Frank J. Wilstach, comp. A Dictionary of Similes. 1916.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Active as an ape.

Austere as so many weather-beaten ascetics from the desert.

Black as a wolf’s mouth.

Bursting like an overdone potato.

Cling to the old house as barnacles to a wrecked and stranded vessel.

Fits as a shell fits a crab.

Forward like a fierce hound straining on a leash.

Gleaming like shot silk in the sunshine.

Healthy as a May hedge in bloom.

Luminous as a panther’s skin.

Panting like a spent hound.

Puffy as a cheesecake.

Silently as a fish in a stream.

Swayed rhythmically in one direction like a wheatfield in a squall.

Swiftly like a cloud scud on a breezy day.

The air was as thick as the main deck in a close-fought action.

Vanish … as easily as an eel into sand.