of an Automobile class could be Arrive or Crash. In a C# pro-
gram, you write event-handling methods that specify the actions you want to
take when a particular event occurs for an object. For example, you might write
a method to handle the yourAuto.Crash event.
Note: Chapter 12 presents object-oriented programming in greater depth.

Microsoft’s Visual Studio

The latest version of Microsoft’s Visual Studio, called Visual Studio 2008, in-
cludes C#, Visual C++, Visual Basic, and the .NET 3.5 Framework.

The .NET Framework

The programming languages in Visual Studio run in the .NET Framework. The
Framework provides for easier development of Web-based and Windows-based
applications, allows objects from different languages to operate together, and
standardizes how the languages refer to data and objects. Several third-party
vendors have produced versions of other programming languages to run in the
.NET Framework, including .NET versions of APL by Dyalog, FORTRAN by
Lahey Computer Systems, COBOL by Fujitsu Software Corporation, Pascal by
the Queensland University of Technology (free), PERL by ActiveState, RPG by
ASNA, and Java, known as IKVM.NET.
The .NET languages all compile to (are translated to) a common machine
language, called Microsoft Intermediate Language (MSIL). The MSIL code,
called managed code, runs in the Common Language Runtime (CLR), which is
part of the .NET Framework.

C#
Microsoft C# is a part of Visual Studio. You also can purchase C# by itself
(without the other languages but with the .NET Framework). C# is available in
an Express Edition, a Standard Edition, a Professional Edition, and four
specialized versions of Team System Editions for large enterprise application
development. You can find a matrix showing the features of each edition in
Help. Anyone planning to do professional application development that in-
cludes the advanced features of database management should use the Profes-
sional Edition or the Team System Database version. The full Professional
Edition is available to educational institutions through the Microsoft Academic
Alliance program and is the best possible deal. When a campus department
purchases the Academic Alliance, the school can install Visual Studio on all
classroom and lab computers and provide the software to all students and fac-
ulty at no additional charge. For more information, have your instructor visit:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/academic/default.aspx
14 Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

6 V I S U A L C# Introduction to Programming and Visual C# 2008

Microsoft provides an Express Edition of each of the programming lan-

guages, which you can download for free (www.microsoft.com/express/down-
load/). You can use Visual C# Express for Windows development and Visual
Web Developer Express for the Web applications in Chapters 9 and 10.
This text is based on the Professional Edition of Visual Studio 2008, the
current version. You cannot run the projects in this text in any earlier version
of C#.

Writing C# Programs
When you write a C# application, you follow a three-step process for planning
the project and then repeat the three-step process for creating the project. The
three steps involve setting up the user interface, defining the properties, and
then creating the code.

The Three-Step Process

Planning
1. Design the user interface. When you plan the user interface, you draw
a sketch of the screens the user will see when running your project. On
your sketch, show the forms and all the controls that you plan to use.
Indicate the names that you plan to give the form and each of the objects
on the form. Refer to Figure 1.1 for examples of user interfaces.
Before you proceed with any more steps, consult with your user and
make sure that you both agree on the look and feel of the project.
2. Plan the properties. For each object, write down the properties that you
plan to set or change during the design of the form.
3. Plan the C# code. In this step you plan the classes and methods that
will execute when your project runs. You will determine which events
require action to be taken and then make a step-by-step plan for those
actions.
Later, when you actually write the C# code, you must follow the
language syntax rules. But during the planning stage, you will write out
the actions using pseudocode, which is an English expression or
comment that describes the action. For example, you must plan for
the event that occurs when the user clicks on the Exit button. The
pseudocode for the event could be End the project or Quit.

Programming
After you have completed the planning steps and have approval from your user,
you are ready to begin the actual construction of the project. Use the same
three-step process that you used for planning.
1. Define the user interface. When you define the user interface, you create
the forms and controls that you designed in the planning stage.
Think of this step as defining the objects you will use in your
application.
Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill 15
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

C H A P T E R 1 7

2. Set the properties. When you set the properties of the objects, you give
each object a name and define such attributes as the contents of a label,
the size of the text, and the words that appear on top of a button and in
the form’s title bar.
You might think of this step as describing each object.
3. Write the code. You will use C# programming statements (called C#
code) to carry out the actions needed by your program. You will be sur-
prised and pleased by how few statements you need to create a powerful
Windows program.
You can think of this third step as defining the actions of your
program.

C# Application Files
A C# application, called a solution, can consist of one or more projects. Since
all of the solutions in this text have only one project, you can think of one
solution = one project. Each project can contain one or more form files. In
Chapters 1 through 5, all projects have only one form, so you can think of one
project = one form. Starting in Chapter 6, your projects will contain multiple
forms and additional files. As an example, the HelloWorld application that you
will create later in this chapter creates the following files:

File Name File Icon Description

HelloWorld.sln The solution file. A text file that holds

information about the solution and the projects
it contains. This is the primary file for the
solution—the one that you open to work on or
run your project. Note the “9” on the icon,
which refers to Visual Studio version 9.

HelloWorld.suo Solution user options file. Stores information

about the state of the integrated development
environment (IDE) so that all customizations
can be restored each time you open the
solution.

HelloForm.cs A .cs (C#) file that holds the code methods that
you write. This is a text file that you can open
in any editor. Warning: You should not modify
this file unless you are using the editor in the
Visual Studio environment.

HelloForm.Designer.cs A .cs (C#) file created by the Form Designer

that holds the definition of the form and its
controls. You should not modify this file
directly, but instead make changes in the
Designer and allow it to update the file.

HelloForm.resx A resource file for the form. This text file

defines all resources used by the form,
including strings of text, numbers, and any
graphics.
16 Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

8 V I S U A L C# Introduction to Programming and Visual C# 2008

File Name File Icon Description

HelloWorld.csproj The project file that describes the project and

lists the files that are included in the project.

HelloWorld.csproj.user The project user options file. This text file

holds IDE option settings so that the next time
you open the project, all customizations will be
restored.

Program.cs A .cs (C#) file that contains automatically

generated code that runs first when you execute
your application.

Note: You can display file extensions. In Windows Vista, open the Explorer and
select Organize / Folders and Search Options, click on the View tab and deselect
the check box for Hide extensions for known file types. In Windows XP, in the My
Computer Tools menu, select Folder Options and the View tab. Deselect the
check box for Hide extensions for known file types. If you do not display the
extensions, you can identify the file types by their icons.
After you run your project, you will find several more files created by the
system. The only file that you open directly is the .sln, or solution file.

The Visual Studio Environment

The Visual Studio environment is where you create and test your projects.
A development environment such as Visual Studio is called an integrated
development environment (IDE). The IDE consists of various tools, includ-
ing a form designer, which allows you to visually create a form; an editor, for
entering and modifying program code; a compiler, for translating the C# state-
ments into the intermediate machine code; a debugger, to help locate and cor-
rect program errors; an object browser, to view the available classes, objects,
properties, methods, and events; and a Help facility.
In versions of Visual Studio prior to .NET, each language had its own IDE.
For example, to create a Visual Basic project you would use the Visual Basic
IDE, and to create a C++ project you would use the C++ IDE. But in Visual
Studio, you use the one IDE to create projects in any of the supported
languages.

Default Environment Settings

The full version of Visual Studio 2008 provides an option that allows the
programmer to select the default profile for the IDE. The first time you open
Visual Studio, you are presented with the Choose Default Environment Settings
dialog box (Figure 1.3), where you can choose Visual C# Development Settings.
This text uses the Visual C# settings.
Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill 17
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

C H A P T E R 1 9

Figure 1.3

The first time you open the

Visual Studio IDE, you must
select the default environment
settings for Visual C#
development.

Note: If you plan to develop in more than one language, such as VB and
C#, you can save each group of settings and switch back and forth between the
two. Select Tools / Import and Export Settings and choose to Reset all settings.

