Learn English through classic literature • Five-line readings • Clear US narration
VELMORA ACADEMY
Academy of Archival Languages & Memory Studies
Menu Close
Active Service
Active Service

Chapter XXI · Chapter 21

Chapter 21 of Active Service is here in full — 154 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Active Service
Context Illustration Reading 1/30 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.
" What is it ? " he demanded.
The dragoman was broken-voiced.
" These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.
" I can do nossing-nossing."
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Active Service

Chapter XXI · Chapter 21

Chapter 21 of Active Service is here in full — 154 sentences across 31 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/30 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.
Line 2
" What is it ? " he demanded.
Line 3
The dragoman was broken-voiced.
Line 4
" These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.
Line 5
" I can do nossing-nossing."

All words in this reading · 33

Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.

Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.

all

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

and

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

angry

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

are

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

broken-voiced

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The dragoman was broken-voiced.

can

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " I can do nossing-nossing."

COLEMAN

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

coolly

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

demanded

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " What is it ? " he demanded.

do

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " I can do nossing-nossing."

dragoman

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

Germans

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

he

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " What is it ? " he demanded.

his

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

horse

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

I

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " I can do nossing-nossing."

is

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " What is it ? " he demanded.

it

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " What is it ? " he demanded.

nossing-nossing

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " I can do nossing-nossing."

peoples

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

pushed

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

s

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

say

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

side

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

the

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

These

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

they

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

through

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

to

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading COLEMAN pushed his horse coolly through to the dragoman;s side.

wailed

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

was

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading The dragoman was broken-voiced.

What

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " What is it ? " he demanded.

you

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading " These peoples, they say you are Germans, all Germans, and they are angry," he wailed.

Chapter 21 of Active Service by Stephen Crane holds 154 sentences, grouped into 31 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.

What does chapter 21 of Active Service contain?

Chapter 21 holds 154 sentences of Active Service, unabridged, divided into 31 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 21 of Active Service by Stephen Crane exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 154 sentences, grouped into 31 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.

How do I study chapter 21 of Active Service?

Work through the 31 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 31 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.

Can chapter 21 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 21 can be played aloud in United States English.

Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.

Questions about reading Active Service

Common questions about reading Active Service by Stephen Crane on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Active Service?

Yes. All 5592 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #2364 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Active Service is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #2364, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Active Service take to read?

About 466 minutes of reading across 1119 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Active Service section by section

How to work through Active Service section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 30 chapters of Active Service to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in Active Service

Words and structures a reader meets early in Active Service, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Marjory
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Active Service; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Walked
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Active Service; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Pensively
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Active Service; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Along
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Active Service; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.