And then this best and weakest woman bore With such serenity her husband's woes, Just as the Spartan ladies did of yore, Who saw their spouses kill'd, and nobly chose Never to say a word about them more— Calmly she heard each calumny that rose, And saw his agonies with such sublimity, That all the world exclaim'd, 'What magnanimity!'
— from Don Juan by Byron, George Gordon Byron, Baron

Therefore, as neither tapestry, ivory perspective glass, nor artificial apple have the least preference one before the other, but, on the contrary, there’s a perfect equality, I cannot grant the Princess to any one of you; and the only fruit you have reaped from your travels is the glory of having equally contributed to restore her health.
— from The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang

Urvaçī discovers herself to him, and in response to his entreaties, consents to return for once after the lapse of a year.
— from A History of Sanskrit Literature by Arthur Anthony Macdonell

Do not unkindly withhold this dear, this soft, this gentle hand—one moment, perhaps, tears you for ever from me—nothing less than this cruel occasion could, I believe, have ever conquered the respect and awe with which you have inspired me.”
— from History of Tom Jones, a Foundling by Henry Fielding

At one time, her eyes chanced to rest on Alice Pyncheon's harpsichord.
— from The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne

General Ross, one of the members of the Committee of Secrecy, acquainted them that they had already discovered a train of the deepest villany and fraud that hell had ever contrived to ruin a nation, which in due time they would lay before the House.
— from Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds by Charles Mackay

Then I was filled with a lively fear that it was the Muse that had taken advantage of my solitude and possessed me—the witch had evidently come to ruin a poor devil like myself making a living by collecting cotton duties.
— from The Hungry Stones, and Other Stories by Rabindranath Tagore

"Laurie, my lad, if you ever want to indulge in this sort of thing, get one of those little girls to help you, and I shall be perfectly satisfied," said Mr. Laurence, settling himself in his easy chair to rest after the excitement of the morning.
— from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

He had also sent Sir Ralph Winwood on a special mission to the Hague, to Dusseldorf, and with letters to the Emperor, in which he expressed confidence that Rudolph would approve the proceedings of the possessory princes.
— from PG Edition of Netherlands series — Complete by John Lothrop Motley

Some people near the river have even commenced to rear dogs to supply the demand.
— from The Naturalist in Nicaragua by Thomas Belt

The royalties were expected; indeed, the queen herself had especially commanded this reception for the gifted woman whom she had honored as her guest on the Riviera, where this singing Rachel had entranced her with the folk-songs and lullabies of her beloved country.
— from The Squaw Man: A Novel by Julie Opp

The Háhám Báshi, at the head of the members of his ecclesiastical court, the representatives of the congregations, deputations from schools, and the most influential citizens, came to meet the travellers and welcome them to the Holy City.
— from Diaries of Sir Moses and Lady Montefiore, Volume 2 (of 2) Comprising Their Life and Work as Recorded in Their Diaries, from 1812 to 1883 by Montefiore, Judith Cohen, Lady

It is mine—all mine!” moaned the miser, and suddenly his eyes commenced to roll, as if he was going to have a fit.
— from The Putnam Hall Encampment; or, The Secret of the Old Mill by Edward Stratemeyer

All this must remain very vague to one who has not submitted his ethical concepts to reflective analysis of the sort that we have a right to call philosophical.
— from An Introduction to Philosophy by George Stuart Fullerton

He knows, however, that his own party are divided into supporters of himself for his own sake, whilst spitting upon the platform on which he stands—and those who love the platform so well that for its sake they have even consented, though reluctantly, to acquiesce in his nomination—into those Free Soil Whigs who denounce the Fugitive Slave Law, and those Whigs who are devoted heart and soul to its maintenance.
— from Life of James Buchanan, Fifteenth President of the United States. v. 2 (of 2) by George Ticknor Curtis

We have heard of a partial exception to this instinctive habit, which, however, essentially confirms the rule.
— from Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine — Volume 53, No. 331, May, 1843 by Various

Not a dozen of them, including my foster-parents who had so painfully brought me out across Dammerung, had ever crossed the ring of encircling mountains that walled them away from the rest of the planet.
— from The Planet Savers by Marion Zimmer Bradley

The Russian Admiral knew that he had absolutely no chance, but he did not have enough courage to retreat.
— from New York Times Current History: The European War, Vol. 8, Pt. 2, No. 1, July 1918 by Various