“Good digestions, the gray monotony of provincial life, and the boredom—ah the soul-destroying boredom—of long days of mild content.”

“I have no need for good souls: an accomplice is what I wanted.”

“Wait a minute, there's a snag somewhere; something disagreeable. Why, now, should it be disagreeable?...Ah,I see; it's life without a break.”

“I want no secrets or soul-states, nothing ineffable; I am neithervirgin nor priest enough to play with the inner life.”

“So it comes to this; one doesn’t need rest. Why bother about sleep if one isn’t sleepy? That stands to reason, doesn’t it? Wait a minute, there’s a snag somewhere; something disagreeable. Why, now, should it be disagreeable? …Ah, I see; it’s life without a break.”

“Do you regret those days?''No,' replied Marcelle acidly: 'but I regret the life I might have had.”

“So that is what hell is. I would never have believed it. You remember: the fire and brimstone, the torture. Ah! the farce. There is no need for torture: hell is other people.”