The French Immortals: Quotes and Images, Complete
Date: 2009-07-13T00:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Quotations; French -- Translations into English

The Project Gutenberg eBook of The French Immortals: Quotes and Images, Complete

This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.

Title: The French Immortals: Quotes and Images, Complete

Author: Various

Editor: David Widger

Release date: July 13, 2009 [eBook #29402]
Most recently updated: January 5, 2021

Language: English

Credits: Produced by David Widger

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FRENCH IMMORTALS: QUOTES AND IMAGES, COMPLETE ***

LINK TO THE ORIGINAL HTML FILE: This Ebook Has Been Reformatted For Better Appearance In Mobile Viewers Such As Kindles And Others. The Original Format, Which The Editor Believes Has A More Attractive Appearance For Laptops And Other Computers, May Be Viewed By Clicking On This Box.

QUOTES AND IMAGES: THE FRENCH IMMORTALS

THE FRENCH IMMORTALS

>

>

CONTENTS

THE INK STAIN | Rene Bazin
JACQUELINE | Therese Bentzon (Mme. Blanc)
GERFAUT | Charles de Bernard
COSMOPOLIS | Paul Bourget
PRINCE ZILAH | Jules Caretie
A ROMANCE OF YOUTH | Francois Coppee
FROMONT AND RISLER | Alphonse Daudet
CINQ MARS | Alfred de Vigny
M.M. AND BEBE | Gustave Droz
MONSIEUR DE CAMORS | Octave Feuillet
THE RED LILY | Anatole France
ABBE CONSTANTIN | Ludovic Halevey
CHRYSANTHEME | Pierre Loti
CONSCIENCE | Hector Malot
ZIBELINE | Phillipe de Massa
THE CHILD OF A CENTURY | Alfred de Musset
SERGE PANINE | George Ohnet
AN "ATTIC" PHILOSOPHER | Emile Souvestre
A WOODLAND QUEEN | Andre Theuriet

THE INK STAIN, By Rene Bazin

All that a name is to a street—
its honor, its spouse

Came not in single spies, but in
battalions

Distrust first impulse

Felix culpa

Happy men don't need company

Hard that one can not live one's life
over twice

He always loved to pass for being
overwhelmed with work

I don't call that fishing

If trouble awaits us, hope will steal
us a happy hour or two

Lends—I should say gives

Men forget sooner

Natural only when alone, and talk well
only to themselves

Obstacles are the salt of all our joys

One doesn't offer apologies to a man in
his wrath

People meeting to "have it out" usually
say nothing at first

Silence, alas! is not the reproof of
kings alone

Skilful actor, who apes all the
emotions while feeling none

Sorrows shrink into insignificance as
the horizon broadens

Surprise goes for so much in what we
admire

The very smell of books is improving

The looks of the young are always full
of the future

There are some blunders that are lucky;
but you can't tell

To be your own guide doubles your
pleasure

You a law student, while our farmers
are in want of hands

You must always first get the tobacco
to burn evenly

You ask Life for certainties, as if she
had any to give you

JACQUELINE, By Therese Bentzon (Mme. Blanc)

A familiarity which, had he known it,
was not flattering

A mother's geese are always swans

As we grow older we lay aside harsh
judgments and sharp words

Bathers, who exhibited themselves in
all degrees of ugliness

Blow which annihilates our supreme
illusion

Death is not that last sleep

Fool (there is no cure for that
infirmity)

Fred's verses were not good, but they
were full of dejection

Great interval between a dream and its
execution

Hang out the bush, but keep no tavern

His sleeplessness was not the insomnia
of genius

Importance in this world are as easily
swept away as the sand

Music—so often dangerous to married
happiness

Natural longing, that we all have,
to know the worst

Notion of her husband's having an
opinion of his own

Old women—at least thirty years old!

Pride supplies some sufferers with
necessary courage

Seemed to enjoy themselves, or made
believe they did

Seldom troubled himself to please any
one he did not care for

Small women ought not to grow stout

Sympathetic listening, never having
herself anything to say

The bandage love ties over the eyes
of men

The worst husband is always better
than none

This unending warfare we call love

Unwilling to leave him to the repose
he needed

Waste all that upon a thing that nobody
will ever look at

Women who are thirty-five should never
weep

GERFAUT, By Charles de Bernard

Antipathy for her husband bordering
upon aversion

Attractions that difficulties give
to pleasure

Attractive abyss of drunkenness

Consented to become a wife so as not
to remain a maiden

Despotic tone which a woman assumes
when sure of her empire

Evident that the man was above his
costume; a rare thing!

I believed it all; one is so happy to
believe!

It is a terrible step for a woman to
take, from No to Yes

Lady who requires urging, although she
is dying to sing

Let them laugh that win!

Let ultra-modesty destroy poetry

Love is a fire whose heat dies out for
want of fuel

Mania for fearing that she may be
compromised

Material in you to make one of Cooper's
redskins

Misfortunes never come single

No woman is unattainable, except when
she loves another

Obstinacy of drunkenness

Recourse to concessions is often as
fatal to women as to kings

Regards his happiness as a proof of
superiority

She said yes, so as not to say no

These are things that one admits only
to himself

Those whom they most amuse are those
who are best worth amusing

Topics that occupy people who meet for
the first time

Trying to conceal by a smile (a blush)

When one speaks of the devil he appears

Wiped his nose behind his hat, like a
well-bred orator

You are playing 'who loses wins!'

