“It is forbidden to spit on cats in plague-time.”

“There have been as many plagues as wars in history; yet always plagues and wars take people equally by surprise.”

“But what does it mean, the plague? It's life, that's all.”

“And indeed it could be said that once the faintest stirring of hope became possible, the dominion of plague was ended.”

“Everybody knows that pestilences have a way of recurring in the world; yet somehow we find it hard to believe in ones that crash down on our heads from a blue sky. There have been as many plagues as wars in history; yet always plagues and wars take people equally by surprise.”

“What’s true of all the evils in the world is true of plague as well. It helps men to rise above themselves.”

“there's no question of heroism in all this. It's a matter of common decency. That's an idea which may make some people smile, but the only means of fighting a plague is - common decency.”