Visited by the two Pierces, Mr. Blackburne, Dr. Clerk and Mr. Creed, and did give them a ham of bacon.
— from The Diary of Samuel Pepys — Complete by Samuel Pepys

“Of a truth, ugly tree that thou art, thou growest the fruits of wisdom, oh Holly,” she said; “but of those Jews whom I hated, for they called me ‘heathen’ when I would have taught them my philosophy—did their Messiah come, and doth He rule the world?”
— from She by H. Rider (Henry Rider) Haggard

“Wal, but, Mas’r, Tom and Misse Cassy, and dey among ’em, filled Lucy’s basket.
— from Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

Midway, complicated and doubtful cases would go to the jury.
— from The Common Law by Oliver Wendell Holmes

And then, amid the clangour of the machinery, came a drifting suspicion of human voices, that I entertained at first only to dismiss.
— from The War of the Worlds by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells

Having attained manhood, Jarl married Erna, an aristocratic, slender-waisted maiden, who ruled his household wisely and bore him many children, all destined to rule, the youngest of whom, Konur, became the first king of Denmark.
— from Myths of the Norsemen: From the Eddas and Sagas by H. A. (Hélène Adeline) Guerber

Childless Muduvar couples are dieted to make them fruitful, the principal diet for the man being plenty of black monkey.
— from Omens and Superstitions of Southern India by Edgar Thurston

No wonder, taking the whole fleet of whalemen in a body, that out of fifty fair chances for a dart, not five are successful; no wonder that so many hapless harpooneers are madly cursed and disrated; no wonder that some of them actually burst their blood-vessels in the boat; no wonder that some sperm whalemen are absent four years with four barrels; no wonder that to many ship owners, whaling is but a losing concern; for it is the harpooneer that makes the voyage, and if you take the breath out of his body how can you expect to find it there when most wanted!
— from Moby Dick; Or, The Whale by Herman Melville

At the same time when Decius was struggling with the violence of the tempest, his mind, calm and deliberate amidst the tumult of war, investigated the more general causes, that, since the age of the Antonines, had so impetuously urged the decline of the Roman greatness.
— 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

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— from The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare

"But Priscilla!" came back in wrathful mimicry from the head of the stair, and while Alden still stood bewildered, in at the open door flocked Mary Chilton, and Desire, and Elizabeth, their girlish laughter bubbling over at some girlish jest, and with a muttered greeting Alden stalked through their midst and was gone.
— from Standish of Standish: A Story of the Pilgrims by Jane G. (Jane Goodwin) Austin

The Arabs say kokh (guttural ending); is this a mere coincidence, and does the word date beyond the Crusades?
— from The Life, Letters and Work of Frederic Leighton. Volume II by Barrington, Russell, Mrs.

The bright reflected colors of clouds can be represented in painting, because they are relieved against darker colors, or, in many cases, are dark colors, the vermilion and ruby clouds being often much darker than the green or blue sky beyond them.
— from The Storm-Cloud of the Nineteenth Century Two Lectures delivered at the London Institution, February 4th and 11th, 1884 by John Ruskin

Millions of the working poor, who live in great and noisy cities, whose neighbourhoods are vast, huddled masses of sunless streets and airless courts, whose lives are divided between joyless labour and joyless leisure; the conditions of whose comfortless and crowded homes are such as make cleanliness and decency and self-respect well nigh impossible: millions of men, women, and children are here starved in soul as well as in body.
— from Not Guilty: A Defence of the Bottom Dog by Robert Blatchford

He changes the language now, that He may convey a deeper sense.
— from The Gospel of St. John: A Series of Discourses. New Edition by Frederick Denison Maurice

I, knowing my ever dear wife Dorethea to be worthy of the most full and entire confidence, I do will and devise to her the Guardianship of my children, and do direct and order that she shall not in any manner be accountable to any person for her management therein.
— from Ancient, Curious, and Famous Wills by Virgil M. (Virgil McClure) Harris

The sept of MacGregor claimed a descent from Gregor, or Gregorius, third son, it is said, of Alpin King of Scots, who flourished about 787.
— from Rob Roy — Volume 01 by Walter Scott

Hereupon a Councel was called, and the business debated; but there were so many cross and different Opinions, that they could not suddenly resolve what answer to send the Empress; at which she grew angry, insomuch that she resolved to return into her Blazing- World, without giving any assistance to her Countrymen: but the Duchess of Newcastle intreated her Majesty to abate her passion; for, said she, Great Councels are most commonly slow, because many men have many several Opinions: besides, every Councellor striving to be the wisest, makes long speeches, and raise many doubts, which cause retardments.
— from The Description of a New World, Called the Blazing-World by Newcastle, Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of

That build on golden Mountains, thou Money-Maggot; Come all, draw your swords, ye say ye are miserable.
— from Beaumont and Fletcher's Works, Vol. 09 of 10 by John Fletcher