The IDE Initial Screen

When you open the Visual Studio IDE, you generally see an empty environ-
ment with a Start Page (Figure 1.4). However, it’s easy to customize the envi-
ronment, so you may see a different view. In the step-by-step exercise later in
this chapter, you will learn to reset the IDE layout to its default view.
The contents of the Start Page vary, depending on whether you are con-
nected to the Internet. Microsoft has included links that can be updated, so you
may find new and interesting information on the Start Page each time you open
it. To display or hide the Start Page, select View / Other Windows / Start Page.
You can open an existing project or begin a new project using the Start
Page or the File menu. The examples in this text use the menus.

The New Project Dialog

You will create your first C# projects by selecting File / New Project, which
opens the New Project dialog (Figure 1.5). In the New Project dialog, you may
need to expand the node for Other Languages, depending on your installation.
Under Visual C#, select Windows, and in the Templates pane, select Windows
Forms Application. You also give the project a name in this dialog. Deselect the
check box for Create directory for solution, which creates an extra level of folders
for our single-project solutions.
18 Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

10 V I S U A L C# Introduction to Programming and Visual C# 2008

Figure 1.4

The Visual Studio IDE with the Start Page open, as it first appears in Windows Vista, without an open project. You can close
the Start Page by clicking on its Close button.
Close button for
Start Page

Figure 1.5

Select the Windows Forms Begin a new C# Windows

Application template project using the Windows
Forms Application template.

Enter the project name

Select Visual C# Windows
Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill 19
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

C H A P T E R 1 11

The IDE Main Window

Figure 1.6 shows the Visual Studio environment’s main window and its various
child windows. Note that each window can be moved, resized, opened, closed, and
customized. Some windows have tabs that allow you to display different contents.
Your screen may not look exactly like Figure 1.6; in all likelihood, you will want
to customize the placement of the various windows. The Designer and Editor win-
dows are generally displayed in tabs in the center of the screen (the Document
window), and the various tool windows are docked along the edges and bottom of
the IDE, but the locations and the docking behavior are all customizable.
The IDE main window holds the Visual Studio menu bar and the toolbars.
You can display or hide the various windows from the View menu.
Figure 1.6

The Visual Studio environment. Each window can be moved, resized, closed, or customized.

The Toolbars
You can use the buttons on the toolbars as shortcuts for frequently used opera-
tions. Each button represents a command that also can be selected from a menu.
Figure 1.7a shows the toolbar buttons on the Standard toolbar for the Profes-
sional Edition, which displays in the main window of the IDE; Figure 1.7b shows
the Layout toolbar, which is useful for designing forms in the Form Designer; and
Figure 1.7c shows the Text Editor toolbar, which contains buttons to use in the
Editor window. Select View / Toolbars to display or hide these and other toolbars.
20 Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

12 V I S U A L C# Introduction to Programming and Visual C# 2008

Figure 1.7

The Visual Studio toolbars contain buttons that are shortcuts for menu commands. You can display or hide each of the
toolbars: a. the Standard toolbar; b. the Layout toolbar; and c. the Text Editor toolbar.
Ne
Ad Pro
Op Ne t
Sa en F Ite
Sa F
Cu e A e
Co t
Pa y
Unste
Re
Na
Na igat

So

So

Fi

So
Pr utio
Ob er x
To ject ies lor
St lbo Bro ind r
ar x ws o
nd

op n E

o
ve ile m
v il

lu

lu

l
p
w

do
v
vi e B
d jec

do

tP
tio

tio
ga a

t p

ag
te ck

n
ll
w

Co

Pl

e
Fo wa

W e
at
nf
rw rd

fo

er w
ig
ar

rm
ur
d

s
at
io
(a)

ns
Al

Al
Al Le
Al C
Al Rig rs
Al To
Al Mi
M Bo es
M e Sa ms
M e Sa e W
Si Sa e H th
M o G Siz t
In Ho
De ease zon
Re reas ori Sp

M ve H oriz tal S g E
In e
De ease cal l Sp cin
Re eas erti acin ing
Ce ve erti Spa qu
Ce er H tic Sp g

Br r Ve zont aci g
Se o
M oB t
Ta e Ce k
ig

ig
ig ft
ig en
ig
ig ps
ig dd
ak tto
ak m
ak m id
ze m ei
ak ri e

ak

er
cr ri

cr rti nta pa g

b
in rti al ng
nd Fr ly
nt Ver cal cin al
nt or al S aci
c H tal
m e H zon aci

cr V Sp ac g
m e V cal g E
n

n
n
n te
n hts
n
n

g ac
Or lls
e

e V oriz nta pac ual

g T ca ly
o

e i
T e gh

T
to

de
Gr

r
s
id

on
o

l
o

p n
l S
n

i n
q

(b)

Co Un
Di
Di play
Di lay bje
Di lay aram Me
De lay uic eter ber
In reas ord Info fo ist

M le
M e To ook
M ve T Pre ark
M e T Ne ous
M e T Pre Bo ook
M e T Nex ous ma ark
Cl e T Prev Boo ook
To

m co
ov B
o
ov o vi
ov o xt B
ov o vi ok m
ov o t B rk

m m
cr e C

ea o N io km m
s
sp O
sp P ct
sp Q

gg
c W

en m
ea In om

r B e us a ark

t O en
se de p

oo xt B Bo rk i in

ut t th
In nt let

km oo ok n C
de

th e
m

ar km ma Cu urr
k

nt

e S Se
ks a rk rre en

el lec
m

ec te
In L

te d
rk i n t
io

d Li
n

Li ne
in n C t F Fol

ne s
Cu ur old de

s
rre ren er r
nt t D
Do oc
cu um
m en
en t
t

(c)

The Document Window

The largest window in the center of the screen is the Document window. TIP
Notice the tabs across the top of the window, which allow you to switch between Use Ctrl + Tab to switch to another
open documents. The items that display in the Document window include the open document in the Document
Form Designer, the Code Editor, the Project Designer, the Database Designer, window. ■
and the Object Browser.
You can switch from one tab to another, or close any of the documents
using its Close button.

The Form Designer

The Form Designer is where you design a form that makes up your user in-
terface. In Figure 1.6, the Form Designer for Form1 is currently displaying.
You can drag the form’s sizing handles or selection border to change the size of
the form.
Bradley−Millspaugh: 1. Introduction to Text © The McGraw−Hill 21
Programming in Visual C# Programming and Visual Companies, 2010
2008 C# 2008

C H A P T E R 1 13

When you begin a new C# Windows application, a new form is added to

the project with the default name Form1. In the step-by-step exercise later in
the chapter, you will learn to change the form’s name.

The Solution Explorer Window

The Solution Explorer window holds the filenames for the files included in
your project and a list of the classes it references. The Solution Explorer window
and the environment’s title bar hold the name of your solution (.sln) file, which is
WindowsFormsApplication1 by default unless you give it a new value in the New
Project dialog box. In Figure 1.6, the name of the solution is MyFirstProject.

The Properties Window

You use the Properties window to set the properties for the objects in your TIP
project. See “Set Properties” later in this chapter for instructions on changing You can sort the properties in the
properties. window either alphabetically or by
categories. Use the buttons on the
Properties window. ■
The Toolbox
The toolbox holds the tools you use to place controls on a form. You may have
more or different tools in your toolbox, depending on the edition of C# you are
using (Express, Standard, Professional, or Team System). Figure 1.8 shows the
toolbox.
Figure 1.8

The toolbox for Visual Studio

Windows Forms. Your toolbox
may have more or fewer tools,
Common controls for
Windows Forms depending on the edition you
are using.