COSMOPOLIS, By Paul Bourget

Conditions of blindness so voluntary
that they become complicity

Despotism natural to puissant
personalities

Egyptian tobacco, mixed with opium and
saltpetre

Follow their thoughts instead of
heeding objects

Has as much sense as the handle of a
basket

Have never known in the morning what I
would do in the evening

I no longer love you

Imagine what it would be never to have
been born

Mediocre sensibility

Melancholy problem of the birth and
death of love

Mobile and complaisant conscience had
already forgiven himself

No flies enter a closed mouth

Not an excuse, but an explanation of
your conduct

One of those trustful men who did not
judge when they loved

Only one thing infamous in love, and
that is a falsehood

Pitiful checker-board of life

Scarcely a shade of gentle
condescension

Sufficed him to conceive the plan of a
reparation

That suffering which curses but does
not pardon

That you can aid them in leading better
lives?

The forests have taught man liberty

There is an intelligent man, who never
questions his ideas

There is always and everywhere a duty
to fulfil

Thinking it better not to lie on minor
points

Too prudent to risk or gain much

Walked at the rapid pace characteristic
of monomaniacs

Words are nothing; it is the tone in
which they are uttered

PRINCE ZILAH, By Jules Claretie

A man's life belongs to his duty,
and not to his happiness

All defeats have their geneses

An hour of rest between two ordeals,
a smile between two sobs

Anonymous, that velvet mask of
scandal-mongers

At every step the reality splashes you
with mud

Bullets are not necessarily on the side
of the right

Does one ever forget?

Foreigners are more Parisian than the
Parisians themselves

History is written, not made.

"I might forgive," said Andras; "but I
could not forget"

If well-informed people are to be
believe

Insanity is, perhaps, simply the ideal
realized

It is so good to know nothing, nothing,
nothing

Let the dead past bury its dead!

Life is a tempest

Man who expects nothing of life except
its ending

Nervous natures, as prompt to hope as
to despair

No answer to make to one who has no
right to question me

Not only his last love, but his only
love

Nothing ever astonishes me

One of those beings who die, as they
have lived, children

Pessimism of to-day sneering at his
confidence of yesterday

Playing checkers, that mimic warfare of
old men

Poverty brings wrinkles

Sufferer becomes, as it were, enamored
of his own agony

Superstition which forbids one to
proclaim his happiness

Taken the times as they are

The Hungarian was created on horseback

There were too many discussions, and
not enough action

Unable to speak, for each word would
have been a sob

What matters it how much we suffer

Why should I read the newspapers?

Willingly seek a new sorrow

Would not be astonished at anything

You suffer? Is fate so just as that

A ROMANCE OF YOUTH, By Francois Coppee

Break in his memory, like a book with
several leaves torn out

Dreams, instead of living

Egotists and cowards always have a
reason for everything

Eternally condemned to kill each other
in order to live

Fortunate enough to keep those one
loves

God forgive the timid and the prattler!

Good form consists, above all things,
in keeping silent

Happiness exists only by snatches and
lasts only a moment

He does not know the miseries of
ambition and vanity

He almost regretted her

How sad these old memorics are in the
autumn

Inoffensive tree which never had harmed
anybody

Intimate friend, whom he has known for
about five minutes

It was all delightfully terrible!

Learned that one leaves college almost
ignorant

Mild, unpretentious men who let
everybody run over them

My good fellow, you are quite worthless
as a man of pleasure

Never travel when the heart is
troubled!

Not more honest than necessary

Now his grief was his wife, and lived
with him

Paint from nature

Poor France of Jeanne d'Arc and of
Napoleon

Redouble their boasting after each
defeat

Society people condemned to hypocrisy
and falsehood

Take their levity for heroism

Tediousness seems to ooze out through
their bindings

The leaves fall! the leaves fall!

The sincere age when one thinks aloud

Tired smile of those who have not long
to live

Trees are like men; there are some that
have no luck

Universal suffrage, with its accustomed
intelligence

Upon my word, there are no ugly ones
(women)

Very young, and was in love with love

Voice of the heart which alone has
power to reach the heart

Were certain against all reason

When he sings, it is because he has
something to sing about

FROMONT AND RISLER, By Alphonse Daudet

A man may forgive, but he never forgets

Abundant details which he sometimes
volunteered

Affectation of indifference

Always smiling condescendingly

Charm of that one day's rest and its
solemnity

Clashing knives and forks mark time

Convent of Saint Joseph, four shoes
under the bed!

