Chapter 1 of The last spike, and other railroad stories is here in full — 448 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The last spike, and other railroad stories is here in full — 448 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A. "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?" "And general appearance." "He's the handsomest man in America." "Yes, that is against him, and the fact that he is always _in_ America.
Chapter 1 of The last spike, and other railroad stories is here in full — 448 sentences across 90 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/89 · 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.
North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776
From this reading “"He's the handsomest man in America."”
outward or visible aspect of a person or thing
From this reading “"And general appearance."”
a university in England
From this reading “THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.”
a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading “"Yes, that is against him, and the fact that he is always _in_ America.”
applying to all or most members of a category or group
From this reading “"And general appearance."”
the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions
From this reading “"Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"”
exert pressure or force to or upon
From this reading “THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.”
the body of faculty and students at a university
From this reading “THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.”
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 UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.
touching and pressing; in opposition to
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
at all times; all the time and on every occasion
From this reading "Yes, that is against him, and the fact that he is always _in_ America.
North American republic containing 50 states - 48 conterminous states in North America plus Alaska in northwest North America and the Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean; achieved independence in 1776
From this reading "He's the handsomest man in America."
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading "And general appearance."
outward or visible aspect of a person or thing
From this reading "And general appearance."
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
a university in England
From this reading THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.
a piece of information about circumstances that exist or events that have occurred
From this reading "Yes, that is against him, and the fact that he is always _in_ America.
applying to all or most members of a category or group
From this reading "And general appearance."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "He's the handsomest man in America."
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading "Yes, that is against him, and the fact that he is always _in_ America.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "He's the handsomest man in America."
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "He's the handsomest man in America."
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "He's the handsomest man in America."
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
exert pressure or force to or upon
From this reading THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading "Yes, that is against him, and the fact that he is always _in_ America.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
in or at that place or location
From this reading "Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?"
a base containing nitrogen that is found in RNA (but not in DNA) and derived from pyrimidine; pairs with adenine
From this reading THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.
the body of faculty and students at a university
From this reading THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.
an affirmative
From this reading "Yes, that is against him, and the fact that he is always _in_ America.
Chapter 1 of The last spike, and other railroad stories by Cy Warman holds 448 sentences, grouped into 90 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 1 holds 448 sentences of The last spike, and other railroad stories, unabridged, divided into 90 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The last spike, and other railroad stories by Cy Warman exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 448 sentences, grouped into 90 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 90 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 90 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 1 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 last spike, and other railroad stories by Cy Warman on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2222 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #17572 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #17572, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 185 minutes of reading across 445 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The last spike, and other railroad stories section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 5 chapters of The last spike, and other railroad stories 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 last spike, and other railroad stories, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
