His clothes could scarcely be called shabby, at least they passed muster in the half-light, but one’s imagination could not have pictured the wearer embarking on the purchase of a half-crown box of chocolates or laying out ninepence on a carnation buttonhole.
One could scarcely find any trout in the stream without the stocking program.
Nature scarcely ever gives us the very best—for that we must have recourse to art.