TIP
You can sort the tools in the tool-
box: Right-click the toolbox and se-
lect Sort Items Alphabetically from
the context menu (the shortcut
menu). ■

Scroll to see more

controls
Random documents with unrelated
content Scribd suggests to you:
face in such a funny way that her mother broke into a little laugh.
Then her face sobered and she came slowly towards her.
“No, daughter mine, mother is not weeping. Yes, I heard what you
and Dick said, and you are patriots, and have shamed mother into
trying to be one, too.” Mrs. Page took the girl in her arms with
tender affection.
“And Dick is a dear lad. Oh, Nathalie, in our grief at the thought of
parting with him,—perhaps of losing him,—” her voice weakened
slightly, “we have forgotten that he has been fighting a greater
battle than we.
“It is surely a great thing,” continued Mrs. Page sadly, “for a young
man in the buoyancy of youth and the very heyday of life, to give it
all up. For youth clings more tenaciously to life than older people do,
for to them it is an untried and shining pathway, flowered with hope,
anticipation, and the luring glimmer of unfulfilled aims and
ambitions.
“And then to have to face about,” her voice lowered, “and silently
struggle with one’s self in the great battle of self-abnegation, to end
by taking this glorious life and casting it far behind you,—this is what
makes a hero. Then to face the dread ordeal of a battlefield, and go
steadily forward, buoyed only with a feeling of bravery,—the heroism
of doing what you believe to be right,—and, taking your one chance
for life in your hands,—plunge into the unknown darkness and the
horrifying perils of a No Man’s Land.”
There was a stifled sob in Nathalie’s throat, but her mother went
steadily on: “No, Nathalie, we must not weep. We must smile and be
cheerful. We must inspire Dick with courage and hope, and if it is
meant that he is to give his life, we must let him go with a ‘God
speed you,’ his memory starred with the thought of a mother’s love
and a sister’s courage, and with the soul-stirring song of the victor
over death.
“And, Nathalie, Dick belongs to God; he was only loaned to me,—to
you,—and if the time has come for God to call him home, we must
not complain. We must gladly give him back. Then we must
remember, too,” went on the patient mother-voice, “that, after all,
life is not the mere living of it, but the things accomplished for the
betterment of those who come after. And if Dick has been ‘on the
job,’” Mrs. Page smiled, “no matter how small his share in this great
warfare for the right, he will be the better prepared to enter into the
Land where there is no more suffering, or horrible war, but just a
glorious and eternal peace.”
The last word was almost whispered, but, with renewed effort, she
said: “Now, Nathalie, let us be brave, as father would have had us,—
the dear father,—and go down to Dick with a bright smile and
inspiring words of cheer.” Mrs. Page bent and kissed the girl lightly,
but solemnly, on the forehead, and then she had turned and was
making her way towards the door.
 CHAPTER II

GIVING HER BEST

“As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free.”

