Chapter 22 of The Argus Pheasant is here in full — 102 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXII
Chapter 22 of The Argus Pheasant is here in full — 102 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened. A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it. "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked. He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy. The third thrust of the cane found Peter Gross's ribs.
Chapter 22 of The Argus Pheasant is here in full — 102 sentences across 21 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/20 · 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.
the hard woody stems of bamboo plants; used in construction and crafts and fishing poles
From this reading “He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.”
past form of “bark” — speak in an unfriendly tone
From this reading “"You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.”
resembling a beast; showing lack of human sensibility
From this reading “A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.”
plural of “captive” — a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war
From this reading “He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.”
excessively
From this reading “A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.”
possessive form of “gross” — twelve dozen
From this reading “The third thrust of the cane found Peter Gross's ribs.”
emerge from the eggs
From this reading “IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened.”
inflected form of “prod” — to push against gently
From this reading “He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.”
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 “He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.”
In this reading “A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.”
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 A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.
higher than, or over, something
From this reading IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
past form of “appear” — give a certain impression or have a certain outward aspect
From this reading A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
the hard woody stems of bamboo plants; used in construction and crafts and fishing poles
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
past form of “bark” — speak in an unfriendly tone
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
at or to a lower level than something
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
resembling a beast; showing lack of human sensibility
From this reading A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.
a stick that people can lean on to help them walk
From this reading The third thrust of the cane found Peter Gross's ribs.
plural of “captive” — a person who is confined; especially a prisoner of war
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
(ethnic slur) offensive term for a person of Chinese descent
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
any of the Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in China; regarded as dialects of a single language (even though they are mutually unintelligible) because they share an ideographic writing system
From this reading A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.
excessively
From this reading A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.
used as expletives
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
(physics) a thermodynamic quantity equivalent to the capacity of a physical system to do work; the units of energy are joules or ergs
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.
a boy or man
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
set up or found
From this reading The third thrust of the cane found Peter Gross's ribs.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
a facial expression characterized by turning up the corners of the mouth; usually shows pleasure or amusement
From this reading A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.
possessive form of “gross” — twelve dozen
From this reading The third thrust of the cane found Peter Gross's ribs.
emerge from the eggs
From this reading IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
lacking in or deprived of strength or power
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
an opening into or through something
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened.
moving to the inside of something
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading A bestial Chinese face, grinning cruelly, appeared in it.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
disciple of Jesus and leader of the Apostles; regarded by Catholics as the vicar of Christ on earth and first Pope
From this reading The third thrust of the cane found Peter Gross's ribs.
a separate part of a whole
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
a full supply
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
inflected form of “prod” — to push against gently
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
accomplished rapidly and without delay
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
plural of “rib” — support resembling the rib of an animal
From this reading The third thrust of the cane found Peter Gross's ribs.
(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
place of worship consisting of an edifice for the worship of a deity
From this reading IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened.
the people or things already mentioned, as the object
From this reading IN THE TEMPLE The hatch above them opened.
one of three equal parts of a divisible whole
From this reading The third thrust of the cane found Peter Gross's ribs.
push forcefully
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
in the company of; together with
From this reading He thrust a piece of bamboo into the hole and prodded the helpless captives below with a savage energy.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading "You b'g-um fellow gettee outtee here plenty damn' quick!" the Chinaman barked.
Chapter 22 of The Argus Pheasant by John Charles Beecham holds 102 sentences, grouped into 21 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 22 holds 102 sentences of The Argus Pheasant, unabridged, divided into 21 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 22 of The Argus Pheasant by John Charles Beecham exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 102 sentences, grouped into 21 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 21 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 21 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 22 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 The Argus Pheasant by John Charles Beecham on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 5660 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #37215 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #37215, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 471 minutes of reading across 1132 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Argus Pheasant section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 31 chapters of The Argus Pheasant 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 The Argus Pheasant, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
