Chapter 15 of The Mark of Cain is here in full — 221 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XV
Chapter 15 of The Mark of Cain is here in full — 221 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters. He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once. Margaret is found. She is going to be my wife. You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
Chapter 15 of The Mark of Cain is here in full — 221 sentences across 45 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/44 · 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 quality of having a superior or more favorable position
From this reading “You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.””
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading “Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.”
the literary culture
From this reading “Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.”
English historian noted for his works on the history of English law (1850-1906)
From this reading “He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.”
with speed
From this reading “You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.””
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading “He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.”
an alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented
From this reading “Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.”
set down in writing in any of various ways
From this reading “He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.”
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.
the quality of having a superior or more favorable position
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
used with a past participle to form the passive, or with -ing for continuous tenses
From this reading She is going to be my wife.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
past form of “enter” — to come or go into
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
set up or found
From this reading Margaret is found.
the act of departing
From this reading She is going to be my wife.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
perceive (sound) via the auditory sense
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
greater than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Margaret is found.
the literary culture
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
English historian noted for his works on the history of English law (1850-1906)
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Margaret is found.
the time period between dawn and noon
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading She is going to be my wife.
immediately following in time or order
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
on one occasion
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
with speed
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She is going to be my wife.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
a thing, without saying which
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
an alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
precisely as stated
From this reading Next morning Barton entered his sitting-room in very high spirits, and took up his letters.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading She is going to be my wife.
hope for; have a wish
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
set down in writing in any of various ways
From this reading He had written to Maitland the night before, saying little but, “Come home at once.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
belonging to the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You can’t come too quickly, if you wish to hear of something very much to your advantage.”
Chapter 15 of The Mark of Cain by Andrew Lang holds 221 sentences, grouped into 45 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 15 holds 221 sentences of The Mark of Cain, unabridged, divided into 45 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 15 of The Mark of Cain by Andrew Lang exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 221 sentences, grouped into 45 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 45 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 45 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 15 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 Mark of Cain by Andrew Lang on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2990 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #21821 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #21821, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 249 minutes of reading across 598 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Mark of Cain section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 16 chapters of The Mark of Cain 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 Mark of Cain, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
