There was some sense in those matters; but as the parson told us last Sunday, nobody believes in the devil now-a-days; and here you bring about a parcel of puppets drest up like lords and ladies, only to turn the heads of poor country wenches; and when their heads are once turned topsy-turvy, no wonder everything else is so.”
— from History of Tom Jones, a Foundling by Henry Fielding

First, as regards faults, it is no easy matter to draw the line between the trifling and the serious; maybe it is not because a fault is trifling that it makes us laugh, but rather because it makes us laugh that we regard it as trifling, for there is nothing disarms us like laughter.
— from Laughter: An Essay on the Meaning of the Comic by Henri Bergson

We have first royalty, which, weak and debased under the Merovingians, rises and establishes itself energetically under Pépin and Charlemagne, to degenerate under Louis le Débonnaire and Charles le Chauve.
— from Manners, Customs, and Dress During the Middle Ages and During the Renaissance Period by P. L. Jacob

A deep crimson spread itself over her face, and She darted upon Lorenzo looks of rage and menace.
— from The Monk: A Romance by M. G. (Matthew Gregory) Lewis

Avec l'internet, on a la possibilité de davantage utiliser les langues étrangères, aussi notre organisation ne soutient absolument pas la suprématie de l'anglais en tant que langue de l'internet.
— from Entretiens / Interviews / Entrevistas by Marie Lebert

According to the Mabinogion, (see Math the son of Mathonwy) a woman named Blodeuwedd, for her wickedness towards her husband was turned into an owl; “and because of the shame thou hast done unto Llew Llaw Gyffes, thou shalt never show thy face in the light of day henceforth; and
— from Folk-Lore of West and Mid-Wales by Jonathan Ceredig Davies

“For as victory was nighest, While I sang and played,— With my lyre at lowest, highest, Right alike,—one string that made ‘Love’ sound soft was snapt in twain, Never to be heard again,— “Had not a kind cricket fluttered, Perched upon the place Vacant left, and duly uttered ‘Love, Love, Love,’ whene’er the bass Asked the treble to atone For its somewhat sombre drone.”
— from Browning and the Dramatic Monologue by S. S. (Samuel Silas) Curry

Facts like these, which suggest grave diversification under long lapse of time, are well supplemented by those which essentially demonstrate a slighter diversification of many species over a wide range of space; whether into species or races depends partly upon how the naturalist uses these terms, partly upon the extent of the observations, or luck in getting together intermediate forms.
— from Darwiniana; Essays and Reviews Pertaining to Darwinism by Asa Gray

It follows from the size of the masses in action, the difficulty, even with steam and petrol transport, of moving them rapidly, and their dependence upon long lines of supply.
— from The Battle of the Marne by G. H. (George Herbert) Perris

I remember my mother expostulating with a friend, an actress, who had left a devoted husband and eloped with a disagreeable, ugly, little low comedian (I am speaking of long, long ago).
— from Novel Notes by Jerome K. (Jerome Klapka) Jerome

"For as victory was nighest, While I sang and played,— With my lyre at lowest, highest, Right alike,—one string that made 'Love' sound soft was snapt in twain, Never to be heard again,— "Had not a kind cricket fluttered, Perched upon the place Vacant left, and duly uttered 'Love, Love, Love,' whene'er the bass Asked the treble to atone
— from The Complete Poetic and Dramatic Works of Robert Browning Cambridge Edition by Robert Browning

The worst of it is that the material is almost valueless after it has served the first purpose; and used as dung upon light land is rather injurious than otherwise.
— from Mushroom Culture: Its Extension and Improvement by W. (William) Robinson

No man dared use language like that of Patrick Henry and Madison; and Jefferson's Notes on Virginia , if newly published, would have been excluded from the mails and its author exiled.
— from The Negro and the Nation A History of American Slavery and Enfranchisement by George Spring Merriam

(Back) Footnote 16-58: Memo, Dir, Recruiting Div, BuPers, for Admin Aide to SecNav, 22 Dec 50, sub: Negro Officer in Recruiting on the West Coast; Ltr, SecNav to Actg Exec Dir, Urban League, Los Angeles, 22 Dec 50; both in Pers B6, GenRecsNav.
— from Integration of the Armed Forces, 1940-1965 by Morris J. MacGregor