To requite so disinterested a match with her daughter, by presently turning her new son-in-law out of doors, appeared to her very unjustifiable on the one hand; and on the other, she could scarce bear the thoughts of making any excuse to Mr Allworthy, after all the obligations received from him, for depriving him of lodgings which were indeed strictly his due; for that gentleman, in conferring all his numberless benefits on others, acted by a rule diametrically opposite to what is practised by most generous people.
— from History of Tom Jones, a Foundling by Henry Fielding

On this first march we must at once leave behind, a number of men completely worn out and scattered about, often just the bravest, who have been foremost in the fight who held out the longest: the feeling of being conquered, which only seized the superior officers on the battlefield, now spreads through all ranks, even down to the common soldiers, aggravated by the horrible idea of being obliged to leave in the enemy's hands so many brave comrades, who but a moment since were of such value to us in the battle, and aggravated by a rising distrust of the chief, to whom, more or less, every subordinate attributes as a fault the fruitless efforts he has made; and this feeling of being conquered is no ideal picture over which one might become master; it is an evident truth that the enemy is superior to us; a truth of which the causes might have been so latent before that they were not to be discovered, but which, in the issue, comes out clear and palpable, or which was also, perhaps, before suspected, but which in the want of any certainty, we had to oppose by the hope of chance, reliance on good fortune, Providence or a bold attitude.
— from On War — Volume 1 by Carl von Clausewitz

I thought I would teach the bird a pretty speech, so I had the cage hung by my bed, and repeated dozens of times every day the following sentence: “The Charpillon is a bigger wh—e than her mother.”
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova

A FIELD DAY AND BIVOUAC—MORE NEW FRIENDS—AN INVITATION TO THE COUNTRY M any authors entertain, not only a foolish, but a really dishonest objection to acknowledge the sources whence they derive much valuable information.
— from The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens

“As the Lakeman’s bare head was just level with the planks, the Captain and his posse leaped the barricade, and rapidly drawing over the slide of the scuttle, planted their group of hands upon it, and loudly called for the steward to bring the heavy brass padlock belonging to the companionway.
— from Moby Dick; Or, The Whale by Herman Melville

“He had sworn a solemn oath on leaving home that he would not return unsuccessful, so he became a regular denizen of the forest, eating the flesh and drinking the blood of the animals which he slew, and pursuing night and day his fruitless search.
— from Malay Magic Being an introduction to the folklore and popular religion of the Malay Peninsula by Walter William Skeat

As soon as this was effected he repaired to Kilkenny, in order to expedite the embarkation of a force amounting to about three thousand men, which had been raised for the relief of Chester; and, had there been a sufficient co-operation on the part of the general council, they might have sailed time enough to have afforded the most essential service to the royal cause; but after repeated delays on their part, intelligence was brought of the loss of that important city; and the Marquis, finding that his further stay in Ireland was attended with considerable hazard to his own life, without any commensurate benefit to his Majesty, resolved on embarking for France, where he was soon after joined by the exiled queen.
— from The Century of Inventions of the Marquis of Worcester from the Original MS., with Historical and Explanatory Notes and a Biographical Memoir by Worcester, Edward Somerset, Marquis of

He had found, some months before, a chrysalis of remarkable size and form, which he had enclosed in a box; he thought no more of it, until hearing a buzz within the box, he opened it, and perceived that the chrysalis had been changed into a beautiful butterfly, which immediately flew away, leaving at the bottom of the box a red drop of the size of a shilling.
— from The Rain Cloud or, An Account of the Nature, Properties, Dangers and Uses of Rain in Various Parts of the World by Charles Tomlinson

The testimony of the Eight Witnesses differs from that of the Three Witnesses in that the view of the plates by the latter was attended by a remarkable display of the glory and power of God and the ministration of an angel.
— from New Witnesses for God (Volume 2 of 3) by B. H. (Brigham Henry) Roberts

But the to-morrows became a respectable division of time, and presently as a concession to some inherent love of accuracy Mr. Brown changed his formula.
— from The Hand of the Mighty, and Other Stories by Vaughan Kester

I thought I would teach the bird a pretty speech, so I had the cage hung by my bed, and repeated dozens of times every day the following sentence: "The Charpillon is a bigger wh—e than her mother."
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Volume 24: London to Berlin by Giacomo Casanova

"As the Lakeman's bare head was just level with the planks, the Captain and his posse leaped the barricade, and rapidly drawing over the slide of the scuttle, planted their group of hands upon it, and loudly called for the steward to bring the heavy brass padlock belonging to the companionway.
— from Moby Dick; Or, The Whale by Herman Melville

[23] I climbed up to another Châteauneuf; there must be a round dozen of them in Provence alone, and they are all very old.
— from A Spring Walk in Provence by Archibald Marshall

Just as Captain Foster stepped into the barn a rear door of the house opened quickly.
— from Uncle Sam's Boys as Lieutenants; or, Serving Old Glory as Line Officers by H. Irving (Harrie Irving) Hancock