Of The Inflated Style Of American Writers And Orators I have frequently remarked that the Americans, who generally treat of business in clear, plain language, devoid of all ornament, and so extremely simple as to be often coarse, are apt to become inflated as soon as they attempt a more poetical diction.
— from Democracy in America — Volume 2 by Alexis de Tocqueville

Of course this car is not so good as the other, but it is fairly clean and comfortable.
— from The Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. (William Edward Burghardt) Du Bois

I gave in to his advice, and as my carriage was at the saddler’s he lent me his, and I set out, bidding my servant to come on the next day with my luggage, and to rejoin me at the “Old Bible,” in Amsterdam.
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova

It was surrounded by seven walls, each overtopping the one before it, from the outer to the inner, crowned with battlements of different colours.
— from The Anabasis of Alexander or, The History of the Wars and Conquests of Alexander the Great by Arrian

The [ 185 ] temptation of Buddha, in which Mara promises the empire of the world, is also repeated in the case of Satan and Jesus ( Fig. 6 ).
— from Demonology and Devil-lore by Moncure Daniel Conway

The two residences of Ning and Jung were, in these days, it is true, divided by a small street, which served as a boundary line, and there was no communication between them, but this narrow passage was also private property, and not in any way a government street, so that they could easily be connected, and as in the garden of Concentrated Fragrance, there was already a stream of running water, which had been introduced through the corner of the Northern wall, there was no further need now of going to the trouble of bringing in another.
— from Hung Lou Meng, or, the Dream of the Red Chamber, a Chinese Novel, Book I by Xueqin Cao

And if the same or some other person were authorised to examine the newly written books of chivalry, no doubt some would appear with all the perfections you have described, enriching our language with the gracious and precious treasure of eloquence, and driving the old books into obscurity before the light of the new ones that would come out for the harmless entertainment, not merely of the idle but of the very busiest; for the bow cannot be always bent, nor can weak human nature exist without some lawful amusement."
— from Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

" We repeat this to ourselves, but it helps us not.
— from Anthem by Ayn Rand

‘Nobody,’ said Zillah, ‘ever approached her door, except that once, but I; and nobody asked anything about her.
— from Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

The note might have fallen from all tiers at once, for Ivan Andreyitch suspected all of them of being in a plot against him.
— from Short Stories by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

It was almost the only bill in which George Stephenson was concerned that year.
— from The Life of George Stephenson and of his Son Robert Stephenson Comprising Also a History of the Invention and Introduction of the Railway Locomotive by Samuel Smiles

Mr. Lincoln arose, and gravely addressing the company, said: "Gentlemen, we must pledge our mutual health in the most healthy beverage that God has given to man—it is the only beverage I have ever used or allowed my family to use, and I cannot conscientiously depart from it on the present occasion.
— from The Papers and Writings of Abraham Lincoln, Complete by Abraham Lincoln

Thus the troops of banditti in several countries abroad, the knots of highwaymen in our own nation, the several tribes of sharpers, thieves and pickpockets, with many others, are so firmly knit together, that nothing is more difficult than to break or dissolve their several gangs.
— from The Prose Works of Jonathan Swift, D.D. — Volume 09 Contributions to The Tatler, The Examiner, The Spectator, and The Intelligencer by Jonathan Swift

Since, therefore, 'tis almost impossible [Pg 344] for the mind of man to rest, like those of beasts, in that narrow circle of objects, which are the subject of daily conversation and action, we ought only to deliberate concerning the choice of our guide, and ought to prefer that which is safest and most agreeable.
— from Philosophical Works, v. 1 (of 4) Including All the Essays, and Exhibiting the More Important Alterations and Corrections in the Successive Editions Published by the Author by David Hume

They lack skill and perseverance, shun the monotony of a permanent job, and as they grow older either follow itinerant and question [131] able trades or become ill-paid and inefficient casual laborers.
— from Child Labor in City Streets by Edward Nicholas Clopper

This would have of course sacrificed all the trouble and risk that had been incurred; another tug-boat had also crept up on the starboard bow to help the first, and efforts were being made to get her hawser too on board; in fact, success and safety seemed almost within their grasp, but it was a matter of life or death, and one of the Deal men, obeying orders, seized an axe and hewed and struck with all his might at the steel hawser, which was still endangering the lifeboat.
— from Heroes of the Goodwin Sands by Thomas Stanley Treanor

And then he added, with, perhaps, the least tinge of bitterness in his voice: "I have no where else to go."
— from Cowboy Dave; Or, The Round-up at Rolling River by Frank V. Webster

The trio of backs I would select are Whittemore of English High, Maguire of Boston Latin, and Watson of Cambridge High.
— from Harper's Round Table, December 31, 1895 by Various

One of these, found three miles north of Slack at Greetland in 1597 among traces of buildings, is dated to A.D. 205 (CIL.
— from Roman Britain in 1914 by F. (Francis) Haverfield

But Lance, he goes down, and every time he goes, I think he gits more of the Old Boy in him, 'caze evil is a-walkin' around at noonday down in tham settlements, and you cain't be safe anywhars."
— from The Wiving of Lance Cleaverage by Alice MacGowan