Yes—not more than a quarter of a mile off, leaning against the trunk of an enormous tree, was a human being—a Proteus of these subterranean regions, a new son of Neptune keeping this innumerable herd of mastodons.
— from A Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne

I On the wall of an old barn by the great doors there still remains a narrow strip of notice-board, much battered and weather-beaten: 'Beware of steel ——' can be read, the rest has been broken off, but no doubt it was 'traps.'
— from Field and Hedgerow: Being the Last Essays of Richard Jefferies by Richard Jefferies

The thing faded away as gradually as it had appeared, and after a time I regained a normal state of nerves.
— from The Room with the Tassels by Carolyn Wells