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Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs
Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs

Chapter I · Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs is here in full — 255 sentences across 51 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs
Context Illustration Reading 42/51 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.
Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!
I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'
Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;
_The Child becomes one of the Family_.
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.

Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs

Chapter I · Chapter 1

Chapter 1 of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs is here in full — 255 sentences across 51 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 42/51 · 5 reading units · Lines 206–210

Line 1
This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.
/ðɪs ˈmɔːrnɪŋ aɪ əˈfendəd ənd aɪ bɔːr ə ˈkruːəl ˈbiːtɪŋ wɜːrs ðæn ɔːl bɪˈfɔːr/
Line 2
Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!
Line 3
I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'
/aɪ der nɑːt ɡoʊ aɪ send juː bæk ðə ˈmɪlər kraɪd noʊ noʊ/
Line 4
Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;
Line 5
_The Child becomes one of the Family_.
/ðə tʃaɪld bɪˈkʌmz wʌn ʌv ðə ˈfæməli/

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.

appeals noun US /əˈpiːlz/

plural of “appeal” — earnest or urgent request

From this reading “Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;”

beating noun US /ˈbiːtɪŋ/

the act of overcoming or outdoing

From this reading “This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.”

becomes verb US /bɪˈkʌmz/

third-person singular of “become” — enter or assume a certain state or condition

From this reading “_The Child becomes one of the Family_.”

limb noun US /lɪm/

one of the jointed appendages of an animal used for locomotion or grasping: arm; leg; wing; flipper

From this reading “Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;”

Miller noun US /ˈmɪlər/

United States bandleader of a popular big band (1909-1944)

From this reading “I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'”

offended adjective US /əˈfendəd/

emotionally hurt or upset or annoyed

From this reading “This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.”

sultry adjective US /ˈsʌltri/

sexually exciting or gratifying

From this reading “Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!”

weight noun US /weɪt/

the vertical force exerted by a mass as a result of gravity

From this reading “Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;”

All words in this reading · 54

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 This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(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 Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

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

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

appealsnounUS /əˈpiːlz/

plural of “appeal” — earnest or urgent request

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

awayadverbUS /əˈweɪ/

from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

backadverbUS /bæk/

in or to or toward a former location

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

beatingnounUS /ˈbiːtɪŋ/

the act of overcoming or outdoing

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

becomesverbUS /bɪˈkʌmz/

third-person singular of “become” — enter or assume a certain state or condition

From this reading _The Child becomes one of the Family_.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

boreverbUS /bɔːr/

cause to be bored

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

ChildnounUS /tʃaɪld/

a young person of either sex

From this reading _The Child becomes one of the Family_.

criedverbUS /kraɪd/

inflected form of “cry” — utter a sudden loud cry

From this reading I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'

crueladjectiveUS /ˈkruːəl/

(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

dareverbUS /der/

take upon oneself; act presumptuously, without permission

From this reading I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'

daynounUS /deɪ/

time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

don't

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

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

everydeterminerUS /ˈevəri/

all the members of a group, with none left out

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

FamilynounUS /ˈfæməli/

a social unit living together

From this reading _The Child becomes one of the Family_.

faradverbUS /fɑːr/

to a considerable degree; very much

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

goverbUS /ɡoʊ/

change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically

From this reading I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

HousenounUS /haʊs/

a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

IpronounUS /aɪ/

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

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

limbnounUS /lɪm/

one of the jointed appendages of an animal used for locomotion or grasping: arm; leg; wing; flipper

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

mepronounUS /miː/

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

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

MillernounUS /ˈmɪlər/

United States bandleader of a popular big band (1909-1944)

From this reading I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'

MorningnounUS /ˈmɔːrnɪŋ/

the time period between dawn and noon

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'

notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'

OnounUS /oʊ/

a nonmetallic bivalent element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless nonflammable diatomic gas; constitutes 21 percent of the atmosphere by volume; the most abundant element in the earth's crust

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

offendedadjectiveUS /əˈfendəd/

emotionally hurt or upset or annoyed

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

onepronounUS /wʌn/

used to mean any person in general, including the speaker

From this reading _The Child becomes one of the Family_.

ranverbUS /ræn/

inflected form of “run” — move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

sendverbUS /send/

cause to go somewhere

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

sultryadjectiveUS /ˈsʌltri/

sexually exciting or gratifying

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

SympathynounUS /ˈsɪmpəθi/

an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

ThnounUS /ˈtiːˈeɪtʃ/

the fifth day of the week; the fourth working day

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/

used to introduce the second part of a comparison

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

ThisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

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

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

throughprepositionUS /θruː/

from one end or side of something to the other

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

thusadverbUS /ðʌs/

(used to introduce a logical conclusion) from that fact or reason or as a result

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

travell'd

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

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

UnknownadjectiveUS /ənˈnoʊn/

not known

From this reading Unknown to all the House I ran away; And thus far travell'd through the sultry day; And, O don't send me back!

warmadjectiveUS /wɔːrm/

having or producing a comfortable and agreeable degree of heat or imparting or maintaining heat

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

weightnounUS /weɪt/

the vertical force exerted by a mass as a result of gravity

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

worseadjectiveUS /wɜːrs/

(comparative of “bad”) inferior to another in quality or condition or desirability

From this reading This Morning I offended; and I bore A cruel beating, worse than all before.

wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

Wretchednessnoun

a state of ill-being due to affliction or misfortune

From this reading Th' appeals of Wretchedness had weight with him, And Sympathy would warm him every limb;

youpronounUS /juː/

the person or people being spoken to

From this reading I dare not go.'-- 'I send you back!' the Miller cried, 'no, no.'

Chapter 1 of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs by Robert Bloomfield holds 255 sentences, grouped into 51 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 1 of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs contain?

Chapter 1 holds 255 sentences of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs, unabridged, divided into 51 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 1 of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs by Robert Bloomfield exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 255 sentences, grouped into 51 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 1 of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs?

Work through the 51 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 51 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 1 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 1 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 Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs

Common questions about reading Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs by Robert Bloomfield on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs?

Yes. All 524 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #9093 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #9093, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs take to read?

About 43 minutes of reading across 105 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs section by section

How to work through Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 2 chapters of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs 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 Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs

Words and structures a reader meets early in Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Bensley
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Bolt-court
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Fleet-street
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Preface
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rural Tales, Ballads, and Songs; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.