The only things that counted were the elemental qualities: slow endurance, faith that held fast through all the vagaries of the weather, and the power of toughened muscle that might ache but must in spite of that yield due obedience to the will.
"A Prairie Courtship"
Harold Bindloss
Hard work and simple living had so toughened his frame that a wound that might have been serious affected him only locally, and mended with surprising rapidity.
"Beric the Briton A Story of the Roman Invasion"
G. A. Henty
In the extreme south-western section plants of a semi-tropical nature were to be found in the early days in luxurious growth; while in the extreme north, spruce, somewhat stunted in size and toughened in fibre, are still to be found in vast forests.
"History of Farming in Ontario"
C. C. James