Chapter 6 of Down South is here in full — 132 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of Down South is here in full — 132 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
MOONLIGHT AND MUSIC ON BOARD. Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room. He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest. "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested. "Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.
Chapter 6 of Down South is here in full — 132 sentences across 27 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/26 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
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.
having help; often used as a combining form
From this reading “He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.”
in an indignant manner
From this reading “"Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.”
cases used to carry belongings when traveling
From this reading “Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.”
Welsh industrialist and social reformer who founded cooperative communities (1771-1858)
From this reading “Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.”
past form of “protest” — utter words of protest
From this reading “"I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.”
someone who manages property or other affairs for someone else
From this reading “Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.”
stout-bodied short-legged omnivorous animals
From this reading “"Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.”
a person whose occupation is to serve at table (as in a restaurant)
From this reading “Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.”
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.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading "Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.
(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading MOONLIGHT AND MUSIC ON BOARD.
make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
having help; often used as a combining form
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
a committee having supervisory powers
From this reading MOONLIGHT AND MUSIC ON BOARD.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
past form of “demand” — request urgently and forcefully
From this reading "Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading "Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
(often used in combination) having a specified direction
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
characterized by a firm and humorless belief in the validity of your opinions
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
regard something as probable or likely
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
used when the man or boy doing the action is also its object
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
in an indignant manner
From this reading "Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
cases used to carry belongings when traveling
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.
the light of the Moon
From this reading MOONLIGHT AND MUSIC ON BOARD.
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner
From this reading MOONLIGHT AND MUSIC ON BOARD.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading MOONLIGHT AND MUSIC ON BOARD.
Welsh industrialist and social reformer who founded cooperative communities (1771-1858)
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
past form of “protest” — utter words of protest
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
someone who manages property or other affairs for someone else
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
stout-bodied short-legged omnivorous animals
From this reading "Did you expect me to be a swine?" demanded he indignantly.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
precisely as stated
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
a person whose occupation is to serve at table (as in a restaurant)
From this reading Owen called the steward and the waiter, and directed them to move all his luggage from the state-room.
exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
From this reading He assisted himself in the work, and seemed to be very much in earnest.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "I don't ask you to do this, Owen; and I didn't expect you to do it," I protested.
Chapter 6 of Down South by Oliver Optic holds 132 sentences, grouped into 27 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.
Chapter 6 holds 132 sentences of Down South, unabridged, divided into 27 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of Down South by Oliver Optic exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 132 sentences, grouped into 27 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.
Work through the 27 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 27 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.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 6 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.
Common questions about reading Down South by Oliver Optic on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3543 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #24554 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #24554, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 295 minutes of reading across 709 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Down South section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 30 chapters of Down South to begin.
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Down South, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
