Chapter 4 of The Slave of the Mine is here in full — 115 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Slave of the Mine is here in full — 115 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE BOX AT THE CALIFORNIA THEATRE. It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken. The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit. Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher. "Any one inside?" asked Jack.
Chapter 4 of The Slave of the Mine is here in full — 115 sentences across 23 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/23 · 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.
a state in the western United States on the Pacific; the 3rd largest state; known for earthquakes
From this reading “THE BOX AT THE CALIFORNIA THEATRE.”
-ing form of “delight” — give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading “The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.”
an Italian woman of rank
From this reading “The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.”
a gay festivity
From this reading “It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.”
a drama set to music; consists of singing with orchestral accompaniment and an orchestral overture and interludes
From this reading “The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.”
used primarily as eating apples
From this reading “The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.”
the quality of being secluded from the presence or view of others
From this reading “Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.”
take (someone) to their seats, as in theaters or auditoriums
From this reading “Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.”
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.
a vain and temperamental person
In this reading “The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.”
a company that produces operas
In this reading “The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.”
In this reading “Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.”
In this reading “It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.”
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 It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
later than; following
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
one or some or every or all without specification
From this reading "Any one inside?" asked Jack.
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading "Any one inside?" asked Jack.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading THE BOX AT THE CALIFORNIA THEATRE.
aerobic rod-shaped spore-producing bacterium; often occurring in chainlike formations; found primarily in soil
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
the past participle of “be”
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
financial assistance in time of need
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
a (usually rectangular) container; may have a lid
From this reading THE BOX AT THE CALIFORNIA THEATRE.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
a state in the western United States on the Pacific; the 3rd largest state; known for earthquakes
From this reading THE BOX AT THE CALIFORNIA THEATRE.
an institution created to conduct business
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
hanging cloth used as a blind (especially for a window)
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
-ing form of “delight” — give pleasure to or be pleasing to
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
an Italian woman of rank
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
put on clothes
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
a gay festivity
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
relating to or being on the side closer to the center or within a defined space
From this reading "Any one inside?" asked Jack.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
a small worthless amount
From this reading "Any one inside?" asked Jack.
the time after sunset and before sunrise while it is dark outside
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "Any one inside?" asked Jack.
a drama set to music; consists of singing with orchestral accompaniment and an orchestral overture and interludes
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
used primarily as eating apples
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
to a degree (not used with a negative)
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
any of many shrubs of the genus Rosa that bear roses
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
a space reserved for sitting (as in a theater or on a train or airplane)
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
the quality of being secluded from the presence or view of others
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
inflected form of “show” — give an exhibition of to an interested audience
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
in the near future
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
that is looked for
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
understood in a certain way; made sense of
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE BOX AT THE CALIFORNIA THEATRE.
a building where theatrical performances or motion-picture shows can be presented
From this reading THE BOX AT THE CALIFORNIA THEATRE.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
inflected form of “take” — carry out
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
an urban area with a fixed boundary that is smaller than a city
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
take (someone) to their seats, as in theaters or auditoriums
From this reading Soon after the curtain rose Harkaway, in evening dress, sought the seclusion of Box B, to which he was shown by the usher.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was quite a gala night at the theatre, and every seat was taken.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading The prima donna of an English Opera Company which had been delighting the town took a benefit.
Chapter 4 of The Slave of the Mine by Bracebridge Hemyng holds 115 sentences, grouped into 23 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 4 holds 115 sentences of The Slave of the Mine, unabridged, divided into 23 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Slave of the Mine by Bracebridge Hemyng exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 115 sentences, grouped into 23 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 23 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 23 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 4 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 Slave of the Mine by Bracebridge Hemyng on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 1735 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #46653 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #46653, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 144 minutes of reading across 347 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Slave of the Mine section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 9 chapters of The Slave of the Mine 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 Slave of the Mine, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
