I rattled the broken windows, beat against the old rotten doors, and whistled through cracks and crevices, so that Mr. Owe Ramel did not much like to remain there.
— from Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen by H. C. (Hans Christian) Andersen

The citizens, after so great a disaster, made no resistance, but at their own request were granted a treaty and alliance for a hundred years, giving up a large portion of their territory, called the Septem Pagi, or seven districts, and their saltworks by the river, and handing over fifty of their leading men as hostages.
— from Plutarch's Lives, Volume 1 (of 4) by Plutarch

“Though old as history itself, thou art fresh as the breath of spring, blooming as thine own rose-bud, and fragrant as thine own orange flower, O Damascus, pearl of the East!” Damascus dates back anterior to the days of Abraham, and is the oldest city in the world.
— from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain

He has been for some time particularly desirous to serve his country in a post of good emoluments, unaccompanied by any trouble or responsibility.
— from Bleak House by Charles Dickens

So they entered the large gloomy hail of the house, and towards the end of a long passage Gerard opened a door, and they all went into a spacious melancholy room, situate at the back of the house, and looking upon a small square plot of dank grass, in the midst of which rose a very weather-stained Cupid, with one arm broken, and the other raised in the air with a long shell to its mouth.
— from Sybil, Or, The Two Nations by Disraeli, Benjamin, Earl of Beaconsfield

The Solanki held largely here in ancient days, and the descendant of the princes of Patan still retains his Bhum and title of Rao.
— from Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, v. 1 of 3 or the Central and Western Rajput States of India by James Tod

Up, and when ready, to the office (my wife rising to send away Barker, according to our resolution last night, and she did do it with more clothes than have cost us L10, and 20s.
— from The Diary of Samuel Pepys — Complete by Samuel Pepys

In the front, in the very center, leaning back against the orchestra rail, stood Dólokhov in a Persian dress, his curly hair brushed up into a huge shock.
— from War and Peace by Tolstoy, Leo, graf

She asked what her destiny would be, and the oracle replied that she had not yet taken the first step towards it.
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova

—— Pasley Carew!" "It wasn't his fault, you know——" "It was his —— fault putting Blackbird at that —— Old Road after the run we'd had, wasn't it?
— from Maid of the Mist by John Oxenham

Now, Captain Carrington did know that "mainsail haul" was the next word of command; but as this order requires a degree of precision as to the exact time at which it is given, he looked over his shoulder for the first lieutenant, who usually prompted him in this exigence.
— from Newton Forster by Frederick Marryat

Possibly, it injured some of the trees and bushes; certainly, one bullet did get a boloman square [ 74 ] in the throat; but under cover of the smoke, which hung like a pall in that breathless atmosphere, the outlaws rushed in.
— from The Law of the Bolo by Stanley Portal Hyatt

Later when Bihgar Bey and the others rejoined us they declared that Sweet had gone back with an escort of no less than 60 gendarmes.
— from A Kut Prisoner by Harry Coghill Watson Bishop

The lounge by the three windows was covered with small figured French chintz, and it was a delightful seat, or bed, as the occasion required.
— from Aunt Phillis's Cabin; Or, Southern Life As It Is by Mary H. (Mary Henderson) Eastman

In this, however, he was disappointed; but, in searching about, and within a few feet of the remains of a wreath of snow, he came upon a wild duck lying beside a tuft of rushes.
— from Life of a Scotch Naturalist: Thomas Edward, Associate of the Linnean Society. Fourth Edition by Samuel Smiles

The time for this kind of work was nearly over for the year, and I began to look forward with delight to the approaching winter with its wondrous storms, when I would be warmly snow-bound in my Yosemite cabin with plenty of bread and books; but a tinge of regret came on when I considered that possibly I might not see this favorite region again until the next summer, excepting distant views from the heights about the Yosemite walls.
— from The Mountains of California by John Muir

Five of them had been, at their own request, brought before the King's Bench by writ of Habeas corpus , and their counsel demanded that, as they were charged with no particular offence, but merely committed at the particular command of the king, they should be discharged or admitted to bail; but both were refused.
— from Cassell's History of England, Vol. 2 (of 8) From the Wars of the Roses to the Great Rebellion by Anonymous