Chapter 16 of The Coming of the Law is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XVI
Chapter 16 of The Coming of the Law is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled. The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men. "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette." Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm. "My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.
Chapter 16 of The Coming of the Law is here in full — 196 sentences across 40 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/39 · 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.
United States comedienne remembered as the confused but imperturbable partner of her husband, George Burns (1906-1964)
From this reading “"Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."”
possessive form of “allen” — United States comedienne remembered as the confused but imperturbable partner of her husband, George Burns (1906-1964)
From this reading “Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.”
someone whose employment involves carrying something
From this reading “THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.”
a mountain or tall hill
From this reading “"My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.”
past form of “grasp” — hold firmly
From this reading “Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.”
plural of “grip” — the act of grasping
From this reading “Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.”
showing warm and heartfelt friendliness
From this reading “Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.”
possessive form of “name” — a language unit by which a person or thing is known
From this reading “"My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.”
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.
take someone's hands and shake them as a gesture of greeting or congratulation
In this reading “"Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."”
In this reading “THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.”
In this reading “The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.”
appear or become visible; make a showing
In this reading “Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.”
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 "My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.
United States comedienne remembered as the confused but imperturbable partner of her husband, George Burns (1906-1964)
From this reading "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."
possessive form of “allen” — United States comedienne remembered as the confused but imperturbable partner of her husband, George Burns (1906-1964)
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
past form of “approach” — move towards
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
someone whose employment involves carrying something
From this reading THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
a mountain or tall hill
From this reading "My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.
the two together, not just one
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
past form of “explain” — make plain and comprehensible
From this reading "My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.
plural of “foot” — the part of the leg of a human being below the ankle joint
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.
inflected form of “get” — come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
past form of “grasp” — hold firmly
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
plural of “grip” — the act of grasping
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
the (prehensile) extremity of the superior limb
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."
showing warm and heartfelt friendliness
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
determine the result of (a competition)
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."
the force of workers available
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
a form of address for a man
From this reading "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.
possessive form of “name” — a language unit by which a person or thing is known
From this reading "My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.
information about recent and important events
From this reading THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
with speed
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."
move or cause to move back and forth
From this reading "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."
change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading "My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.
past form of “smile” — change one's facial expression by spreading the lips, often to signal pleasure
From this reading THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.
anyone who does not belong in the environment in which they are found
From this reading "My name's Ben Allen," explained the stranger with a smile.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE BEARER OF GOOD NEWS Hollis smiled.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one or a numeral representing this number
From this reading The Judge got to his feet and approached the two men.
having or producing a comfortable and agreeable degree of heat or imparting or maintaining heat
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Allen's hand came out quickly and was grasped by Hollis's, both grips being hearty and warm.
in the company of; together with
From this reading "Hollis," he said, "shake hands with Mr. Allen, of Lazette."
Chapter 16 of The Coming of the Law by Charles Alden Seltzer holds 196 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 16 holds 196 sentences of The Coming of the Law, unabridged, divided into 40 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 16 of The Coming of the Law by Charles Alden Seltzer exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 196 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 16 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 Coming of the Law by Charles Alden Seltzer on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4578 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #31512 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #31512, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 381 minutes of reading across 916 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Coming of the Law section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 31 chapters of The Coming of the Law 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 Coming of the Law, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
