“There is a tiger in my room,' said Frances.'Did he bite you?' said Father.'No,' said Frances.'Did he scratch you?' said Mother.'No,' said Frances.'Then he is a friendly tiger,' said Father. 'He will not hurt you. Go back to sleep.”
“(Frances has gotten out of bed again and come to her parents' room...)'How can the wind have a job?' asked Frances. 'Everybody has a job,' said Father.'I have to go to my office every morning at nine o'clock. That is my job. You have to go to sleep so you can be wide awake for school tomorrow. That is your job.'Frances said, 'I know, but...'Father said, 'I have not finished. If the wind does not blow the curtains, he will be out of a job. If I do not go to the office, I will be out of a job. And if you do not go to sleep now, do you know what will happen to you?''I will be out of a job?' said Frances.'No,' said Father.'I will get a spanking?' said Frances.'Right!' said Father.'Good night!' said Frances, and she went back to her room.”
“There aren't any dancing girls in Bitter Springs," Finn said. "Leastways not he kind that kick their legs so high in the air you can see..." He leaned forward, looked around Kellen for this brother, and asked, "What do you call it?""France," Rabbit said. "They kick their legs so high you can see France."Finn nodded. He looked up at Kellen. "You ever seen France?"Kellen sighed feelingly. "Not in a long while.”
“Who will kiss you? Who will rock you to sleep?" His voice was slow, drowsy."You never did," I said, trying to tease him. "You were more father to me than my father, but you never did that.""Someone should. Someone should love you. I will bite him if he will not.”
“I'll teach you," Tiger Lily offered with a shrug of her shoulders."Did your mother teach you?" he asked."I don't have a mother," she said. "Like you."For some reason, Peter was glad to hear it.”
“There is nothing to be frightened of," said the Rajah. "Very few tigers are man-eaters.""But I am," said the tiger."You might be lying," said the Rajah."I might be," said the tiger. "But I'm not.”