Chapter 9 of Slaves of Mercury is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IX
Chapter 9 of Slaves of Mercury is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
_The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory. "There are a lot of them," Grim whispered. "Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly. "Have to take our chances." "Of course," Grim said simply.
Chapter 9 of Slaves of Mercury is here in full — 200 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/40 · 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.
marked by blithe unconcern
From this reading “_The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.”
plural of “chance” — a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading “"Have to take our chances."”
having been flattened
From this reading “_The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.”
not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty
From this reading “"There are a lot of them," Grim whispered.”
in a grim implacable manner
From this reading “"Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly.”
a workplace for the conduct of scientific research
From this reading “_The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.”
any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of human tasks
the atmospheric conditions that comprise the state of the atmosphere in terms of temperature and wind and clouds and precipitation
From this reading “_The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.”
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 “_The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.”
In this reading “_The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.”
as might be expected
In this reading “"Of course," Grim said simply.”
In this reading “"Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly.”
In this reading “_The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.”
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 _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
past form of “answer” — react verbally
From this reading "Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading "There are a lot of them," Grim whispered.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly.
marked by blithe unconcern
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
plural of “chance” — a possibility due to a favorable combination of circumstances
From this reading "Have to take our chances."
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
education imparted in a series of lessons or meetings
From this reading "Of course," Grim said simply.
having been flattened
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
throw a glance at; take a brief look at
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty
From this reading "There are a lot of them," Grim whispered.
in a grim implacable manner
From this reading "Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading "Have to take our chances."
give help or assistance; be of service
From this reading "Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly.
relating to or being on the side closer to the center or within a defined space
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading "Can't help it," Hilary answered grimly.
a workplace for the conduct of scientific research
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
(often followed by “of”) a large number or amount or extent
From this reading "There are a lot of them," Grim whispered.
any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of human tasks
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
the force of workers available
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "There are a lot of them," Grim whispered.
belonging to the speaker and others
From this reading "Have to take our chances."
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Of course," Grim said simply.
inflected form of “see” — perceive by sight or have the power to perceive by sight
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
and nothing more
From this reading "Of course," Grim said simply.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
carry out
From this reading "Have to take our chances."
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading "There are a lot of them," Grim whispered.
used when the people doing the action are also its object
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
in or at that place or location
From this reading "There are a lot of them," Grim whispered.
the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "Have to take our chances."
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
the atmospheric conditions that comprise the state of the atmosphere in terms of temperature and wind and clouds and precipitation
From this reading _The Weather Machine_ The two men flattened themselves against the wall so that they could not be seen by a casual glance from the Mercutians inside the laboratory.
spoken in soft hushed tones without vibrations of the vocal cords
From this reading "There are a lot of them," Grim whispered.
Chapter 9 of Slaves of Mercury by Nathan Schachner holds 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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 9 holds 200 sentences of Slaves of Mercury, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 9 of Slaves of Mercury by Nathan Schachner exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 200 sentences, grouped into 40 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 40 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 40 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 9 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 Slaves of Mercury by Nathan Schachner on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2900 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #29966 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #29966, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 241 minutes of reading across 580 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Slaves of Mercury section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 13 chapters of Slaves of Mercury 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 Slaves of Mercury, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
