"A penny for a shave, twopence a cut! 'Quelle vie'! Here," he continued, standing by a bed, "is a gentleman who owes me fivepence.

Here's one who was a soldier; he's done for! All brutalised; not one with any courage left! But, believe me, monsieur," he went on, opening another door, "when you come down to houses of this sort you must have a vice; it's as necessary as breath is to the lungs.

No matter what, you must have a vice to give you a little solace--'un peu de soulagement'.

Ah, yes! before you judge these swine, reflect on life! I've been through it.

Monsieur, it is not nice never to know where to get your next meal.