Nathalie sat in the big rocker on the veranda, sewing a star on a

service-flag. Yes, as soon as Dick had gone to do his “stunt,” as he
called it, in the great warfare,—gone with all the honors of war, as
his mother had laughingly declared as he kissed them a noisy good-
by,—Nathalie had felt that it was incumbent upon her to sustain the
honor of the family, and had run lightly up to the attic. Here, in the
big piece-trunk she found a bundle of Turkey red, a bit of white, and
then, after begging a snip of blue from Helen for the star, she had
set to work.
She was sure that star would not come off, for she had double-
stitched into every angle and on every point. She held up the
patriotic square, bordered with red, and sorrowfully stared at that
one lone star, although a thrill of pride stirred at her heart and
caused her eyes to beam.
She must hang it up. And then she was busy tacking the little flag to
a small staff, which she had fastened to the roof of the porch so it
could be seen. Ah, the wind had caught it, and it was waving in a
salute to its many mates curling from the neighboring porches, and
to the Red Cross insignias that starred a window here and there,
ofttimes overshadowed by the graceful sweep of the Stars and
Stripes.
But Nathalie’s heart was still sore, for although she had given up
Dick with as good a grace as she could muster, and had tried to
show that she possessed the true American spirit, yet it did seem as
if it was a needless sacrifice. With a sudden turn on her heel, the girl
burst into a new patriotic air that she had heard somewhere, as if
hoping that it would drive away the rebellious thoughts that jarred
her attempt at cheer, and hurried into the kitchen.
As Nathalie stepped to the window and stared carelessly out, her
eyes were caught by the gleam of yellow crocus and purple hyacinth
as they peeped up at her from their beds of green. Somehow their
flaunting colors reminded her of the spring blooms that used to nod
so gayly to her from the flower-beds in her beautiful city home in the
upper part of New York.
She could hardly believe it was a year since her father’s death. The
poignant grief she had suffered then again caused her eyes to fill
with tears, and her mind dwelt upon the sorrowful circumstances
surrounding her loss, the changes that had followed, in their
financial losses, and the many sacrifices it had entailed.
She again saw the sorrowful farewell to the first and only home she
had ever known; she again felt the grief that came to her in the
giving up of the many things that had made life so happy,—her
schoolmates, her many enjoyments, and her hope of going to
college. She again experienced the dolefulness that had assailed her
mother, her brother Dick, her younger sister, Dorothy, and herself, on
their coming to the humble cottage home in Westport, the being
associated with strangers, and the many people who at first had
seemed so different from their city associates.
Yes, there was the tree where she had found the nest of bluebirds.
The girl’s eyes gleamed amusedly as she peered down the garden at
the old cedar tree, and remembered that she had called them blue
robins, thus giving Dick an opportunity to nickname her, Blue Robin.
Nathalie attempted to smile, but the thought of Dick’s going away
aroused her slumbering grief, and once more the tears flowed
silently down her cheeks. But she bravely brushed them away and
went on with her reminiscences,—the remembrance of spraining her
ankle up in the woods, and how it had led to her meeting Helen
Dame, her next-door neighbor, and now her dearest friend.
How lovely Grace Tyson had looked that day, and dear old Barbara
with her near-sighted eyes, and the girls’ favorite, Lillie Bell, with her
gracious charm and dramatic poses. The girl smiled again as she
remembered Edith Whiton, the sport, and her harum-scarum
oddities. Yes, they were all dear girls. And how glad she was that
she had become a Pioneer, and a real blue robin, by joining the Blue
Bird group.
And what a dear Mrs. Morrow, the Pioneer director, was that day the
Pioneers called. Oh, that was the day the “Mystic” had passed. Who
would have thought she would turn out to be Mrs. Van Vorst, who
was so lovely. And that ride with Dr. Morrow to the big gray house,
and then she mentally saw herself, with that handkerchief over her
eyes, talking to the Princess, Nita, the little hunchbacked girl. And
what good friends they had become through those history lessons!
The many useful things she had learned from the Pioneer hikes and
crafts, and the joys she had experienced from their many sports and
activities had certainly proved worth while. And the “overcomes” she
had fought for by adopting the Pioneer motto, “I can,” had certainly
meant something in her life.
But they did have gloriously good times at Camp Laff-a-Lot at Eagle
Lake, with the Boy Scouts, Miss Camphelia, Miss Dummy, and all the
other good sports. Then, too, there was the surprise, on her return
to learn the good that had come to Dick through the money so
kindly loaned by Mrs. Van Vorst. Indeed, that one year had brought
many new things into her life, for—O dear, there was all that silver
to be cleaned! For, now that her mother kept no maid, this duty, with
many other menial tasks, had devolved upon Nathalie. Oh, how she
hated that job!
With a resigned air, however, she managed to carry the basket of
silver from the sideboard to the kitchen table, and then returned to
the dining-room for the tea-service. After getting her cleaning cloths,
her brushes, and the scouring-powder, with vigorous determination
she began to rub and polish.
But somehow everything acted aggravatingly mean, for she dropped
the polish, and the powder flew all over; then she knocked the tray
and the knives and forks clattered to the floor. O dear! what ailed
things anyway? And how her arms ached trying to polish those
horrid tarnished stains on the teapot! The tableware had never
seemed so obdurate, nor the means for making it bright so utterly
ineffective.
“Oh, I guess I am the one who is ailing,” she exclaimed glumly, as
she suddenly realized that her mind was not on her task, and that
the elation of playing at being a patriot had departed, with Dick
evidently, leaving her as limp as a rag. Oh, it does seem such a
shame that we had to get into that war—Nathalie bit off her thought
like a thread, resolved not to let her mind dwell on that forbidden
topic. But how angelic her mother had acted when Dick went. Well,
she was a dear, anyway, so brave. But suppose he never should
come back after all. Something suddenly seemed to snap in the girl’s
breast, and down went her head on the tray, into a heap of powder,
while a great sob strangled out of her throat.
O horrors! Nathalie’s brown head bobbed up from the tray, not very
serenely either, for she had heard a step on the kitchen porch. Oh,
Helen always came in that way! “Where is my handkerchief?” The
girl grabbed desperately at something white lying on the tray, dimly
seen through a blur of tears, and began to scrub her nose
energetically with alas, not her handkerchief, but the powder-cloth
with which she had been polishing the silver! “Ah chee! Ah chee!”
sneezed Nathalie again and again, while groping frenziedly, but
blindly, for her handkerchief. She must have dropped it. And then
Helen’s arms were around her, and she was kissing the flushed
cheek.
“What’s struck you, honey girl?” she asked in that gentle way of
hers. “Have you got the influenza? But here’s a very necessary
article at times, if that’s what you’re after,” she finished with a laugh,
as she stooped and picked up Nathalie’s handkerchief from the floor.
“Influenza? No,” blurted out Nathalie savagely, tortured to a pitch of
desperation at her unfortunate predicament. “I’ve been rubbing my
nose with that dirty old piece of rag I clean the silver with. Serves
me right, I suppose, for being such a fool as to cry when I should be
‘on my job,’ as Dick says.” She shamefacedly tried to hide her red
eyes from her friend’s keen gaze.
“Oh, well, it will do you good to cry, Nathalie, dear,” advised Helen
softly, as she stroked the brown head caressingly, “for you were
quite a heroine when Dick went away, so courageous and cheery.
Mrs. Morrow says you are the nerviest Pioneer she knows.”
“But I’m not,” confessed Nathalie honestly, “in fact, I’m beginning to
think that I’m a bluff. But anyway, I’m glad to get a bit of praise,
something to warm me up, for I have felt like a congealed icicle for
the last few days. Yes, I have smiled and smiled like the poor
Spartan boy, while the fox of Grief was gnawing a hole into my
internals. That sounds like one of Lillie Bell’s dramatics, doesn’t it?”
she smiled pathetically into her friend’s kindly eyes.
“But, Helen, you are a dear, anyway,” cried Nathalie in a sudden
burst of admiration for her tried and trusted friend, who was always
such a stanch and timely comforter. “And do you know,” she added,
swinging about in her chair with the teapot in one hand and the
despised polishing-cloth in the other, “you grow better-looking every
day. Oh, I think you are just lovely!”
“I lovely?” mocked Helen, opening her eyes in surprise at this
unexpected praise. “Well, Blue Robin, what started you on that trail?
You must have been kissing the Blarney Stone, for you are handing
me out ‘the stuff,’ as the boys say, for fair. Poor me, with a knob on
my nose, a wide mouth, and green eyes—to call me lovely is a libel
