It was quite plain—even if Mr. Blake had not made it plainer still by reporting the substance of the letter, instead of reading what was actually written—that distrust of me was at the bottom of all this.
— from The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins

Hitherto the most silent of women, she now persecuted me with fluent conventionalities on the subject of married life, on the subject of Sir Percival and Laura, on the subject of her own happiness, on the subject of the late Mr. Fairlie's conduct to her in the matter of her legacy, and on half a dozen other subjects besides, until she had detained me walking round and round the
— from The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

And they produce a host of books written by Musaeus and Orpheus, who were children of the Moon and the Muses—that is what they say—according to which they perform their ritual, and persuade not only individuals, but whole cities, that expiations and atonements for sin may be made by sacrifices and amusements which fill a vacant hour, and are equally at the service of the living and the dead; the latter 365 sort they call mysteries, and they redeem us from the pains of hell, but if we neglect them no one knows what awaits us.
— from The Republic of Plato by Plato

On the third year after Satricum was rebuilt by the Volscians, Marcus Valerius Corvus having been elected consul for the second time with Caius Poetelius, when news had been brought from Latium, that ambassadors from Antium were going round the states of the Latins to excite a war, being ordered to attack the Volscians, before greater numbers of the enemy should be assembled, proceeds to Satricum with his army ready for action.
— from The History of Rome, Books 01 to 08 by Livy

He who listens to the preamble of the law will never know the severity of the legislator; but he who disobeys, and injures the orphan, will pay twice the penalty he would have paid if the parents had been alive.
— from Laws by Plato

And from the planks, far shattered o'er the rocks, Built me a little bark of hope, once more To battle with the ocean and the shocks Of the loud breakers, and the ceaseless roar Which rushes on the solitary shore Where all lies foundered that was ever dear:
— from Childe Harold's Pilgrimage by Byron, George Gordon Byron, Baron

He bore three ropes round his neck; two the size of the little finger, and called tortouses , each of which had a slip-knot; the third, called the jet , was only used to pull the victim off the ladder, and so to launch him into eternity ( Fig. 350 ).
— from Manners, Customs, and Dress During the Middle Ages and During the Renaissance Period by P. L. Jacob

After this with great sacrifices he endeavoured to win the favour of the god at Delphi: for of all the animals that are fit for sacrifice he offered three thousand of each kind, and he heaped up couches overlaid with gold and overlaid with silver, and cups of gold, and robes of purple, and tunics, making of them a great pyre, and this he burnt up, hoping by these means the more to win over the god to the side of the Lydians: and he proclaimed to all the Lydians that every one of them should make sacrifice with that which each man had.
— from The History of Herodotus — Volume 1 by Herodotus

He has not been sufficiently rubbed and curried, or he has not been properly fed; his food was too wet or too dry; he got it too soon or too late; he was too hot or too cold; he had too much hay, and not enough of grain; or he had too much grain, and not enough of hay; instead of old Barney's attending to the horse, he had very improperly left it to his son."
— from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass

Hoping that this settlement of the little difficulty will prove perfectly satisfactory, and confidently expecting further orders, We remain, Yours very truly, Johnson Brothers.
— from The New Century Standard Letter-Writer Business, Family and Social Correspondence, Love-Letters, Etiquette, Synonyms, Legal Forms, Etc. by Alfred B. Chambers

"Thinks I to Myself," an old novel, which has been attributed to a famous statesman, introduced me to a world of fiction which was not represented on the shelves of the library proper, unless perhaps by Coelebs in Search of a Wife, or allegories of the bitter tonic class, as the young doctor that sits on the other side of the table would probably call them.
— from Complete Project Gutenberg Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. Works by Oliver Wendell Holmes

[773] In 1502 the Barcelona tribunal complained that it sometimes had difficulty in securing the services of the lawyers of the Audiencia, whereupon Ferdinand wrote to his lieutenant-general that, as it is a work of God and the service is required only two or three times a year, he must see that the inquisitors get them whenever they are wanted.
— from A History of the Inquisition of Spain; vol. 2 by Henry Charles Lea

Since when have you taken to sleeping on this lounge?”
— from The Young Train Master by Burton Egbert Stevenson

Then I will make the sound of the little gray fox.
— from White Otter by Elmer Russell Gregor

Mr. Chamberlain has been instructed to enforce Great Britain's sovereign rights in the Transvaal, and notwithstanding the fact that several of the London newspapers are calling attention to the treaty of 1884, he is determined to insist on these rights.
— from The Great Round World and What Is Going On In It, Vol. 1, No. 46, September 23, 1897 A Weekly Magazine for Boys and Girls by Various

“During our residence at Navy Hall, the Session of the Legislature of Upper Canada was opened.
— from History of the settlement of Upper Canada (Ontario,) with special reference to the Bay Quinté by William Canniff

more hardships and misery,—always that wretched card turning up with its sad story!” Rose seemed utterly downcast at the sight of the little piece of painted cardboard, as though she had received certain intelligence of a coming misfortune.
— from Caught in the Net by Emile Gaboriau

He was promised under the name of a 'rod'—'There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots, and the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him.'
— from Works of John Bunyan — Volume 01 by John Bunyan