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Saddle and Mocassin
Saddle and Mocassin

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of Saddle and Mocassin is here in full — 276 sentences across 56 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Saddle and Mocassin
Context Illustration Reading 1/55 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
A GLIMPSE OF SONORA.
"At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"
I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.
"Magdalena?" he drawled.
"Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.
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.

Saddle and Mocassin

Chapter IV

Chapter 4 of Saddle and Mocassin is here in full — 276 sentences across 56 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/55 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
A GLIMPSE OF SONORA.
/ə ɡlɪmps ʌv səˈnɔːrə/
Line 2
"At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"
/æt wʌt taɪm dʌz ðə steɪdʒ stɑːrt fɔːr ˌmæɡdəˈliːnə/
Line 3
I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.
Line 4
"Magdalena?" he drawled.
/ˌmæɡdəˈliːnə hiː drɔːld/
Line 5
"Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

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.

drawled verb US /drɔːld/

past form of “drawl” — lengthen and slow down or draw out

From this reading “"Magdalena?" he drawled.”

glimpse noun US /ɡlɪmps/

a quick look

From this reading “A GLIMPSE OF SONORA.”

Magdalena noun US /ˌmæɡdəˈliːnə/

a river that rises in the Andes mountains in southwestern Colombia and flows generally northward to empty into the Caribbean Sea at Barranquilla

From this reading “"At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"”

Metropolitan adjective US /ˌmetrəˈpɑːlətən/

relating to or characteristic of a metropolis

From this reading “I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.”

Pacific noun US /pəˈsɪfɪk/

the largest ocean in the world

From this reading “I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.”

Railway noun US /ˈreɪlweɪ/

line that is the commercial organization responsible for operating a system of transportation for trains that pull passengers or freight

From this reading “I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.”

sonora noun US /səˈnɔːrə/

ground snakes

From this reading “A GLIMPSE OF SONORA.”

Tucson noun US /ˈtuːsɑːn/

a city in southeastern Arizona ringed by mountain ranges; long known as a winter and health resort but the population shift from industrial states to the Sunbelt resulted in rapid growth late in the 20th century

From this reading “I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.”

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.

wait here verb + particle

In this reading “"Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.”

just landed adverb + adjective

In this reading “I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.”

start for verb + particle

In this reading “"At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"”

All words in this reading · 39

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 GLIMPSE OF SONORA.

AtprepositionUS /æt/

in or near a particular place or position

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

bar-tender

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

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

doesauxiliary verbUS /dʌz/

the form of “do” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

drawledverbUS /drɔːld/

past form of “drawl” — lengthen and slow down or draw out

From this reading "Magdalena?" he drawled.

forprepositionUS /fɔːr/

intended to be given to, or used by, somebody

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

GLIMPSEnounUS /ɡlɪmps/

a quick look

From this reading A GLIMPSE OF SONORA.

guessverbUS /ɡes/

expect, believe, or suppose

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

hadauxiliary verbUS /hæd/

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

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading "Magdalena?" he drawled.

hereadverbUS /hiːr/

in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

HotelnounUS /hoʊˈtel/

a building where travelers can pay for lodging and meals and other services

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

IpronounUS /aɪ/

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

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

inquiredverbUS /ˌɪnˈkwaɪərd/

past form of “inquire” — address a question to and expect an answer from

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

justadverbUS /dʒʌst/

and nothing more

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

landedadjectiveUS /ˈlændəd/

owning or consisting of land or real estate

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

MagdalenanounUS /ˌmæɡdəˈliːnə/

a river that rises in the Andes mountains in southwestern Colombia and flows generally northward to empty into the Caribbean Sea at Barranquilla

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

mepronounUS /miː/

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

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

MetropolitanadjectiveUS /ˌmetrəˈpɑːlətən/

relating to or characteristic of a metropolis

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

nowadverbUS /naʊ/

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

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

OFprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading A GLIMPSE OF SONORA.

PacificnounUS /pəˈsɪfɪk/

the largest ocean in the world

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

RailwaynounUS /ˈreɪlweɪ/

line that is the commercial organization responsible for operating a system of transportation for trains that pull passengers or freight

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

SaturdaynounUS /ˈsætərdi/

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

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

SONORAnounUS /səˈnɔːrə/

ground snakes

From this reading A GLIMPSE OF SONORA.

SouthernadjectiveUS /ˈsʌðərn/

in or characteristic of a region of the United States south of (approximately) the Mason-Dixon line

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

stagenounUS /steɪdʒ/

any distinct time period in a sequence of events

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

startverbUS /stɑːrt/

take the first step or steps in carrying out an action

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

thedeterminerUS /ðə/

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

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

tillprepositionUS /tɪl/

up to a particular time

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

timenounUS /taɪm/

an instance or single occasion for some event

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

toparticleUS /tuː/

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

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

TucsonnounUS /ˈtuːsɑːn/

a city in southeastern Arizona ringed by mountain ranges; long known as a winter and health resort but the population shift from industrial states to the Sunbelt resulted in rapid growth late in the 20th century

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

waitverbUS /weɪt/

stay in one place and anticipate or expect something

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

WelladverbUS /wel/

(often used as a combining form) in a good or proper or satisfactory manner or to a high standard (“good” is a nonstandard dialectal variant for “well”)

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

whatpronounUS /wʌt/

used to ask for information about something

From this reading "At what time does the stage start for Magdalena?"

whereconjunctionUS /wer/

in or at the place that

From this reading I inquired of the bar-tender at the "Metropolitan Hotel," Tucson, where the Southern Pacific Railway had just landed me.

you'll

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

From this reading "Well, guess you'll have to wait here till Saturday now.

Chapter 4 of Saddle and Mocassin by Francis Francis holds 276 sentences, grouped into 56 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 4 of Saddle and Mocassin contain?

Chapter 4 holds 276 sentences of Saddle and Mocassin, unabridged, divided into 56 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 4 of Saddle and Mocassin by Francis Francis exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 276 sentences, grouped into 56 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 4 of Saddle and Mocassin?

Work through the 56 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 56 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 4 be read aloud to me?

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.

Questions about reading Saddle and Mocassin

Common questions about reading Saddle and Mocassin by Francis Francis on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Saddle and Mocassin?

Yes. All 2917 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #39760 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Saddle and Mocassin is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #39760, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Saddle and Mocassin take to read?

About 243 minutes of reading across 584 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Saddle and Mocassin section by section

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  1. Open a chapter

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  3. Listen and tap

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Vocabulary met early in Saddle and Mocassin

Words and structures a reader meets early in Saddle and Mocassin, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Francis
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Saddle and Mocassin; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
London
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Saddle and Mocassin; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Suburb
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Saddle and Mocassin; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Waves
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Saddle and Mocassin; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.