To describe a real rascal, you must make him so horrible that he would be too hideous to show; and unless the painter paints him fairly, I hold he has no right to show him at all.
— from The History of Pendennis by William Makepeace Thackeray

His manner reminded me of Frank's; dignified and rather reserved, yet easy and graceful in conversation.
— from Cora and The Doctor; or, Revelations of A Physician's Wife by Madeline Leslie

Cheese is invariably offered to you with apple pie; and several little, glass dishes are ranged round your plate, for preserves, honey, and apple sauce, which latter dainty is never wanting at a country feast.
— from Life in the Clearings versus the Bush by Susanna Moodie

Q. Did any report reach you from Colonel Gray or Colonel Howard?
— from Report of the Committee Appointed to Investigate the Railroad Riots in July, 1877 Read in the Senate and House of Representatives May 23, 1878 by 1877 Pennsylvania. General Assembly. Committee Appointed to Investigate the Railroad Riots in July

These were errors which, I thought, demanded a rigid retribution; yet at intervals I was in no want of excuses to extenuate my conduct.
— from The Emigrant's Lost Son; or, Life Alone in the Forest by Anonymous