What, will the line stretch out to the crack of doom?

William Shakespeare (1564-1616): Macbeth. Act iv. Sc. 1.

You think they are crusaders sent

From some infernal clime,

To pluck the eyes of sentiment

And dock the tail of Rhyme,

To crack the voice of Melody

And break the legs of Time.

Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894): The Music-Grinders.

Should the whole frame of Nature round him break,

In ruin and confusion hurled,

He, unconcerned, would hear the mighty crack,

And stand secure amidst a falling world.

Joseph Addison (1672-1719): Horace. Ode iii. Book iii.

Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! rage! blow!

William Shakespeare (1564-1616): King Lear. Act iii. Sc. 2.