One of the Roman Poets, I remember, likens our leaving Life to our Departure from a Feast. A Thought which hath often occurred to me, when I have seen Men struggling to protract an Entertainment, and to enjoy the Company of their Friends a few Moments longer. Alas! how short is the most protracted of such Enjoyment! How immaterial the Difference between him who retires the soonest, and him who stays the latest!
Henry Fielding: The History of Tom Jones, V vii
