Now I laugh for that I mind me of the simplicity of Bernabo, who was fool enough to lay five thousand florins to one that I would not bring his wife to do my pleasure; the which I did and won the wager; whereupon he, who should rather have punished himself for his stupidity than her for doing that which all women do, returned from Paris to Genoa and there, by what I have since heard, caused her put to death.'
— from The Decameron of Giovanni Boccaccio by Giovanni Boccaccio

Báli has died and won the meed That waits in heaven on noble deed, Throned in the seats the brave may reach By liberal hand and gentle speech, True to a warrior's duty, bold
— from The Rámáyan of Válmíki, translated into English verse by Valmiki

"It's some men's fort to do one thing, and some other men's fort to do another, while there is numeris shiftless critters goin' round loose whose fort is not to do nothin'.
— from Pushing to the Front by Orison Swett Marden

The cardinal, therefore, got up, perfumed himself, dressed, and went to the queen to tell her what had detained him.
— from Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas

He had not deserted along with the others, but had stood his ground all through.
— from The Mysterious Stranger, and Other Stories by Mark Twain

Not for the rhapsodes; for with them it was not only planted in the memory, but also interwoven with the feelings, and conceived in conjunction with all those flexions and intonations of voice, pauses, and other oral artifices which were required for emphatic delivery, and which the naked manuscript could never reproduce.
— from The Odyssey by Homer

Till a Cordelier's Deputation actually went to examine, and found it—carried off again! ( 23rd December, 1789 ( Newspapers in Hist.
— from The French Revolution: A History by Thomas Carlyle

He gathered together there extraordinary treasure, as is reasonable to suppose; for he had the plundering of the part of the world richest in gold and valuable things, and he had done such great deeds as with truth are related, such as taking eighty strongholds by his valour.
— from Heimskringla; Or, The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway by Snorri Sturluson

Just outside the door, Allyn was toiling handily in her behalf; and, strange to say, she was free from the obstacle she had most feared, that Melchisedek would get under her feet at some critical moment, and project her headlong, roast and all, upon the smooth bald pate of Mr. Gilwyn.
— from Phebe, Her Profession A Sequel to Teddy: Her Book by Anna Chapin Ray

thou wouldst not have us wake From out the arms of this rare happy dream And wish to leave the murmur of the stream, The rustling boughs, the twitter of the birds, And all thy thousand peaceful happy words.
— from The Earthly Paradise: A Poem (Part II) by William Morris

Jebsen told me nothing about these five Persians except that they were going with the Maverick as passengers right through to her destination, and were to be signed on the articles as anything.
— from Fighting Germany's Spies by French Strother

She sat upon the sand at a little distance, and when the fever mounted she gave him water, and bathed with water face and breast.
— from The Wanderers by Mary Johnston

When his wounds were healed, Ulf married a fair girl of the Horlingdal district, and went to reside there, but his change of abode did not alter his title.
— from Erling the Bold by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne

However adverse the general situation, men will stick to the one man who knows what he wants to do and welcomes them to a full share in the enterprise.
— from The Armed Forces Officer Department of the Army Pamphlet 600-2 by United States. Department of Defense

Mary and Martha, here, and Lazarus, He knew and loved; and with them oft, their guest, Held converse sweet of what He said and did, And was, the Friend Who wept when Lazarus died, The Lord of life through Whom he lived again: But Ruth, self-sundered from this fellowship, Abode apart, or only with them bound In bonds of kindly common neighborhood.
— from The Epic of Saul by William Cleaver Wilkinson

We left the dead Arabs where they lay.
— from The Jewel of Seven Stars by Bram Stoker

Accordingly, asking for pen, ink, and paper, I sat down and wrote the following note:— “After the occurrences of this morning, I had thought never, either by word or letter, to hold further communication with you; by your own act you have separated us for ever; and I—yes, I can say it with truth—am glad that it should be so—it prevents all conflict between reason and feeling.
— from Frank Fairlegh: Scenes from the Life of a Private Pupil by Frank E. (Frank Edward) Smedley

To strong, coarse spirits, that were both shrewd and daring, and willing to balance the great risks incident to their mode of life against its great gains, the business was most alluring.
— from The Winning of the West, Volume 1 From the Alleghanies to the Mississippi, 1769-1776 by Theodore Roosevelt