The heightening colour spread to her forehead and her neck, and the nervous fingers suddenly clasped themselves fast round the edge of the book.
— from The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

The hatred of James against the race of Douglas was so inveterate, that numerous as their allies were, and disregarded as the regal authority had usually been in similar cases, their nearest friends, even in the most remote part of Scotland, durst not entertain them, unless under the strictest and closest disguise.
— from The Lady of the Lake by Walter Scott

It was thus necessary for me to get in front of the window, and letting myself slide softly down in a straight line I soon found myself astride on top of the dormer-roof.
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova

I struggled, shouted, appealed to the mourners, but they continued stonily following the service; the old clergyman, too, never faltered droning and sniffing through the ritual.
— from The Invisible Man: A Grotesque Romance by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells

In what does the substance of those reproaches lie? It lies in the fact that an historic character like Alexander I, standing on the highest possible pinnacle of human power with the blinding light of history focused upon him; a character exposed to those strongest of all influences: the intrigues, flattery, and self-deception inseparable from power; a character who at every moment of his life felt a responsibility for all that was happening in Europe; and not a fictitious but a live character who like every man had his personal habits, passions, and impulses toward goodness, beauty, and truth—that this character—though not lacking in virtue (the historians do not accuse him of that)—had not the same conception of the welfare of humanity fifty years ago as a present-day professor who from his youth upwards has been occupied with learning: that is, with books and lectures and with taking notes from them.
— from War and Peace by Tolstoy, Leo, graf

Maney of the natives from above Come and Said they would trade, but asked a higher price than I thought I could give or reather more than this nation asked.—Great numbers of Men.—I hed to purchase 3 dogs for the men to eate & Some Shap-per-lell.
— from The Journals of Lewis and Clark, 1804-1806 by William Clark

He slid back the roll top, and ran a rapid eye over the neatly filed papers.
— from The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

In the evening I gave him my mattress, on which he passed the night, for though he looked neat and clean enough I did not care to have him to sleep with me, dreading the results of a lover’s dreams.
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova

“Plenty of visitors here at night,” remarked Warley, gazing curiously round him on the numerous footmarks of all shapes and sizes, with which the borders of the spring were indented.
— from Hair-Breadth Escapes: The Adventures of Three Boys in South Africa by H. C. (Henry Cadwallader) Adams

The next few months found Robert and Mary Davis searching the Bible for the truth.
— from Around Old Bethany: A Story of the Adventures of Robert and Mary Davis by R. L. (Robert Lee) Berry

Pitt's endeavour to form a national Administration must have gained a new significance from the terrible news from Paris.
— from William Pitt and the Great War by J. Holland (John Holland) Rose

And the necessity for borrowing money revealed poverty, which otherwise they would have been able to conceal.
— from A Song of a Single Note: A Love Story by Amelia E. Barr

"Well, gentlemen, I can't see the need for any more discussion.
— from The Strange Cases of Dr. Stanchon by Josephine Daskam Bacon

His success was so pronounced, and he attained such standing, both as humanitarian and physician, that he was able at the early age of twenty-seven to impress upon the Legislature of the State of Illinois by his masterful arguments before them, the necessity for the establishment by the State of an institution for the insane.
— from Colorado—The Bright Romance of American History by F. C. Grable

The new fallen snow caps the mountains, and covers the valleys, with a white and beautiful vesture, which is thrown into many curious forms, folds, and ridges, by the rude blasts of the driving winds.
— from Winter by Anonymous

He was on foot, but his horse was tethered not far away.
— from Dave Porter at Star Ranch; Or, The Cowboy's Secret by Edward Stratemeyer

At this one, too, Tremaine now fired, hitting, while Oliver Dixon followed it up with another bullet that registered.
— from The Motor Boat Club in Florida; or, Laying the Ghost of Alligator Swamp by H. Irving (Harrie Irving) Hancock

The natives fold the domesticated ones, like Sheep, in special enclosures near their cabins.
— from A Natural History for Young People: Our Animal Friends in Their Native Homes including mammals, birds and fishes by Phebe Westcott Humphreys