on the word.”
“Oh, Helen, your eyes are just lovely—every one says that, for they
are so expressive,” retorted her friend loyally; “and as for the knob
on your nose, no one would know it was there if you weren’t
constantly telling them about it. But I don’t care what you look like
anyway,” she added determinedly, “for I think you are a love of a
friend. But when do you go to France?” she finished abruptly.
“I don’t quite know yet,” replied the girl; “perhaps not until a month
or so. But mother is brave about letting me go. She says it will be a
fine experience for me,—as long as I don’t have to go ‘over the top.’
Oh, you finished your service-flag! It’s a Jim Dandy!” Helen plunged
recklessly into another topic, again blaming herself for her trick of
alluding to forbidden subjects, for she had seen Nathalie’s lips quiver
as she said “Over the top.”
“Yes, I finished it, and now the neighbors know where we stand,
even if you consider me a pacifist,” said the girl a little defiantly.
“Well, perhaps I shall think differently some day,” with a quickly
repressed sigh.
“Yes, and that day is coming very soon, too, Blue Robin,” rejoined
Helen; “for I’ll bet you a box of candy that you won’t be a pacifist
after you hear Mrs. Morrow talk on liberty. Surely you haven’t
forgotten that we are to go to a Liberty Tea at her house this
afternoon?” she inquired as she saw her friend’s face settle down
into an expression of gloom.
“Oh, I don’t think I’ll go,” retorted Nathalie quickly, “for I don’t feel a
bit Pioneery this morning, and then I have all this silver to clean.”
“But, Blue Robin,” returned her friend cheerily, “I’m going to help
you finish up that silver, and then I’m going home to dress for this
afternoon. Then I’m coming over here and just make you go to that
Liberty Tea with me. You know, Nathalie, it would be mean for you
to desert Mrs. Morrow,” she added wisely, “for you are the leader of
the band and should help to entertain the girls.”
Whereupon, Helen caught up one of Nathalie’s kitchen-aprons, and a
few moments later the two girls were laughing and chatting in the
best of spirits, as they rubbed and polished with youthful ardor,
every bone and muscle keyed to its task.
Yes, it was enlivening to be so warmly welcomed by her hostess,
Nathalie decided, as she greeted her a little later in the afternoon,
and her depression vanished. And how perfectly lovely Mrs. Morrow
looked in that blue gown; yes, it was just the color of her blue-gray
eyes. Under the fascination of this lady’s charming personality
Nathalie was soon flying about, showing the girls how to start
sweaters, or to purl, as this task had been delegated to her by the
director, who herself had taught Nathalie.
When the tea was served it was Nathalie who occupied the place of
honor at the little tea-table, decorated with the United States flag,
and who dispensed the dainty little china cups filled with what was
patriotically called Liberty Tea in honor of the young ladies who had
given it its name over a hundred years ago, and who the Pioneers
had impersonated last year in their entertainment of “Liberty
Banners.”
After the teacups had been removed, and one or two
announcements of coming events had been made, Mrs. Morrow,
with sudden gravity, said:
“We have gathered here to-day, girls, to commemorate the Spirit of
Liberty, the one great principle that has budded like Aaron’s rod, and
brought forth other qualities as splendid and compelling as itself, as,
for example, the principles represented in our national emblem. The
principle of humanity, which means living the Golden Rule by taking
thought for your neighbor; democracy, the equal rights of mankind,
which in turn gives rise to justice, loyalty, and unity,—the principles
that have not only given us that wonderful, mystical something
called Americanism, but the principles that mean the Christianity of
Christ.”
After the girls had discussed the meaning of liberty and summed it
up as standing for man’s right to self-expression, either by words or
actions, and made it clear that it had to be governed by the law of
self-control, as too much freedom would mean license or
lawlessness, Mrs. Morrow continued her little talk.
“Liberty is not something that sprang into being with the coming of
the settlers to America, for it is as old as man himself; but under the
rule of king-ridden states it has been fighting its way through many
long centuries, because the peoples of the Old World failed to grasp
its meaning.
“Under the stimulus of the Reformation and the Revival of Learning,
induced by the printing of the Bible and other books, the early
comers to America, as they endeavored to worship God as they
thought right, not only left the intolerant forms and bigoted
narrowness of the Old World, but threw the first light on liberty by
teaching man his right to freedom of the soul. The Pilgrims and
Puritans were the Pioneers of liberty, for they not only gave us
religious freedom, but, by establishing a government for and by the
people without the aid of king or bishop, laid the cornerstone of a
great commonwealth, and gave us democratic liberty.
“If you girls would make a study of the history of the Thirteen
Colonies,” went on their director, “you would learn that not only each
Colony contributed to the principles embodied in every stripe, star,
and color of our spangled banner, but that a universal love of
freedom seems to have animated the settlers. Each individual group,
to be sure, had its own peculiar belief, but, in the working-out of
their cherished ideals and aspirations, liberty was the bone and
sinew of every colony.
“It was under the influence of these early settlers—the giving of
their best to mankind in their struggles for freedom—that the ideals
and beliefs of the New World were molded into higher and better
institutions, purified and strengthened by a new significance. Their
ideals and aspirations were essentially different from anything known
before,—ideals peculiar to this soil, which were absolutely American,
not only in religious freedom, but in the institutions of local
government and the union of all states into one, which gave rise to
the United States of America.
“Now we have come to the great subject of the hour, the war, and a
question I have heard several of you girls ask, ‘Why are we in the
war?’”
Nathalie felt her face redden, and shifted uneasily in her seat. O
dear! she did wish she had not come. Of course the talk was very
interesting, but still she didn’t want to think of this terrible war.
“I have heard it said,” pursued Mrs. Morrow, “that we are in the war
to avenge the sinking of the Lusitania, and that we must not allow
the Germans to break the international law by killing our sailors and
seamen. I have heard it said, too, that if they conquered the Allies
they would come over here and fight us. These are all sufficient
reasons in a sense.”
The lady paused, and then, with grave solemnity, said: “And I have
heard it put forth that we are in the war to maintain our national
honor and integrity. I think I hear some of you girls say, ‘But we
haven’t done any wrong: we have kept neutral; our principles are
not involved.’”
Nathalie’s eyes were aglow as she bent forward, and with parted lips
anxiously awaited Mrs. Morrow’s reply to this question.
“Now that we realize the depth and grandeur of the principles given
to us by the founders of this nation, and know that every time our
flag is unfurled it tells the world that religious and democratic liberty
were born on these shores of America, are we going back on these
principles? Are we going to allow other nations to say that our
principles are just in the flying of our colors, that they stand for
nothing but self-praise and the nation’s glorification?
“No,” cried the lady with grave emphasis, “by our love for our flag,
by our love for our birth-land, by our reverence for the men who
taught us these principles we swear to defend every time we hoist
our colors, we must get into this war. We must prove that our flag is
in the right place, and that we carry it in our hearts. We must strive
to show with our soul’s might that we are living these principles by
being true to ourselves and to our nation’s honor, and carry our
feelings into action.
“We must forget self, our desire for selfish ease and pleasure. We
must align ourselves with the suffering masses of people across the
sea, and help them to rid themselves of the iron-shod heel of one-
man power. We must stand side by side with the Allies for humanity,
democracy, and liberty. We must show the world that the so-called
divine right of kings is a worn-out belief of savagery, and prove by
the principles back of our flag, prove by the living of these principles,
the sacredness of God’s heritage to man, the right of the world’s
people to know, as we know, the principles that have made us the
freest people in the world.
“Each one of you girls must not only do your bit, but must give of
your best to your brothers and sisters over the sea. And if the best
means the giving-up of those who are so dear to us, we must prove
that we are true daughters of liberty, and send them forth cheerfully,
to give freedom and liberty to the world.”
There was an impressive silence, and then Mrs. Morrow’s voice
broke into song. In another moment the girls had joined their voices
with hers, and were loudly sounding forth the old-time tune and the
well-beloved words:

