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The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans
The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans

Chapter V

Chapter 5 of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans is here in full — 58 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

By Emerson Hough • Curated US English Learning Edition
Cover illustration for The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans
Context Illustration Reading 1/11 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.
Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.
Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.
To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.
This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.
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AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans

Chapter V

Chapter 5 of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans is here in full — 58 sentences across 12 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/11 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.
/ðə əˈmerəkən hɔːrs əbˈzɜːrv hiːr ə ˈkriːtʃər ə dʌm bruːt ðæt hæz seɪvd sʌm ˈsentʃəriz ʌv taɪm/
Line 2
Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.
/ˌɪnˈdiːd wɪˈθaʊt ðɪs əˈmerəkən hɔːrs ðə əˈmerəkən ˌsɪvəlɪˈzeɪʃən pərˈhæps kʊd ˈnevər hæv bɪn/
Line 3
Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.
/wɪˈθaʊt ðə æks ðə ˈraɪfəl ðə boʊt ənd ðə hɔːrs ðer kʊd hæv bɪn noʊ west/
Line 4
To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.
Line 5
This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

Learner Dictionary

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.

brute noun US /bruːt/

a cruelly rapacious person

From this reading “THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
centuries noun US /ˈsentʃəriz/

plural of “century” — a period of 100 years

From this reading “THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
civilization noun US /ˌsɪvəlɪˈzeɪʃən/

a society in an advanced state of social development (e.g., with complex legal and political and religious organizations)

From this reading “Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
dispense verb US /dɪˈspens/

administer or bestow, as in small portions

From this reading “To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
dumb adjective US /dʌm/

slow to learn or understand; lacking intellectual acuity

From this reading “THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
indispensable adjective US /ˌɪndɪˈspensəbəl/

not to be dispensed with; essential

From this reading “To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
portions noun US /ˈpɔːrʃənz/

plural of “portion” — something determined in relation to something that includes it

From this reading “This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
possessions noun US /pəˈzeʃənz/

plural of “possession” — the act of having and controlling property

From this reading “To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.”

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

dispense with verb + particle

give up what is not strictly needed

In this reading “To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.”

2,659 times in 426,212 chapters
some measure adjective + noun

In this reading “To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.”

3,862 times in 426,212 chapters

All words in this reading · 59

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.

adeterminerUS /ə/

used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
AMERICANnounUS /əˈmerəkən/

a native or inhabitant of the United States

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
animalnounUS /ˈænəməl/

a living organism characterized by voluntary movement

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
asconjunctionUS /æz/

at the same time that; because; in the way that

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
axnounUS /æks/

an edge tool with a heavy bladed head mounted across a handle

From this reading Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
beenauxiliary verbUS /bɪn/

the past participle of “be”

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
boatnounUS /boʊt/

a small vessel for travel on water

From this reading Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
brutenounUS /bruːt/

a cruelly rapacious person

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
butconjunctionUS /bʌt/

used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
centuriesnounUS /ˈsentʃəriz/

plural of “century” — a period of 100 years

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
civilizationnounUS /ˌsɪvəlɪˈzeɪʃən/

a society in an advanced state of social development (e.g., with complex legal and political and religious organizations)

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
couldmodal verbUS /kʊd/

the past of “can”; used for possibility or polite requests

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
countrynounUS /ˈkʌntri/

a politically organized body of people under a single government

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
creaturenounUS /ˈkriːtʃər/

a living organism characterized by voluntary movement

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
dispenseverbUS /dɪˈspens/

administer or bestow, as in small portions

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
dumbadjectiveUS /dʌm/

slow to learn or understand; lacking intellectual acuity

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
earlyadjectiveUS /ˈɜːrli/

at or near the beginning of a period of time or course of events or before the usual or expected time

