Some indeed still think that cousins have a moral right to a man’s inheritance in default of nearer heirs, and to assistance in any need; but it seems equally common to hold that they can at most claim to be selected ceteris paribus as the recipients of bounty, and that an unpromising cousin should not be preferred to a promising stranger.
— from The Methods of Ethics by Henry Sidgwick

He was right; for in some time, the creditors having ascertained that they could get nothing of a cat but its skin, (even could they catch it,) suffered him to remain unmolested on his own promise—and a very safe one—that if ever he was able , he would pay them.
— from Personal Sketches of His Own Times, Vol. 3 (of 3) by Barrington, Jonah, Sir

I have not vanity sufficient to suppose that my feeble, though well-meant, endeavors merit so great a reward; for it was your kind indulgence and support alone which enabled me to go through the duties of the station which you were pleased to assign me; but I shall ever consider this distinguished and honorable testimony as the most fortunate circumstance in my life.
— from Abridgment of the Debates of Congress, from 1789 to 1856, Vol. 1 (of 16) by United States. Congress

But it seems equally certain that they are also assisted by an only less powerful sense of smell.
— from A History of North American Birds; Land Birds; Vol. 3 of 3 by Robert Ridgway

The family of Columbus was of humble origin; his father, Domenic Columbus, a manufacturer of woollen stuffs, seems, however, to have been in sufficiently easy circumstances to enable him to give his children a more than ordinarily good education.
— from Celebrated Travels and Travellers, Part 1. The Exploration of the World by Jules Verne

The Evening Post did not, indeed, say execute; I, myself, have introduced the word, because it so exactly conveys the meaning of the Post's criticism.
— from Bill's School and Mine: A Collection of Essays on Education by William S. (William Suddards) Franklin

I am sorry for the crime which then brought me before you, but I shall ever consider that day as the happiest period of my life—a day in which I was convinced of my folly, obstinacy, and self-conceit; a day to which I owe all the happiness of a calm and peaceful life, free from the passions of thoughtless girls who place enjoyments in the gratification of unreasonable desires.
— from Forgotten Tales of Long Ago by E. V. (Edward Verrall) Lucas

"The box may have been locked when you found it, but it seems equally certain that it was also empty," said Colwyn.
— from The Hand in the Dark by Arthur J. (Arthur John) Rees

But in some extraordinary cases, the dead [221] soul may really act separately in a living individual.
— from Fantasia of the Unconscious by D. H. (David Herbert) Lawrence

As spring budded and blossomed into summer, Eric counted the days that separated him from the fulfilment of her promise.
— from The Education of Eric Lane by Stephen McKenna