“In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you and me;
As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.

“He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before his judgment seat;
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant, my feet;
Our God is marching on!”

Later in the afternoon, as the girls hurried happily out from the
white house on the corner, each one chatting merrily, intent on
telling what she had done or intended to do for the war, Nathalie
alone was silent, weighed down, as it were, by a strange sense of
shame. Yes, she had been blindly selfish, and had failed to realize
the momentousness of the great questions of the day. When she
had been called upon, to give love and sympathy to her neighbors,
the poor suffering masses of people over seas, she had selfishly
turned her back to the call—she had failed to show herself a
daughter of liberty. Why, she was not a patriot,—no, not even an
American; and in the spirit, if not in the letter, she had dishonored
Dick, yes, and her father, who had always been so steadfast and true
to everything that was American.
That night Nathalie could not sleep, but tossed restlessly from side
to side, as parts of Mrs. Morrow’s speech kept forcing themselves
upon her memory. And just as she had succeeded in driving them
away, and also the remorseful thought that she had not given her
best, that she had failed to show greatness, the song the girls had
sung that afternoon, with the luring, old-time air and the soul-
stirring words, flashed with vivid distinctness:

“As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.”

The girl sat up in bed, and in a crooning whisper hummed the whole
verse through, repeating again and again,

“As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free.”

The beauty as well as the significance of the words had made their
appeal. Christ had died to make men holy; she must give of her best
to make men free. She must show herself great, but what could she
do?
But even as the question came, so flashed the answer, and Nathalie
was again softly humming,
 “Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant, my feet;
Our God is marching on.”

And then suddenly a thought stamped itself upon her mind. The girl
caught her breath. Yes, she had given Dick up because she had
been forced to do so, but now she would make the sacrifice, give
the best of herself; she would stop once and forever all useless
repining. She would keep herself cheered by the thought that she
was glad—she gritted her teeth determinedly—that she had Dick to
give to help make people free.
Yes, but she must do something—she must give her best; no, it
might not be anything very great or big, but she must show she was
a true daughter of liberty. Ah, she knew what she could do, and then
Nathalie fell back on her pillow, and although she lay very still, her
brain was alert, thinking and planning. Yes, she could get the girls
together; she would begin the very next morning. She would have
every one in it, for liberty wouldn’t be liberty unless it was free to all.
And then one thought and another kept popping into her mind, until
finally the tired brain went on a strike and refused to register any
more thoughts, and Nathalie, without a word of protest, tumbled
into the land o’ dreams.
The next morning she was up betimes, and was soon singing
cheerily at her work, every now and then stopping in the midst of
some favored melody, to repeat softly,

“As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free.”

In such a state of cheerfulness time flew swiftly, and soon Nathalie

was up in the attic writing a note. Yes, it sounded all right, she
decided as she read it over slowly. And then her hand was again
flying over the paper, and another note was written, and then
another, and still another, until, with a sigh of relief, Nathalie found
that she had them all finished. No, she wasn’t going to leave any
one out. Quickly gathering up the notes the girl was off, running
lightly down the stairs, and then flying swiftly across the lawn to see
what Helen would think of the thing she had planned in the stillness
of the night.
 CHAPTER III

THE LIBERTY GIRLS

“Yes, we must prove that we have the true spirit of liberty, the spirit
of humanity,” Nathalie spoke very earnestly, “and that is why I have
asked Marie Katzkamof to belong to the club. She is the little lame
girl, you know who she is; she sits at the news-stand on the corner
of Main and West streets, and sells the papers when her father is at
business. She is always knitting—sweaters for the soldiers, she says.
It makes me feel ashamed when I realize how hard she works to do
her ‘little bit.’”
“You are right, Nathalie,” replied Helen thoughtfully, “for you have
struck something big in your idea that we are all Americans, and
that the club should be free to all. But hurry over, and see what Mrs.
Morrow has to say. I believe she’ll think the whole scheme is fine.”
But Nathalie was already at the door, her brown eyes sparkling with
suppressed excitement, and her cheeks flushed with the soft pink
that all the girls admired, and some envied. And then she was
making her way across the road to the white house on the corner,
still softly humming,

“As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free.”

