When, after traversing the ocean, you find yourself in the arid desert of Sahara, where there is no aroma of sweet flowers, or anything at all to regale your exhausted energies; where there is no herb nor herbaceous plant near you; where you are almost famished for want of some potable fluid; where you are in constant fear of being harassed by truculent nomads—then will you realize that there are no joys comparable to those that exist around the hearthstone of your humble home.
When the contents of the museum were sold by auction, the antiquary bought a roll of papyrus filled with hieroglyphics, a kind of bellows used by the ancients for starting their fires, and a fine collection of trilobites.
The attempt at a reconnoisance in force had been unsuccessful; immediately after reveille, the commander of the fortress put it to vote amongst his officers, whether or not they should surrender. The ayes carried it, although some vehemently opposed on account of the excellent morale of the garrison.
The heroine of the melodrama sent to her betrothed Seignior an exquisite bouquet, composed of catalpa flowers, dahlias, marigold and thyme, and prayed his forgiveness for not allowing him the promised tête-à-tête at the trysting place; she had been suffering with the tic-douloureux, she said. He generously forgave her and sent her a sonnet, in which he said that her voice was sweeter than that of Piccolomini, or any other cantatrice; that no houri could be more beautiful than she; he called her a fair florist, and after extolling her naïveté, roseate cheeks and nymphean graces, he swore eternal homage and that he would love her forever and for aye.
The judge bade the desperado cease his badinage and answer his inquiries, and threatened that if he did not, he would punish him for his contumacy.