Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert

Chapter XXV

Chapter 25 of Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert is here in full — 234 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Roger Pocock • Curated US English Learning Edition

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A MILLION DOLLARS RANSOM In giving my own account of this unpleasantness which happened between the Du Chesnay and Ryan families I've just grabbed Truth by the tail and tried to stay right with her.

But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

Narrator

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.

Chapter XXV Reading 1/46

Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert Roger Pocock

Chapter XXV

Chapter 25 of Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert is here in full — 234 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

A MILLION DOLLARS RANSOM In giving my own account of this unpleasantness which happened between the Du Chesnay and Ryan families I've just grabbed Truth by the tail and tried to stay right with her. But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts. Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested. Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust. Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert

Chapter XXV

Chapter 25 of Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert is here in full — 234 sentences across 47 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/46 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1

A MILLION DOLLARS RANSOM In giving my own account of this unpleasantness which happened between the Du Chesnay and Ryan families I've just grabbed Truth by the tail and tried to stay right with her.

Line 2

But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

/bʌt truːθ rʌnz swɪft ənd ˈreɪzəz ˈplenti dʌst ʌv laɪz ərˈaʊnd hɜːr hiːlz soʊ ˈmeɪbi ˈwɜːrlɪŋ əˈlɔːŋ aɪ mɪst ɡʊd fækts/

Line 3

Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

Line 4

Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

/ˈeniweɪz aʊtˈsaɪdərz kʊd wɑːtʃ ðə stæmˈpiːd wɪˈθaʊt ˈɡetɪŋ tʃoʊkt wɪð dʌst/

Line 5

Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

/naʊ ðiːz kənˈkluːʒənz strʌk miː əˈbrʌpt laɪk ə bæt ɪn ðə aɪ wen aɪ sæt daʊn tuː rest ɪn kæmp æt ˈekoʊ sprɪŋ/

Learner Dictionary

These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.

Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.

Anyways adverb US /ˈeniweɪz/

used to indicate that a statement explains or supports a previous statement

From this reading “Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.”

conclusions noun US /kənˈkluːʒənz/

plural of “conclusion” — a position or opinion or judgment reached after consideration

From this reading “Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.”

outsiders noun US /aʊtˈsaɪdərz/

plural of “outsider” — someone who is excluded from or is not a member of a group

From this reading “Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.”

poorly adverb US /ˈpuːrli/

(“ill” is often used as a combining form) in a poor or improper or unsatisfactory manner; not well

From this reading “Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.”

raises noun US /ˈreɪzəz/

plural of “raise” — the amount a salary is increased

From this reading “But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.”

ransom noun US /ˈrænsəm/

money demanded for the return of a captured person

From this reading “A MILLION DOLLARS RANSOM In giving my own account of this unpleasantness which happened between the Du Chesnay and Ryan families I've just grabbed Truth by the tail and tried to stay right with her.”

stampede verb US /stæmˈpiːd/

cause to run in panic

From this reading “Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.”

unpleasantness noun US /ənˈplezəntnəs/

the feeling caused by disagreeable stimuli; one pole of a continuum of states of feeling

Word partnerships in these lines

English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.

Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.

MILLION DOLLARS noun + noun counted as “million dollar”

In this reading “A MILLION DOLLARS RANSOM In giving my own account of this unpleasantness which happened between the Du Chesnay and Ryan families I've just grabbed Truth by the tail and tried to stay right with her.”

own account verb + noun

without getting preposition + noun

In this reading “Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.”

provided with verb + particle counted as “provide with”

In this reading “Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.”

All words in this reading · 90

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.

AdeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading A MILLION DOLLARS RANSOM In giving my own account of this unpleasantness which happened between the Du Chesnay and Ryan families I've just grabbed Truth by the tail and tried to stay right with her.

abruptadjectiveUS /əˈbrʌpt/

marked by sudden changes in subject and sharp transitions

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

accountnounUS /əˈkaʊnt/

a record or narrative description of past events

aheadadverbUS /əˈhed/

at or in the front

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

alongprepositionUS /əˈlɔːŋ/

following the length of something from one end toward the other

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

AnywaysadverbUS /ˈeniweɪz/

used to indicate that a statement explains or supports a previous statement

From this reading Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

aroundprepositionUS /ərˈaʊnd/

surrounding, or on every side of, something

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

atprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

batnounUS /bæt/

nocturnal mouselike mammal with forelimbs modified to form membranous wings and anatomical adaptations for echolocation by which they navigate

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

betweenprepositionUS /bɪˈtwiːn/

in the space, time, or range separating two things

ButconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

byprepositionUS /baɪ/

showing who or what does the action

campnounUS /kæmp/

temporary living quarters specially built by the army for soldiers

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

Chesnay

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

chokedadjectiveUS /tʃoʊkt/

stopped up; clogged up

From this reading Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

conclusionsnounUS /kənˈkluːʒənz/

plural of “conclusion” — a position or opinion or judgment reached after consideration

