Chapter 6 of The Mail Carrier is here in full — 227 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VI
Chapter 6 of The Mail Carrier is here in full — 227 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
BOB IS ASTONISHED. “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man. Don’t take it so much to heart.” “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?” “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
Chapter 6 of The Mail Carrier is here in full — 227 sentences across 46 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/45 · 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.
filled with the emotional impact of overwhelming surprise or shock
From this reading “BOB IS ASTONISHED.”
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading “BOB IS ASTONISHED.”
prepare (oneself) for something unpleasant or difficult
From this reading ““NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.”
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading ““It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?””
a Spanish gentleman or nobleman
From this reading ““NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.”
posing no difficulty; requiring little effort
From this reading ““It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?””
showing or motivated by sympathy and understanding and generosity
From this reading ““NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.”
inflected form of “sob” — weep convulsively
From this reading ““It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?””
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 ““It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?””
make secure underneath
In this reading ““NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.”
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 “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
filled with the emotional impact of overwhelming surprise or shock
From this reading BOB IS ASTONISHED.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
move up and down repeatedly
From this reading BOB IS ASTONISHED.
prepare (oneself) for something unpleasant or difficult
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
patron saint of Wales (circa 520-600)
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
a Spanish gentleman or nobleman
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Don’t take it so much to heart.”
posing no difficulty; requiring little effort
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
the locus of feelings and intuitions
From this reading Don’t take it so much to heart.”
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading BOB IS ASTONISHED.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading Don’t take it so much to heart.”
and nothing more
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
showing or motivated by sympathy and understanding and generosity
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
a vaguely specified concern
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading Don’t take it so much to heart.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
a point located with respect to surface features of some region
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
express in words
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
for that reason; with the result that
From this reading Don’t take it so much to heart.”
inflected form of “sob” — weep convulsively
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
carry out
From this reading Don’t take it so much to heart.”
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Don’t take it so much to heart.”
inflected form of “tell” — express in words
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading “NOW Dave,” said Don, kindly, “brace up and be a man.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
used to ask for information about something
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
but in spite of that
From this reading “I don’t know, for you have not yet told me just what is the matter.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “It is easy enough to say ‘brace up,’” sobbed David, “but how would you feel if you were in my place?”
Chapter 6 of The Mail Carrier by Harry Castlemon holds 227 sentences, grouped into 46 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 6 holds 227 sentences of The Mail Carrier, unabridged, divided into 46 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 6 of The Mail Carrier by Harry Castlemon exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 227 sentences, grouped into 46 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 46 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 46 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 6 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 Mail Carrier by Harry Castlemon on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3509 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #56408 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #56408, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 292 minutes of reading across 702 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Mail Carrier section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 17 chapters of The Mail Carrier 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 Mail Carrier, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
