The Emperor hath two Barons who are own brothers, one called Baian and the other Mingan; and these two are styled Chinuchi (or Cunichi ), which is as much as to say, "The Keepers of the Mastiff Dogs."[NOTE 1] Each of these brothers hath 10,000 men under his orders; each body of 10,000 being dressed alike, the one in red and the other in blue, and whenever they accompany the Lord to the chase, they wear this livery, in order to be recognized.
— from The Travels of Marco Polo — Volume 1 by Rustichello of Pisa

But, above all, that conceit arrided us most at that time, and still tickles our midriff to remember, where, allusively to the flight of Astrća— ultima Calestűm terras reliquit —we pronounced—in reference to the stockings still—that MODESTY TAKING HER FINAL LEAVE OF MORTALS, HER LAST BLUSH WAS VISIBLE IN HER ASCENT TO THE HEAVENS BY THE TRACT OF THE GLOWING INSTEP.
— from The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 2 Elia and The Last Essays of Elia by Charles Lamb

He always argues by strong and solid reasons, after a pointed and subtle manner, according to the affected style of that age, which was so in love with an inflated manner, that where point and subtlety were wanting in things it supplied these with lofty and swelling words.
— from Essays of Michel de Montaigne — Complete by Michel de Montaigne

I stretched my limbs, sore and painful from the pricks of the spiny plants, and stared around me at the trees; and, so suddenly that it seemed to jump out of the green tracery about it, my eyes lit upon a black face watching me.
— from The Island of Doctor Moreau by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells

For their mild and liberal behavior to their prisoners, we may appeal to the authority, somewhat more recent of the emperor Maurice, (Stratagem.
— from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire Table of Contents with links in the HTML file to the two Project Gutenberg editions (12 volumes) by Edward Gibbon

I found that everything was done here with a scrupulous regard to economy, both in regard to men and things, time and strength.
— from My Bondage and My Freedom by Frederick Douglass

I hugged myself at the thought; and she coming to us, he said, as if he was continuing a discourse we were in: No, not extraordinary pleasant.
— from Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded by Samuel Richardson

His government was remarkable for its mildness and tolerance towards all sects; he was indefatigable in his attention to the internal administration of his empire, and instituted inquiries into the population, character, and productions of each province.
— from The New Gresham Encyclopedia. A to Amide Vol. 1 Part 1 by Various

It was tiresome waiting in the square; I wandered from the Marble Arch to the artillery stables and back again to the lotos fountain.
— from The King in Yellow by Robert W. (Robert William) Chambers

No attempt has been made to differentiate sounds so much alike that the average student fails to discern the distinction, for the words, where recorded, are designed for the general reader rather than the philologist, and it has been the endeavor to encourage their pronunciation rather than to make them repellent by inverted and other arbitrary characters.
— from The North American Indian, Vol. 1 by Edward S. Curtis

What could be more absurd than to allow such a trifle as convention to come between you and me?
— from When Dreams Come True by Ritter Brown

Avoid mannerisms and tricks; they are signs of weakness.
— from Amiel's Journal: The Journal Intime of Henri-Frédéric Amiel by Henri Frédéric Amiel

For I am English really, Mark, although that thought always seems so strange to me; since during so many years I believed myself to be a Russian.
— from The Ashiel mystery: A Detective Story by Bryce, Charles, Mrs.

It were of course better if I could let her speak for herself; for her voice, though firm, has an indescribably mellow and touching tone, and seems to hold the listener as if spell-bound.
— from Waldfried: A Novel by Berthold Auerbach

The child walks silently and shyly beside her, his happy vanity troubled for once by the sense that he has made some mistake, and that there are some few things still in the universe which he does not quite entirely understand.
— from A House-Party, Don Gesualdo, and A Rainy June by Ouida

A very intelligent custodian, who has written a book about the Abbey, was showing us round at that moment, and telling things about Sir Ralph Evers, whom the Douglases killed for revenge, on Ancrum Moor, and all about the pillar with the "curly green capital."
— from The Heather-Moon by A. M. (Alice Muriel) Williamson