Reading and writing, which were looked upon among them as allied to the black art a few centuries ago, are now the universal accomplishment of all classes, and nowhere on the globe will the traveller find a people more cheerful, intelligent, frank, and hospitable than in the three kingdoms of the far North.
"Due North or Glimpses of Scandinavia and Russia"
Maturin M. Ballou
The kingdoms might fall, but that stood.
"The Furnace"
Rose Macaulay
It had been very pleasant for her to sit on the bench under the window, hearing the children sing old country songs, and listening to the Schoolmaster telling them of other parts of the world, of rules of speech and calculation, of the nature of the earth, the heavens, the stars and the sea, of kingdoms, strange peoples, and their histories and occupations.
"The Pioneers"
Katharine Susannah Prichard