Chapter 4 of Joe's Luck is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of Joe's Luck is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him. “Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu. “What’ll you charge?” “A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.” “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
Chapter 4 of Joe's Luck is here in full — 85 sentences across 17 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/17 · 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.
cases used to carry belongings when traveling
From this reading ““A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.””
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading ““This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.”
a rapid active commotion
From this reading “AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.”
connected with or engaged in or sponsored by or used in commerce or commercial enterprises
From this reading “AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.”
soft silky fibers from cotton plants in their raw state
From this reading ““This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.”
the basic monetary unit in many countries; equal to 100 cents
From this reading ““A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.””
one who works hard at boring tasks
From this reading ““Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu.”
-ing form of “indicate” — be a signal for or a symptom of
From this reading ““This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.”
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 “Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu.
(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 “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
past form of “arrive” — reach a destination; arrive by movement or progress
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
cases used to carry belongings when traveling
From this reading “A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.”
the past participle of “be”
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements; filled with bewilderment
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
a collection of things wrapped or boxed together
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
a rapid active commotion
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
to make a rush at or sudden attack upon, as in battle
From this reading “What’ll you charge?”
connected with or engaged in or sponsored by or used in commerce or commercial enterprises
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
disorder resulting from a failure to behave predictably
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
soft silky fibers from cotton plants in their raw state
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
the basic monetary unit in many countries; equal to 100 cents
From this reading “A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.”
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.”
one who works hard at boring tasks
From this reading “Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
consisting of one of two equivalent parts in value or quantity
From this reading “A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.”
a square piece of cloth used for wiping the eyes or nose or as a costume accessory
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
a building where travelers can pay for lodging and meals and other services
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
-ing form of “indicate” — be a signal for or a symptom of
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from
From this reading “Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
not of long duration; having just (or relatively recently) come into being or been made or acquired or discovered
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
red color or pigment; the chromatic color resembling the hue of blood
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
bound or secured closely
From this reading “This is all the baggage I have,” said Joe, indicating a bundle tied in a red cotton handkerchief.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “What’ll you charge?”
at the time that
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
the English royal house (a branch of the Plantagenet line) that reigned from 1461 to 1485; its emblem was a white rose
From this reading AT THE COMMERCIAL HOTEL Joe had never been in New York and when he arrived the bustle and confusion at first bewildered him.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “What’ll you charge?”
(used of living things especially persons) in an early period of life or development or growth
From this reading “Have a hack, young man?” inquired a jehu.
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “A dollar and a half, and half-a-dollar for your baggage.”
Chapter 4 of Joe's Luck by Horatio, Jr. Alger holds 85 sentences, grouped into 17 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 4 holds 85 sentences of Joe's Luck, unabridged, divided into 17 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of Joe's Luck by Horatio, Jr. Alger exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 85 sentences, grouped into 17 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 17 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 17 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 4 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 Joe's Luck by Horatio, Jr. Alger on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4130 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12823 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12823, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 344 minutes of reading across 826 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Joe's Luck section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 39 chapters of Joe's Luck 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 Joe's Luck, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