The Tuesday that Nathalie had designated in her notes to the invited
girls had arrived, and the girl, somewhat pale from nervousness, was
standing before a small table in the living-room of her home. Facing
her were a dozen or more girls, all more or less in an attitude of
expectant interest as they sat, some on chairs, others on the couch
in the hall, while the Pioneers, as was their wont when chairs were
limited, were seated in a circle on the floor.
“Now, girls,” cried Nathalie, determined to plunge ahead and get the
thing started before her enthusiasm and nerves collapsed to a
frazzle, as she told Helen afterward, “I have asked you all here to-
day, to form a club in the interest of liberty. The Girl Pioneers know
just how big a thing liberty is, for they had the pleasure of hearing
Mrs. Morrow, our Pioneer director, in her little talk on liberty. Oh,
Lillie Bell, would you mind repeating what you remember of Mrs.
Morrow’s speech?” Nathalie broke off abruptly, turning towards that
young lady, one of the most popular of the Pioneer girls. “I know
you have a good memory, Lillie,” Nathalie pleaded, “and are such a
good elocutionist that you can do it better than any one else I
know.”
This calling upon Lillie Bell was a stroke of finesse on the part of
Nathalie. For Lillie, when she had learned that the club was to be so
democratic that the daughter of her newsdealer, a Russian Jew, had
been invited, had loftily declared that although she was a good
American, and wanted to do all she could for liberty, well, she didn’t
know that she cared to chum with all the Jews in the town.
Nathalie had been keenly alive to the desirability of having Lillie a
member, because she was not only bright and efficient, but because
she was such a good entertainer. This declaration of Lillie’s, however,
had caused her spirits to fall below zero, and she began to fear that
the whole thing would prove a fizzle. But when so many girls had
responded to her invitation, all keyed to expectant curiosity—Lillie
among them—her spirits had taken a leap into the nineties.
Immediately her alert mind had begun to plan in what way, and
how, she could interest Lillie in the club, so that she would take an
active part in its doings. And here was her chance.
Lillie Bell, with her usual timely poise, gracefully and smilingly rose
to the occasion. In her most luring manner she not only repeated
Mrs. Morrow’s speech, but interpreted it with such a stirring
American spirit, that not only was Nathalie electrified, but the whole
audience were inspired to such a pitch of enthusiasm that they
broke into hearty applause.
As soon as the clamor subsided, Nathalie cried earnestly, “Now that
we all know what liberty means, and the possibilities that lie before
us, I propose that we form ourselves into a club to be known as ‘The
Liberty Girls.’”
Another outburst of approval brought the speaker to a halt, but only
for a moment, and then she went on smilingly, “Well, I am glad that
you like the name, for it means something.” Then she briefly told of
the seventeen young girls, who, over a hundred and fifty years ago,
had formed a club called “The Daughters of Liberty.”
“They did their bit,” smiled the girl, “by sewing all day on homespun
garments to prove that the colonies could be independent of the
mother-country, and swore that they would drink no tea until the tax
had been removed. They also declared that they would have nothing
to do with any of their young gentlemen friends who dared to drink
the detested beverage.
“But, girls,” said Nathalie rather hurriedly, as she stepped from
behind the little table, “if we are to form ourselves into a club, we
shall have to have a chairman, for although the idea originated with
me, that does not mean that you have got to have me for a leader,”
she ended modestly.
“But we don’t want any one but you,” called out some one
enthusiastically, which cry was so emphatically echoed by others,
that Nathalie stood hopelessly bewildered, a wave of color dyeing
her face a rose-pink.
But in this crucial moment Helen came to her rescue, and jumping
on her feet cried,—even Lillie, Grace, and Edith bobbed up too,
—“Girls, I make the motion that we form ourselves into a club to be
known as ‘The Liberty Girls,’ and that we elect for president, Miss
Nathalie Page. All in favor of this motion stand up!”
There was a quick, simultaneous movement of many feet, and then,
as Helen sensed that Nathalie had been duly elected leader by her
mates, she called out, “Well, Nathalie, you will have to be president,
for every one wants you.”
“Yes, and we won’t have any one else,” added Edith quickly, with a
sudden clap of her hands. This was the signal for the girls to start up
a loud clapping in approval of the newly elected president, whose
rose-pink cheeks had deepened to scarlet as she stood bowing,
somewhat confusedly, to them.
Whereupon Lillie Bell gracefully came to the fore, and dramatically
seizing the hand of the young girl while leading her back to her seat,
in an impressive manner cried, “Allow me, Miss Nathalie Page, to
lead you to the seat of honor, as the president of the club, ‘The
Liberty Girls.’”
Nathalie bowed and laughed with embarrassment, but she
determined to carry off the honors bestowed upon her with a good
grace, and as soon as the somewhat noisy demonstrations of
pleasure from the girls had ended, she said modestly, “Girls, I thank
you for wanting me to be your leader, and only hope I will make a
good one.”
There was more plaudits, and then Nathalie, with grave seriousness,
said: “Girls, now that we have pledged ourselves not only as a club,
but as individuals, to further the cause of liberty, I would suggest
that our watchword be, ‘Liberty and humanity—our best.’ Humanity
means to be helpful and kind to our neighbors, our best means to
work with a strenuous will to do everything we can to that end. Our
neighbors at the present moment loom very large and big as the
needy and suffering ones overseas, as the sick, the wounded, the
dying, the prisoners, the refugees, and all those who are fighting on
land and sea: yes, and those in the air, and all those who are helping
to care for the ones I have mentioned, as the doctors and nurses,
for they, too, all need help. If we can’t fight, we have got to help
those who are fighting in our stead. Yes,” she added solemnly, “and
we must be prepared even to have the desire to do what we can for
our enemies, for as liberty makes no discrimination as to who shall
enjoy it, so in the doing of humane acts we should remember all.”
As Nathalie, highly elated by the enthusiasm shown by her audience,
stood waiting for quietness, suddenly her eyes rested on little lame
Marie Katzkamof, whose big black eyes shone like two stars from her
pale, sallow face. Nathalie had another inspiration.
She bent forward and in a low, earnest voice cried, “Do you think,
little Marie, that you would enjoy being a member of this club?
Wouldn’t you like to do something—yes, your best—to help the poor
refugees in France and Belgium, and the brave soldier boys who are
fighting, so that the whole world can enjoy liberty?”
“Yiss, ma’am; I have a glad on liberty,” the girl giggled nervously,
“but it’s like this mit me, I likes I shure I don’t make you no trouble.”
“But it won’t be any trouble to us, Marie,” answered Nathalie with a
smile. “We will all help you; humanity means to help others.”
“But, Missis Page,” the girl’s face was scarlet, her big eyes mournful.
“It’s like this mit me, I ain’t stylish like these young ladies; I make
nottings mit them, for I ain’t shmardt, hein? Und this leg it ain’t yet
so healthy. Und, Missis Page, I’m lovin’ mit liberty, but I ain’t lovin’
much mit Krisht, for I’m a Jewess.”
Nathalie faltered a moment, for she had seen a smile creep into the
eyes of the girls, which she knew would become a laugh if she did
not say the right thing. “Yes, you may not love Christ, as we
Christians,” she answered quickly, “but if you love the liberty,
perhaps you may learn to know what it means to love Him. And
then, Marie, that will make no difference, for as long as you want to
help the suffering ones, and show humanity, that makes you an
American, no matter who, or what you are.”
“Thank you, Missis Page,” the girl’s face had lighted with repressed
joy, “sure I’m an American. I can’t do nottings mit the fight, like the
soldiers, but you bet yer life I can knit for them, hein?” And the little
daughter of Israel held up a strip of wool with its two shiny needles.
“Shure und my hands are straight,” she continued pathetically, “even
if my legs ain’t healthy.”
Nathalie’s eyes blurred, but she answered smilingly, “Why, that will
be lovely, Marie.” Then, turning towards the girls, she cried, “Every
one in favor of appointing Marie Katzkamof captain of the Knitting
Squad, please hold up her hand.” And every hand went up. “And
we’ll call you Captain Molly,” went on Nathalie, “in memory of that
brave young woman, Molly Pitcher, who, when her husband fell dead
at the battle of Monmouth, during the Revolution, took his place,—
she was carrying water to the soldiers,—seized the rammer of his
gun, and fired it. And she kept on firing it,” cried Nathalie with
glowing eyes, “with the shot and shell flying all about her, until the
battle was over. And with that name and the bravery of that Molly—
for I know you are brave, Marie—I know you will do your best for
liberty, and for the soldiers who are on the firing-line, doing their
best, as the Sons of Liberty, for the right of every man in the world.”
After Lillie Bell had been duly elected vice-president of the club, and
several other club matters had been disposed of, Nathalie proposed,
as an inspiration to the girls, that they form a circle in the center of
the room, and stand with clasped hands, to show the
interdependence of one upon the other. “Then in turn,” she
explained, “let each girl tell of some woman, or girl, who, by her
bravery in doing what she could for some one else, or for the world,
has given of her best to mankind, and shown that she was a true
lover of humanity, and a daughter of liberty.”
The girls, quickly grasping Nathalie’s idea, were soon standing in a
circle, hurriedly trying to concentrate their minds on some one
woman who had given of her greatness to mankind.
“Can we tell about the Pioneer women?” asked a Girl Pioneer timidly.
“Yes, indeed,” answered the young president, “and we ought to hear
about them first, too, for they were the ones who really taught us
what it means to love liberty. Although they were not the first
women who did great things for their fellow-beings, they were the
ones who made clear to us that real liberty means humanity, justice,
and democracy for all.”
Helen now started the liberty chain by clasping the hand of her
neighbor on each side of her and telling of the women of the
Mayflower, who, by their acts of sacrifice, and stern determination to
worship God as they thought right, gave us religious freedom.
Nita told of the coming of the ship, the Arbella, to Gloucester with
John Winthrop, the governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the
two noted Puritan brides, the Lady Arbella and Anne Bradstreet, the
latter our first American poetess. And gave testimony of their
devotion to Puritanism, and their desire to benefit mankind.
One Pioneer told of America’s first club-woman, Anne Hutchinson,
portraying her trial and banishment from Boston, in her efforts to
benefit mankind by teaching them freedom of thought. Another told
of Mary Dyer, the noted Quakeress, and how she was hanged from
an old elm on Boston Common because she believed in freedom of
religion.
Margaret, the wife of John Winthrop, the governor, and Susannah,
the mother of John Wesley, both beloved for their sweet piety and
charity, were cited as examples of having given of their best in being
the ideal wife and mother. Lillie Bell told of Florence Nightingale, the
young English woman who gave up a life of luxury to help the
soldiers during the Crimean War in 1854. She became known as
“The Lady of the Lamp,” from a statue of her as she stands with a
nurse’s lamp in her hand, erected in a church in London.
A Girl Scout told of Dorothy Dix, that wonderful woman who made it
her life-work to visit prisons and insane asylums, in order to institute
reforms for the care and comfort of the inmates. She also did much
for the relief of wounded soldiers during the American Civil War.
Jenny Lind, the great Swedish singer, was cited as having given to
humanity when she gave her time and voice to raise thousands of
dollars for the benefit of broken-down musicians and writers. Mrs.
Harriet Beecher Stowe gave of her best, Edith declared, when she
wrote her book, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” and showed the world the evils
of slavery; as also Mrs. Julia Ward Howe when she wrote that
wonderful patriotic song, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.”
The two noted women astronomers, Caroline Herschel and Maria
Mitchell, when they studied the heavens in the interest of science,
gave of their best. Also Charlotte Cushman, the great actress, who
raised large sums of money by her acting, and gave it to the
Sanitary Fund, during the Civil War, was quoted as a lover of
humanity.
The Baroness Burdett-Coutts and Miss Helen Gould, two of the
world’s noted philanthropists, as well as Miss Louisa Alcott, in her
writings for the youth of America, and other women writers were
added to the growing list of Liberty Daughters. Dolly Madison, the
beautiful First Lady of the Land, showed herself a true American
during the War of 1812. When the British burned Washington she
refused to leave the White House until the portrait of Washington
was carried to a place of safety, while she herself took the
Declaration of Independence, with its autographs of the signers,
away with her, so that it would not be lost to America.
Even Marie, alias Captain Molly, caught the inspiration of the Liberty
Chain, and told of a young Russian girl, who, rather than betray the
secrets of a great man, from a paper that had fallen into her hands,
allowed herself to be exiled to Siberia. Then came the war stories, as
that of the noted Quakeress, Lydia Darrach, who, during the
Revolution, on learning the secrets of the British officers who were
quartered at her house, endured untold hardship in traveling many
miles in the dead of winter to reveal them to the American patrol, so
as to save the Continental Army from disaster.
Hannah Weston, who filled a pillow-case with pewter-ware when she
heard that a certain town was in need of ammunition, and carried it
many miles through the woods at night, was cited for her bravery
and her sacrifice, in her effort to help others. The story of Betty
Zane and how she ran from the palisade of a Western fort to her
brother’s hut for a keg of powder in the fire of a tribe of Indians,
although a familiar one, was listened to with glowing interest.
Ruth Wyllis, who hid the charter of Connecticut in an oak tree, and
Katy Brownell, the color-bearer at the battle of Bull Run, who stood
by the flag in the face of the advancing foe, and who would have
been shot to death if a soldier had not pulled her away, were but
two recitals of brave deeds for the sake of humanity.
But at last the liberty chain came to an end by Nathalie telling of
Saint Margaret, a plain, uneducated Irish woman, who, after losing
her husband and child, devoted her life and every penny she made
to the cause of orphan children. A statue, she said, had been
erected in New Orleans to this noble woman, who gave of her best
to humanity when she devoted her life to these little waifs.
After the girls had returned to their seats, Nathalie appointed seven
squads. She had made it seven, she said, not only because it was a
lucky number, but because there were just seven letters in the
name, Liberty. Helen was made the captain of the Florence
Nightingale Squad, since she had gained many honors, as a Girl
Pioneer, as an expert maker of bandages.
Nita, with a Girl Scout as a running mate, was made captain of the
Scrap-Book Squad, which meant the making of scrap-books for the
convalescing soldiers in the hospitals. Lillie Bell and a Camp Fire Girl
were placed at the head of the Garments Squad for the cutting and
sewing of garments for the refugee children of France and Belgium.
Two Girl Scouts were made captains of the Flower Squad, with the
purpose of raising and selling flowers for the Liberty Loan fund.
Jessie Ford had charge of the comfort-kits for the soldier-boys, while
Barbara Worth, who was an expert knitter, was appointed to work
with Captain Molly, the Russian Jewess. Nathalie was unanimously
chosen as the captain of the Liberty Garden, with Edith Whiton and
several other Girl Pioneers. They were not only to raise vegetables
and fruits in their garden-to-be, but they were to do canning as well.
After some discussion it was decided that the club members wear a
uniform consisting of a white shirtwaist, with the letters L. G. in red
on the arm, on the corners of their white sailor-collars, and on the
hatbands of their white sailor-hats, and to wear white or khaki skirts.
Nathalie had just appointed a committee to scour the town for a
parcel of ground to use as a flower and Liberty garden, when a
sudden noise was heard. The girl looked quickly up, to see Mrs.
Morrow standing in the doorway leading from the dining-room, with
her arms filled with flowers. In her hand was a large bell, which she
was jingling softly, while her blue eyes smiled down upon the girls
with radiant good-will.
 CHAPTER IV

