The ample revenues, which his predecessors had consumed in pomp and luxury, he diligently applied to the establishment of hospitals; and the multitudes, who were supported by his charity, preferred the eloquent and edifying discourses of their archbishop to the amusements of the theatre or the circus.
— from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire Table of Contents with links in the HTML file to the two Project Gutenberg editions (12 volumes) by Edward Gibbon

Let him listen to what follows:— There existed at the Châtelet in Paris a large and long cellar.
— from Les Misérables by Victor Hugo

By this time, I should say,’ added Richard, getting his left cheek into profile, and looking complacently at the reflection of a very little scrap of whisker in the looking-glass; ‘by this time, I should say, the iron has entered into her soul.
— from The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens

can I prove 'a lion' then no more?
— from Don Juan by Byron, George Gordon Byron, Baron

In some former parts Cecilia is perhaps a little too solemn and good, but upon the whole her disposition is very well opposed to Susan's, her want of imagination is very natural.
— from The Letters of Jane Austen Selected from the compilation of her great nephew, Edward, Lord Bradbourne by Jane Austen

54 For, as we are told, by collecting individual perceptions and linking them through the memory she brings forth the sciences.
— from The Works of the Emperor Julian, Vol. 2 by Emperor of Rome Julian

Both were alike impatient to engage; but the Barbarians, after a slight resistance, fled in disorder; unable to resist, or desirous to weary, the strength of the heavy legions, who, fainting with heat and thirst, pursued them across the plain, and cut in pieces a line of cavalry, clothed in complete armor, which had been posted before the gates of the camp to protect their retreat.
— from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire Table of Contents with links in the HTML file to the two Project Gutenberg editions (12 volumes) by Edward Gibbon

[266] "The usual mode of lessening the shock of disappointment or disesteem is to contract, if possible, a low estimate of the persons that inflict it.
— from The Principles of Psychology, Volume 1 (of 2) by William James

I have almost forgotten to mention that between this mosque and the castle is placed a little building with three windows, said to be the tomb of Sheikh Ibrahim.
— from Armenia, Travels and Studies (Volume 2 of 2) The Turkish Provinces by H. F. B. (Harry Finnis Blosse) Lynch

Had the architect designed the three arches of equal breadth, the piers which sustain the centre arch must have stood immediately in front of these door-ways, or the outer arches must have been so contracted as to bring the turrets within the line of the transept, and thereby conceal, in part at least, the towers behind.
— from A Guide to Peterborough Cathedral Comprising a brief history of the monastery from its foundation to the present time, with a descriptive account of its architectural peculiarities and recent improvements; compiled from the works of Gunton, Britton, and original & authentic documents by George S. (George Searle) Phillips

I love the style of this old father, so unjustly depreciated by our writers, and called ignorant peasant and liar by Bruce, because he claimed for his fellow countrymen the honor of having discovered the Coy Fountains.
— from First Footsteps in East Africa by Burton, Richard Francis, Sir

The development of “villi” on the inner surface of the stomach and intestine (which enlarge its surface much as we enlarge the effective surface of a bath-towel), the various valvular folds of the intestinal lining, including the remarkable “spiral fold” of the shark’s gut, the convolutions of the brain, whose complexity is evidently correlated (in part at least) with the magnitude of the animal,—all these and many more are cases in which a more or less constant ratio tends to be maintained between mass and surface, which ratio would have been more and more departed from had it not been for the alterations of surface-form 55 .
— from On Growth and Form by D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson

Thoroughly clean the fish; cut off the head or not, as preferred; cut out the backbone from the head to within two inches of the tail, and stuff with the following: Soak stale bread in water, squeeze dry; cut in pieces a large onion, fry in butter, chop fine; add the bread, two ounces of butter, salt, pepper and a little parsley or sage; heat through, and when taken off the fire, add the yolks of two well-beaten
— from The Whitehouse Cookbook (1887) Cooking, Toilet and Household Recipes, Menus, Dinner-Giving, Table Etiquette, Care of the Sick, Health Suggestions, Facts Worth Knowing, Etc., Etc. The Whole Comprising a Comprehensive Cyclopedia of Information for the Home by Hugo Ziemann

Each in its own way diffused the view which had originated in France, that civilisation is progression and, like nature, subject to general laws.
— from The Idea of Progress: An Inguiry into Its Origin and Growth by J. B. (John Bagnell) Bury

[It is reported that it is a common custom in Paris, amongst ladies of position, to pay for their dresses by wearing them in public, and letting it be known from whom they obtained them.]
— from Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 103, November 19, 1892 by Various

The composition is pressed a little with the hand, and a piece of quick-match is used.
— from A System of Pyrotechny Comprehending the theory and practice, with the application of chemistry; designed for exhibition and for war. by James Cutbush