Chapter 2 of The Congo, and Other Poems is here in full — 192 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Congo, and Other Poems is here in full — 192 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
# With growing deliberation and joy. # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files. Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean. Gone were the skull-faced witch-men lean. # In a rather high key--as delicately as possible.
Chapter 2 of The Congo, and Other Poems is here in full — 192 sentences across 39 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/38 · 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.
plural of “babe” — a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk
From this reading “Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.”
plural of “capital” — assets available for use in the production of further assets
From this reading “Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.”
a republic in central Africa; achieved independence from Belgium in 1960
From this reading “Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.”
(usually plural) discussion of all sides of a question
From this reading “# With growing deliberation and joy.”
in a delicate manner
From this reading “# In a rather high key--as delicately as possible.”
plural of “file” — a set of related records (either written or electronic) kept together
From this reading “# Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.”
someone who helps to open up a new line of research or technology or art
From this reading “Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.”
plural of “temple” — place of worship consisting of an edifice for the worship of a deity
From this reading “Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.”
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 # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
following the length of something from one end toward the other
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading # With growing deliberation and joy.
plural of “angel” — spiritual being attendant upon God
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading # In a rather high key--as delicately as possible.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
plural of “babe” — a very young child (birth to 1 year) who has not yet begun to walk or talk
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
plural of “capital” — assets available for use in the production of further assets
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
free from dirt or impurities; or having clean habits
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
rid of objects or obstructions such as e.g. trees and brush
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
a republic in central Africa; achieved independence from Belgium in 1960
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
(usually plural) discussion of all sides of a question
From this reading # With growing deliberation and joy.
in a delicate manner
From this reading # In a rather high key--as delicately as possible.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
plural of “file” — a set of related records (either written or electronic) kept together
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
destroyed or killed
From this reading Gone were the skull-faced witch-men lean.
(biology) the process of an individual organism growing organically; a purely biological unfolding of events involved in an organism changing gradually from a simple to a more complex level
From this reading # With growing deliberation and joy.
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading # In a rather high key--as delicately as possible.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
the emotion of great happiness
From this reading # With growing deliberation and joy.
metal device shaped in such a way that when it is inserted into the appropriate lock the lock's mechanism can be rotated
From this reading # In a rather high key--as delicately as possible.
to incline or bend from a vertical position
From this reading Gone were the skull-faced witch-men lean.
plural of “mile” — a unit of length equal to 1,760 yards or 5,280 feet; exactly 1609.344 meters
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
any place of complete bliss and delight and peace
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
someone who helps to open up a new line of research or technology or art
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
participate in games or sport
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
capable of happening or existing
From this reading # In a rather high key--as delicately as possible.
on the contrary
From this reading # In a rather high key--as delicately as possible.
a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek)
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
concerned with religion or religious purposes
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gone were the skull-faced witch-men lean.
plural of “temple” — place of worship consisting of an edifice for the worship of a deity
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
the cardinal number that is the product of 10 and 100
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
plural of “tree” — a tall perennial woody plant having a main trunk and branches forming a distinct elevated crown; includes both gymnosperms and angiosperms
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading # Then along that river, a thousand miles The vine-snared trees fell down in files.
how something is done or how it happens
From this reading Pioneer angels cleared the way For a Congo paradise, for babes at play, For sacred capitals, for temples clean.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Gone were the skull-faced witch-men lean.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Gone were the skull-faced witch-men lean.
in the company of; together with
From this reading # With growing deliberation and joy.
Chapter 2 of The Congo, and Other Poems by Vachel Lindsay holds 192 sentences, grouped into 39 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, 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 2 holds 192 sentences of The Congo, and Other Poems, unabridged, divided into 39 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Congo, and Other Poems by Vachel Lindsay exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 192 sentences, grouped into 39 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 39 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 39 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 2 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 Congo, and Other Poems by Vachel Lindsay on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1123 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #1021 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #1021, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 93 minutes of reading across 225 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Congo, and Other Poems section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 7 chapters of The Congo, and Other Poems 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 Congo, and Other Poems, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