THE LIBERTY GARDEN

Nathalie stared in amazement, and then, recovering her usual poise,

she cried, “Oh, Mrs. Morrow, please come right in, for I want you to
meet my Liberty Girls.” As the girl spoke she advanced towards her
unexpected guest, who was coming slowly forward, as if not assured
of her welcome. But the cordiality expressed in the tones of
Nathalie’s voice and the fact that the girls had all risen on their feet,
—her own girls at attention in the Pioneer salute,—with their faces
aglow with pleasure, quickly assured her that her welcome was a
hearty one.
With a sudden movement she turned to Nathalie and asked, “May I
have the floor a moment, Miss President?” As the girl assented,
although somewhat mystified, Mrs. Morrow took her place behind
the small table, and with a quick nod of greeting to the faces
upturned to hers, cried: “Girls, I am greatly pleased to see you here
to-day, and to know that our Pioneer Blue Robin’s little plan to make
you all work with a keener zest for liberty, has succeeded so well. I
also want to assure you of my hearty cooperation, and my wish that
all of you, those who are Pioneers, and those who belong to other
clubs, will be inspired to better work in your own organizations by
the fact that you have banded together to stand unitedly as
Daughters of Liberty, in order to show that you are all loyal
Americans. In proof of my good wishes I am going to present the
club with a bell. It is needless to say that it is not the Liberty Bell,
but a facsimile in miniature.
“Wait, I have not finished,” laughingly protested the lady as she held
up her hand,—for some of the girls had started to clap. “I want you
to know before your president rings it,—it is to be rung to call you
together in the sacred cause of liberty,—that way up in the top has
been inserted a very tiny chip from the real Liberty Bell,—the bell
that was rung over a hundred years ago to announce that the
thirteen colonies had become the United States of America. I hope,
girls, that when you hear this bell ring you will feel the same
inspiration to do your best as animated the patriots in the war of
1776.”
As Mrs. Morrow paused, the long-delayed clapping burst forth with
such vigor that she and Nathalie—she had drawn the girl to her and
was pressing the bell into her hand—had to smile and bow again
and again. But the clapping only halted for a space, for when
Nathalie saw that quietness reigned, she rang the liberty bell so
loudly and determinedly, while a mischievous twinkle glowed in her
eyes, that it broke forth again.
As soon as the demonstration was over and the bell-ringing had
subsided, Mrs. Morrow’s voice was heard again: “Now, Liberty Girls,
I am going to ask your president to take a vote to get your opinion
as to who you think told the best story about great women in your
liberty chain.
“Perhaps you do not know,” the gray-blue eyes deepened, “but I was
in the dining-room, although not purposely an eavesdropper, and
had the pleasure of hearing the stories told. I have formed an
opinion as to the best story-teller, but would like to know if your
opinion coincides with mine.”
But alas, there were so many different opinions as to the best story,
and as to who was the best narrator, that to even matters Mrs.
Morrow had to take her big bouquet of flowers and divide it into
three or four nosegays. But a smile of satisfaction gleamed in the
eyes of many when Marie, the little Jewess, received a bouquet and
a few words of commendation from the giver. The little captain’s
delight was so genuine, and her eyes beamed so joyously, that every
one rejoiced with her.
After the flowers were distributed, and the girls had sung a few
patriotic songs, they filed out into the sunshine, happily aglow with
the joy of the meeting and the inspiration it had brought to them.
Several weeks later we find Nathalie coming slowly down the
garden-walk with its old-time hedge, from the big gray house. The
tall pines—now good old friends—that bordered the path bowed
their tops in a cheery good-morning, as she walked beneath their
shade.
She had just given her usual morning lesson of two hours to her
young friend, for Nathalie, on her return from Camp Laff-a-Lot last
summer, had found that her studies with Nita were to be continued.
Yes, and she had banked every penny that she could spare from her
weekly salary of ten dollars. It had seemed such a big sum at first,
but alas, now that her mother’s income had slowly dwindled, and
she had been compelled to use it for her own personal needs, and to
lay part of it aside every week to repay Mrs. Van Vorst the loan for
Dick’s operation, it seemed a mere pittance.
But to-day she felt unusually joyful, for the last penny of that
haunting debt had been paid, and she was now free to call her
money her own. If there had been many disappointments in life—the
going to college was still a luring hope—and self-denials, added to
the unpleasantness of doing housework since their coming to
Westport, there had been several compensations that had cast their
rosy shadows across the darkness.
One was the joy and the profit she had gained from being a Pioneer,
and the other was the great pleasure that had come to her in the
knowledge that she had a purpose in life. Yes, she had told Helen
many times, “I think it is one of the delights of life to be legitimately
busy, and to know that you are really doing something that is a help
to yourself or some one else.” And now, added to these
compensating joys had come the thrills and joys from the new
organization, the Liberty Girls, for that little patriotic club now
numbered almost a hundred. And it had thrived so well, and Nathalie
had gained so many honors from being its founder, that sometimes
she feared that she, too, would become a bird of the air, like Dick,
only in a different way, from sheer conceit.
But if she had been overmuch praised, and had found it a pleasant
diversion to plan and dream over the club’s future successes, she
had also found hard work and great discouragement.
Discouragement, too, over such small things, when the girl came to
face them in the coolness of after-thought, that she had felt like
throwing the whole thing up, or else just letting things drift, and
taking what pleasure she could, without so much conscientious
worry over doing her best.
But through all the storm and stress Helen had buoyed her with the
frequent, sensible remark, that if it had taken the world thousands
of years to comprehend the true meaning of democracy and liberty,
she must expect her girls would be slow in realizing many things.
But it was tiresome to hold the reins of government, and yet
sometimes be unable to stop their silly chatter, or useless argument
over mere trifles, all the while holding back the legitimate work by
their dallying.
Yes, and it had been an awful strain to manage that Liberty Garden.
Of course the Pioneers were all good workers, and she had given
each one some one thing to study over, but still she had had to
know about these things herself, so as to be sure they would do the
right thing.
But it was something worth while, she reflected sagely, to know that
there are three kinds of soil, how to test it with litmus paper to see if
it was sour or not, and, if it was, how to neutralize it, or sweeten its
acidity. Then she had had to know what kind of chemicals acted as
food to the soil, so as to know what each plant or vegetable required
to enrich it and to sustain life. She had also learned how to draw
moisture from the land and how to fertilize it.
By placing seeds on wet blotting-paper in saucers she had
demonstrated how long it would take them to germinate, so as to be
able to to write her germinating-table for the girls. How old seeds
should be before planting, how deep to plant each kind, the method
of planting, and how many seeds to plant, and the distance apart,
had all seemed tiresome and trivial things to many, but it was
necessary knowledge to a would-be farmer.
Ah, she had reached the bank. She was going to get that ten dollars
deposited before it melted away. Suddenly her eyes became pools of
brightness, and the dimples twinkled in the red glow of her cheeks,
for there, right in front of her, stood Mrs. Morrow, with a kiddie boy,
as the girl called the twins, on each side of her. There was such
genuine pleasure in the lady’s smiling blue eyes, that Nathalie
impulsively cried, “Oh, Mrs. Morrow, this is just lovely! I’m so glad to
see you! When did you get back?” for her good friend had been
away for several weeks.
“Last night, Nathalie, and I am so pleased to meet you,” was the
cordial greeting, “for I have heard so many reports about the Liberty
Girls’ club that I am anxious to hear all about it from you.”
“Oh, it is just the dandiest thing, Mrs. Morrow,” cried the girl
jubilantly. And then, lured by the kindly interest in her friend’s eyes,
her tongue unloosened, and she was soon busy telling about the
club’s many experiences, and the good that had come from the
industry of its members.
“And Helen is a dear,” Nathalie rattled on, “for she has taught her
girls the most wonderful things, and now they have all enrolled as
Red Cross members. She had been reading to them from Florence
Nightingale’s ‘Notes on Nursing,’ and now she has taken up other
works on the same subject. Lillie, too, reads to the girls at the club
meetings about great women, while I inspect the work. The
Garment and Comfort-Kit squads meet together, and Jessie Ford not
only tells them about the French villages and the towns that have
been destroyed by the Germans, but reads to them from the ‘Prince
Albert Book.’
Welcome to our website – the ideal destination for book lovers and
knowledge seekers. With a mission to inspire endlessly, we offer a
vast collection of books, ranging from classic literary works to
specialized publications, self-development books, and children's
literature. Each book is a new journey of discovery, expanding
knowledge and enriching the soul of the reade

Our website is not just a platform for buying books, but a bridge
connecting readers to the timeless values of culture and wisdom. With
an elegant, user-friendly interface and an intelligent search system,
we are committed to providing a quick and convenient shopping
experience. Additionally, our special promotions and home delivery
services ensure that you save time and fully enjoy the joy of reading.

Let us accompany you on the journey of exploring knowledge and

personal growth!

ebookname.com