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

DOLLARSnounUS /ˈdɑːlərz/

plural of “dollar” — the basic monetary unit in many countries; equal to 100 cents

downadjectiveUS /daʊn/

being or moving lower in position or less in some value

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

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

dustverbUS /dʌst/

remove the dust from

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

EchoverbUS /ˈekoʊ/

to say again or imitate

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

eyenounUS /aɪ/

the organ of sight

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

factsnounUS /fækts/

plural of “fact” — a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

familiesnounUS /ˈfæməliz/

plural of “family” — a social unit living together

gettingnounUS /ˈɡetɪŋ/

the act of acquiring something

From this reading Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

givingnounUS /ˈɡɪvɪŋ/

the act of giving

goodadjectiveUS /ɡʊd/

having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

grabbedverbUS /ɡræbd/

inflected form of “grab” — take hold of so as to seize or restrain or stop the motion of

happenedverbUS /ˈhæpənd/

past form of “happen” — come to pass

HappensverbUS /ˈhæpənz/

third-person singular of “happen” — come to pass

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

heelsnounUS /hiːlz/

plural of “heel” — the bottom of a shoe or boot; the back part of a shoe or boot that touches the ground and provides elevation

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

herdeterminerUS /hɜːr/

belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned

IpronounUS /aɪ/

the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

I've

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

InprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

interestedadjectiveUS /ˈɪntrəstɪd/

having or showing interest; especially curiosity or fascination or concern

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

justadverbUS /dʒʌst/

and nothing more

liesnounUS /laɪz/

plural of “lie” — a statement that deviates from or perverts the truth

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

likeverbUS /laɪk/

prefer or wish to do something

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

likelyadjectiveUS /ˈlaɪkli/

has a good chance of being the case or of coming about

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

lotnounUS /lɑːt/

(often followed by “of”) a large number or amount or extent

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

maybeadverbUS /ˈmeɪbi/

by chance

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

MILLIONnounUS /ˈmɪljən/

the number that is represented as a one followed by 6 zeros

missedadjectiveUS /mɪst/

not caught with the senses or the mind

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

mydeterminerUS /maɪ/

belonging to the person speaking

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

NowadverbUS /naʊ/

in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

onlyadverbUS /ˈoʊnli/

and nothing more

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

outsidersnounUS /aʊtˈsaɪdərz/

plural of “outsider” — someone who is excluded from or is not a member of a group

From this reading Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

ownverbUS /oʊn/

have ownership or possession of

partynounUS /ˈpɑːrti/

an organization to gain political power

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

plentynounUS /ˈplenti/

a full supply

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

poorlyadverbUS /ˈpuːrli/

(“ill” is often used as a combining form) in a poor or improper or unsatisfactory manner; not well

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

prejudicenounUS /ˈpredʒədɪs/

a partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

providedverbUS /prəˈvaɪdɪd/

past form of “provide” — give something useful or necessary to

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

raisesnounUS /ˈreɪzəz/

plural of “raise” — the amount a salary is increased

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

RANSOMnounUS /ˈrænsəm/

money demanded for the return of a captured person

restverbUS /rest/

not move; be in a resting position

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

rightadverbUS /raɪt/

precisely, exactly

runsnounUS /rʌnz/

plural of “run” — a score in baseball made by a runner touching all four bases safely

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

Ryan

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

satnounUS /sæt/

the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

seeverbUS /siː/

perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

soconjunctionUS /soʊ/

for that reason; with the result that

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

SpringnounUS /sprɪŋ/

the season of growth

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

stampedeverbUS /stæmˈpiːd/

cause to run in panic

From this reading Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

stayverbUS /steɪ/

stay the same; remain in a certain state

struckadjectiveUS /strʌk/

(used in combination) affected by something overwhelming

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

swiftadjectiveUS /swɪft/

moving very fast

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

tailnounUS /teɪl/

the posterior part of the body of a vertebrate especially when elongated and extending beyond the trunk or main part of the body

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

thesedeterminerUS /ðiːz/

the plural of “this”: the people or things near, or just mentioned

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

trailnounUS /treɪl/

a track or mark left by something that has passed

From this reading Happens I've been poorly provided with one eye and a lot of prejudice to see the trail ahead; likely I've not been the only party interested.

triedadjectiveUS /traɪd/

tested and proved useful or correct

TruthnounUS /truːθ/

a fact that has been verified

unpleasantnessnounUS /ənˈplezəntnəs/

the feeling caused by disagreeable stimuli; one pole of a continuum of states of feeling

watchverbUS /wɑːtʃ/

look attentively

From this reading Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

whenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading Now these conclusions struck me abrupt like a bat in the eye when I sat down to rest in camp at Echo Spring.

whichpronounUS /wɪtʃ/

used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned

whirlingnounUS /ˈwɜːrlɪŋ/

the act of rotating in a circle or spiral

From this reading But Truth runs swift, and raises plenty dust of lies around her heels, so, maybe, whirling along I missed good facts.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

withoutprepositionUS /wɪˈθaʊt/

not having, not using, or not accompanied by

From this reading Anyways, outsiders could watch the stampede without getting choked with dust.

Chapter 25 of Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert by Roger Pocock holds 234 sentences, grouped into 47 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, 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 25 of Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert contain?

Chapter 25 holds 234 sentences of Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert, unabridged, divided into 47 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 25 of Curly: A Tale of the Arizona Desert by Roger Pocock exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 234 sentences, grouped into 47 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.

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Work through the 47 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 47 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.

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Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 25 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.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #41447, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 379 minutes of reading across 910 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Chapter XXV

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