Chapter 23 of Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery is here in full — 127 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIII
Chapter 23 of Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery is here in full — 127 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_ACCUSATIONS_ The minutes passed slowly. Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door. Instantly he became alert. Fred Orris entered the room. He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
Chapter 23 of Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery is here in full — 127 sentences across 26 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/25 · 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.
plural of “accusation” — a formal charge of wrongdoing brought against a person; the act of imputing blame or guilt
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading “Instantly he became alert.”
a boxlike container in a piece of furniture; made so as to slide in and out
From this reading “He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.”
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading “Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.”
German iris having large white flowers with lavender-tinged falls and a fragrant rhizome
From this reading “Fred Orris entered the room.”
past form of “rummage” — search haphazardly
From this reading “He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.”
an elaborate and systematic plan of action
From this reading “Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.”
inflected form of “snap” — utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone
From this reading “He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.”
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.
In this reading “Fred Orris entered the room.”
In this reading “He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.”
In this reading “_ACCUSATIONS_ The minutes passed slowly.”
In this reading “He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.”
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 Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
plural of “accusation” — a formal charge of wrongdoing brought against a person; the act of imputing blame or guilt
From this reading _ACCUSATIONS_ The minutes passed slowly.
engaged in or accustomed to close observation
From this reading Instantly he became alert.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
inflected form of “become” — enter or assume a certain state or condition
From this reading Instantly he became alert.
inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
placed crosswise
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
a piece of furniture with a writing surface and usually drawers or other compartments
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
a boxlike container in a piece of furniture; made so as to slide in and out
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading Fred Orris entered the room.
past form of “fail” — fail to do something; leave something undone
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
gleam or glow intermittently
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Fred Orris entered the room.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
detected or perceived by the sense of hearing
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
without delay or hesitation; with no time intervening
From this reading Instantly he became alert.
an artificial source of visible illumination
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading _ACCUSATIONS_ The minutes passed slowly.
a tangible and visible entity; an entity that can cast a shadow
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
German iris having large white flowers with lavender-tinged falls and a fragrant rhizome
From this reading Fred Orris entered the room.
relating to or being on or near the outer side or limit
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
past form of “pass” — go across or through
From this reading _ACCUSATIONS_ The minutes passed slowly.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading Fred Orris entered the room.
past form of “rummage” — search haphazardly
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
an elaborate and systematic plan of action
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
without speed (“slow” is sometimes used informally for “slowly”)
From this reading _ACCUSATIONS_ The minutes passed slowly.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
inflected form of “snap” — utter in an angry, sharp, or abrupt tone
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _ACCUSATIONS_ The minutes passed slowly.
in or at that place or location
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
at the time that
From this reading Flash had begun to think that his scheme had failed when he heard a step outside the door.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading He crossed to his desk and, snapping on a small lamp, rummaged in a drawer for some object which he had left there.
Chapter 23 of Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery by Frank Bell holds 127 sentences, grouped into 26 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 23 holds 127 sentences of Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery, unabridged, divided into 26 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 23 of Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery by Frank Bell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 127 sentences, grouped into 26 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 26 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 26 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 23 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 Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery by Frank Bell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3788 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #55693 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #55693, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 315 minutes of reading across 758 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 25 chapters of Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery 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 Flash Evans and the Darkroom Mystery, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