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
findverbUS /faɪnd/

come upon, as if by accident; meet with

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
hasauxiliary verbUS /hæz/

the form of “have” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
haveauxiliary verbUS /hæv/

used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
hereadverbUS /hiːr/

in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
himpronounUS /hɪm/

the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
HORSEnounUS /hɔːrs/

solid-hoofed herbivorous quadruped domesticated since prehistoric times

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
inprepositionUS /ɪn/

inside something, or within a place, period, or state

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
IndeedadverbUS /ˌɪnˈdiːd/

in truth (often tends to intensify)

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
indispensableadjectiveUS /ˌɪndɪˈspensəbəl/

not to be dispensed with; essential

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
man'snounUS /mænz/

possessive form of “man” — an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
measurenounUS /ˈmeʒər/

any maneuver made as part of progress toward a goal

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
moreadjectiveUS /mɔːr/

(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
neveradverbUS /ˈnevər/

not ever; at no time in the past or future

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
nodeterminerUS /noʊ/

not any; not one

From this reading Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
notadverbUS /nɑːt/

used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
ObserveverbUS /əbˈzɜːrv/

discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
olderadjectiveUS /ˈoʊldər/

advanced in years; (“aged” is pronounced as two syllables)

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
partnounUS /pɑːrt/

something determined in relation to something that includes it

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
perhapsadverbUS /pərˈhæps/

by chance

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
portionsnounUS /ˈpɔːrʃənz/

plural of “portion” — something determined in relation to something that includes it

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
possessionsnounUS /pəˈzeʃənz/

plural of “possession” — the act of having and controlling property

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
quiteadverbUS /kwaɪt/

to a degree (not used with a negative)

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
rifleverbUS /ˈraɪfəl/

steal goods; take as spoils

From this reading Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
savedadjectiveUS /seɪvd/

rescued; especially from the power and consequences of sin

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
settledadjectiveUS /ˈsetəld/

established or decided beyond dispute or doubt

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
someadjectiveUS /sʌm/

(quantifier) used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
thatconjunctionUS /ðæt/

used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
THEdeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
thenadverbUS /ðen/

subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)

From this reading This animal was not then quite as we find him to-day in the older settled portions of the country.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
thereadverbUS /ðer/

in or at that place or location

From this reading Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
thisdeterminerUS /ðɪs/

used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
timenounUS /taɪm/

an instance or single occasion for some event

From this reading THE AMERICAN HORSE Observe here a creature, a dumb brute, that has saved some centuries of time.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
timesnounUS /taɪmz/

a more or less definite period of time now or previously present

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
To-day

Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

Pending verification
wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
wepronounUS /wiː/

the speaker together with one or more other people

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
WestnounUS /west/

the countries of (originally) Europe and (now including) North America and South America

From this reading Without the ax, the rifle, the boat and the horse there could have been no West.

CMU Pronouncing Dictionary · Princeton WordNet 3.1
withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
withoutprepositionUS /wɪˈθaʊt/

not having, not using, or not accompanied by

From this reading Indeed, without this American horse, the American civilization perhaps could never have been.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary
wouldmodal verbUS /wʊd/

used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past

From this reading To-day we would in some measure dispense with the horse, but in the early times no part of man’s possessions was more indispensable.

Velmora grammar entry · CMU Pronouncing Dictionary

Chapter 5 of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans by Emerson Hough holds 58 sentences, grouped into 12 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.

What does chapter 5 of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans contain?

Chapter 5 holds 58 sentences of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans, unabridged, divided into 12 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 5 of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans by Emerson Hough exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 58 sentences, grouped into 12 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.

How do I study chapter 5 of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans?

Work through the 12 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 12 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.

Can chapter 5 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 5 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.

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Common questions about reading The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans by Emerson Hough on this page, its source edition and its audio.

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Project Gutenberg eBook #45143, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

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About 390 minutes of reading across 938 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

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Vocabulary met early in The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans

Words and structures a reader meets early in The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Author
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Covered
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Wagon
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
United
A word that appears in the opening chapter of The Way to the West, and the Lives of Three Early Americans; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.