Nay, perhaps he would be of King Seleucus’ opinion, that he who knew the weight of a sceptre would not stoop to pick it up, if he saw it lying before him, so great and painful are the duties incumbent upon a good king.—[Plutarch, If a Sage should Meddle with Affairs of Stale, c. 12.]—Assuredly it can be no easy task to rule others, when we find it so hard a matter to govern ourselves; and as to dominion, that seems so charming, the frailty of human judgment and the difficulty of choice in things that are new and doubtful considered, I am very much of opinion that it is far more easy and pleasant to follow than to lead; and that it is a great settlement and satisfaction of mind to have only one path to walk in, and to have none to answer for but a man’s self; “Ut satius multo jam sit parere quietum, Quam regere imperio res velle.”
— from Essays of Michel de Montaigne — Complete by Michel de Montaigne

Your brother-in-law joins us, Lord Frederick joins us, Sir Mulberry joins us, Pyke joins us—a refusal is out of the question.
— from Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens

But take her up stairs, Mrs. Jewkes, and I'll send a few lines to her to consider of; and let me have your answer, Pamela, in the morning. '
— from Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded by Samuel Richardson

I was about to venture upon some misplaced joke on the subject, when a small scrap of parchment fell out of the leaves.
— from A Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne

He had an unpleasant sneering manner, joked in bad taste, was stupid, and a devotee, or rather a fanatic.
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova

‘Very unpromising,’ said Mr. Jorkins.
— from David Copperfield by Charles Dickens

The sting is precisely the same with the French epigram against Freron: Un serpent mordit Jean Freron—Eh bien?
— 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

"Say, Ned, come around to our rooms to-night and give us some music just to celebrate this glorious event!" cried Fred, for Ned Lowe was quite a performer on the mandolin and usually had some very funny songs to sing.
— from The Rover Boys on a Hunt; or, The Mysterious House in the Woods by Edward Stratemeyer

The news was flashed to the four corners of the earth, and almost simultaneously a flight of United States military jets took off from the Lake Superior airport to explore the wreckage.
— from Space Station 1 by Frank Belknap Long

A Almighty B Bearer C Christ D Demon- stration E East F First G God's H Highest I Immac- ulate SOUL MIND J Judge K King's L Lumin-
— from Manual of the Enumeration A Text Book on the Sciences of the Enumeration, Book one by C. J. (Casper James) Coffman

"Why, ye are to understand," said Mr. Jarvie in a very subdued tone—"I speak amang friends, and under the rose—Ye are to understand, that the Hielands hae been keepit quiet since the year aughty-nine—that was Killiecrankie year.
— from Rob Roy — Volume 02 by Walter Scott

And she nursed an old farmer that lay as weak as master, and just when they looked for him to go, lo! and behold him dressed and out digging potatoes, and fell down dead before they could get hands on him mostly: and nurse have a friend, that have seen more than she have, which she is older than nurse, and says a body's life is all one as a rushlight, flares up strong momently just before it goes out altogether.
— from Hard Cash by Charles Reade

“And somebody slopped a lot of water over the stairs carrying it up,” said Mrs. Jobson.
— from Ship's Company, the Entire Collection by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs

Also in his first public words, after taking the oath as President of the United States, Mr. Johnson referred to the past of his life as an indication of his course and policy in the future, rather than to make any verbal declarations now; thereby manifesting an honorable willingness to be judged by his acts, and a consciousness that the record was one which he need not be ashamed to own.
— from The Negro in the American Rebellion: His Heroism and His Fidelity by William Wells Brown

70-76) Der schrecklicher Wind, der gefährlicher Sturem, Er rangelt sich dort mit a Schiff auf 'n Meer; Er will sie zubrechen, un' sie mit Jessurim Schneid't durch alle Tiefeniss, krächzendig schwer.
— from The History of Yiddish Literature in the Nineteenth Century by Leo Wiener

"Um," said Mr. Jones, with a disbelieving sniff.
— from Scandal: A Novel by Cosmo Hamilton