what an unthrift in the world doth spend Shifts but his place, for still the world enjoys it; But beauty's waste hath in the world an end, And kept unused the user so destroys it.
— from Shakespeare's Sonnets by William Shakespeare

Ah, if thou issueless shalt hap to die, The world will wail thee like a makeless wife, The world will be thy widow and still weep, That thou no form of thee hast left behind, When every private widow well may keep, By children’s eyes, her husband’s shape in mind: Look what an unthrift in the world doth spend Shifts but his place, for still the world enjoys it; But beauty’s waste hath in the world an end, And kept unused the user so destroys it: No love toward others in that bosom sits That on himself such murd’rous shame commits.
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare

He knew that his sole means of security against people was to hide his wounds from them, and instinctively he tried to do this for two days, but now he felt incapable of keeping up the unequal struggle.
— from Anna Karenina by Tolstoy, Leo, graf

But I wish thee to learn, (if thou canst) to be sober, and to keep under thy unruly spirit; and do not so much appear, at least not so grossly, a railing Rabshakeh; but contrariwise, if you would be looked upon to be holy, which ( we know and believe that ) as yet, many of you are not.
— from Works of John Bunyan — Complete by John Bunyan

Month after month she has kept up the unequal struggle, and there are many here who think the greater powers that be are going to withdraw to a shorter line, and await refilling of their caissons until the time comes when the Allies can co-operate in the attack on the common enemy.
— from The Russian Campaign, April to August, 1915 Being the Second Volume of "Field Notes from the Russian Front" by Stanley Washburn

It was also in recognition of this element in our book that Mr. MacGregor Mathers dedicated his learned work, "The Kabala Unveiled," to us, saying— "I have much pleasure in dedicating this work to the authors of The Perfect Way , as they have in that excellent and wonderful book touched so much on the doctrines of the Kabala, and laid such value on its teachings.
— from The Story of Anna Kingsford and Edward Maitland and of the new Gospel of Interpretation by Edward Maitland

"You all get on so capitally together, and it does one good to hear you laugh so heartily; while we are keeping up the usual sort of conventional twaddle, which consists, upon my soul, in each one's saying nothing which the others could not have said as well.
— from In Paradise: A Novel. Vol. II by Paul Heyse

[pg 303] kept up the unwearied sound-semblance of a blind man who walked without footstep, a patient sentinel, now advancing, now retreating, now at the garden gate, now near the azaleas, and ever waiting.
— from The Crimson Azaleas: A Novel by H. De Vere (Henry De Vere) Stacpoole

Where the soldiers of the étappe had thrown discipline and honor to the winds and straggled home, a chaotic collection of looters, the men who, until noon on November 11th, had kept up the unequal struggle against victorious armies, brought back with them some of the spirit that kept them at their hopeless posts.
— from And the Kaiser abdicates: The German Revolution November 1918-August 1919 by S. Miles (Stephen Miles) Bouton

Now is the important crisis— Keep up thy usual strength, my better genius!
— from The Earl of Essex: A Tragedy, in Five Acts by Henry Jones

By the time the men tumbled up, Jacka had his helm up, and the Van der Werf , with sheets pinned, was leaning to it and knocking up the unholiest sputter.
— from The White Wolf and Other Fireside Tales by Arthur Quiller-Couch

He made superhuman efforts to keep up the unequal struggle.
— from Trusia: A Princess of Krovitch by Davis Brinton