Chapter 13 of Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales is here in full — 340 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XIII
Chapter 13 of Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales is here in full — 340 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven. For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell. Even the dews seemed to depart. The springs dried up. The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
Chapter 13 of Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales is here in full — 340 sentences across 68 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/68 · 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.
an alloy of copper and zinc
From this reading “For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.”
superlative of “deep” — relatively deep or strong; affecting one deeply
From this reading “The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.”
plural of “dew” — water that has condensed on a cool surface overnight from water vapor in the air
From this reading “Even the dews seemed to depart.”
not still wet
From this reading “The springs dried up.”
a shortage of rainfall
From this reading “The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.”
in a physically fierce manner
From this reading “For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.”
plural of “hollow” — a cavity or space in something
From this reading “The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.”
plural of “spring” — the season of growth
From this reading “The springs dried up.”
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 great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
later than; following
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
come out better in a competition, race, or conflict
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
an alloy of copper and zinc
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
past form of “call” — assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
past form of “cease” — put an end to a state or an activity
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
profane or obscene expression usually of surprise or anger
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
the event of dying or departure from life
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
superlative of “deep” — relatively deep or strong; affecting one deeply
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
move away from a place into another direction
From this reading Even the dews seemed to depart.
plural of “dew” — water that has condensed on a cool surface overnight from water vapor in the air
From this reading Even the dews seemed to depart.
not still wet
From this reading The springs dried up.
a shortage of rainfall
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
divisible by two
From this reading Even the dews seemed to depart.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
in a physically fierce manner
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
the motion characteristic of fluids (liquids or gases)
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
set up or found
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
showing where something starts, or who sent it
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
any place of complete bliss and delight and peace
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
plural of “hollow” — a cavity or space in something
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
prefer or wish to do something
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
one of the twelve divisions of the calendar year
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
not any; not one
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
and nothing more
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
past form of “seem” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading Even the dews seemed to depart.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
the atmosphere and outer space as viewed from the earth
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
plural of “spring” — the season of growth
From this reading The springs dried up.
the star that is the source of light and heat for the planets in the solar system
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Even the dews seemed to depart.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading The springs dried up.
a formal word for “on”
From this reading The great drought fell upon Sisa-Land like a curse from Heaven.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading For month after month the sun beat fiercely, the sky was as brass, and no rain fell.
binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
From this reading The river Ukufa, the river called Death, ceased to flow, so that water could only be found in its deepest hollows.
Chapter 13 of Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales by H. Rider (Henry Rider) Haggard holds 340 sentences, grouped into 68 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 13 holds 340 sentences of Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales, unabridged, divided into 68 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 13 of Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales by H. Rider (Henry Rider) Haggard exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 340 sentences, grouped into 68 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 68 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 68 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 13 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 Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales by H. Rider (Henry Rider) Haggard on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3989 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #6073 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #6073, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 332 minutes of reading across 798 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 21 chapters of Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales 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 Smith and the Pharaohs, and other Tales, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