Deeming every sort of occupation
beneath him

Dreams of wealth and the disasters that
immediately followed

Exaggerated dramatic pantomime

Faces taken by surprise allow their
real thoughts to be seen

He fixed the time mentally when he
would speak

Little feathers fluttering for an
opportunity to fly away

Make for themselves a horizon of the
neighboring walls and roofs

No one has ever been able to find out
what her thoughts were

Pass half the day in procuring two
cakes, worth three sous

She was of those who disdain no
compliment

Such artificial enjoyment, such idiotic
laughter

Superiority of the man who does nothing
over the man who works

Terrible revenge she would take
hereafter for her sufferings

The poor must pay for all their
enjoyments

The groom isn't handsome, but the
bride's as pretty as a picture

Void in her heart, a place made ready
for disasters to come

Wiping his forehead ostentatiously

Word "sacrifice," so vague on careless
lips

Would have liked him to be blind only
so far as he was concerned

CINQ MARS, By Alfred de Vigny

A cat is a very fine animal. It is a
drawing-room tiger

A queen's country is where her throne
is

Adopted fact is always better composed
than the real one

Advantage that a calm temper gives one
over men

All that he said, I had already thought

Always the first word which is the most
difficult to say

Ambition is the saddest of all hopes

Art is the chosen truth

Artificialities of style of that period

Artistic Truth, more lofty than the
True

As Homer says, "smiling under tears"

Assume with others the mien they wore
toward him

But how avenge one's self on silence?

Dare now to be silent when I have told
you these things

Daylight is detrimental to them

Deny the spirit of self-sacrifice

Difference which I find between Truth
in art and the True in fac

Doubt, the greatest misery of love

Friendship exists only in independence
and a kind of equality

Happy is he who does not outlive his
youth

Hatred of everything which is superior
to myself

He did not blush to be a man, and he
spoke to men with force

Hermits can not refrain from inquiring
what men say of them

History too was a work of art

I have burned all the bridges behind me

In pitying me he forgot himself

In every age we laugh at the costume of
our fathers

In times like these we must see all and
say all

It is not now what it used to be

It is too true that virtue also has its
blush

Lofty ideal of woman and of love

Men are weak, and there are things
which women must accomplish

Money is not a common thing between
gentlemen like you and me

Monsieur, I know that I have lived too
long

Neither idealist nor realist

Never interfered in what did not
concern him

No writer had more dislike of mere
pedantry

Offices will end by rendering great
names vile

Princes ought never to be struck,
except on the head

Princesses ceded like a town, and must
not even weep

Principle that art implied selection

Recommended a scrupulous observance of
nature

Remedy infallible against the plague
and against reserve

Reproaches are useless and cruel if the
evil is done

Should be punished for not having known
how to punish

So strongly does force impose upon men

Tears for the future

The great leveller has swung a long
scythe over France

The most in favor will be the soonest
abandoned by him

The usual remarks prompted by
imbecility on such occasions

These ideas may serve as opium to
produce a calm

They tremble while they threaten

They have believed me incapable because
I was kind

They loved not as you love, eh?

This popular favor is a cup one must
drink

This was the Dauphin, afterward Louis
XIV

True talent paints life rather than the
living

Truth, I here venture to distinguish
from that of the True

Urbain Grandier

What use is the memory of facts, if not
to serve as an example

Woman is more bitter than death, and
her arms are like chains

Yes, we are in the way here

M.M. AND BEBE, By Gustave Droz

A ripe husband, ready to fall from the
tree

Affection is catching

All babies are round, yielding, weak,
timid, and soft

And I shall say 'damn it,' for I shall
then be grown up

Answer "No," but with a little kiss
which means "Yes"

As regards love, intention and deed are
the same

But she thinks she is affording you
pleasure

Clumsily, blew his nose, to the great
relief of his two arms

Do not seek too much

Emotion when one does not share it

First impression is based upon a number
of trifles

He Would Have Been Forty Now

Hearty laughter which men affect to
assist digestion

How many things have not people been
proud of

How rich we find ourselves when we
rummage in old drawers

Husband who loves you and eats off the
same plate is better

I would give two summers for a single
autumn

I do not accept the hypothesis of a
world made for us

I came here for that express purpose

I am not wandering through life, I am
marching on

Ignorant of everything, undesirous of
learning anything

In his future arrange laurels for a
little crown for your own

It (science) dreams, too; it supposes

It is silly to blush under certain
circumstances

Learned to love others by embracing
their own children

Life is not so sweet for us to risk
ourselves in it singlehanded

Love in marriage is, as a rule, too
much at his ease

Man is but one of the links of an
immense chain

Rather do not give—make yourself
sought after

Reckon yourself happy if in your
husband you find a lover

Recollection of past dangers to
increase the present joy

Respect him so that he may respect you

Shelter himself in the arms of the weak
and recover courage

Sometimes like to deck the future in
the garments of the past

The heart requires gradual changes

The future that is rent away

The recollection of that moment lasts
for a lifetime

The future promises, it is the present
that pays

Their love requires a return

There are pious falsehoods which the
Church excuses

Ties that unite children to parents are
unloosed

Ties which unite parents to children
are broken

To be able to smoke a cigar without
being sick

To love is a great deal—To know how to
love is everything

We are simple to this degree, that we
do not think we are

When time has softened your grief

Why mankind has chosen to call marriage
a man-trap

MONSIEUR DE CAMORS, By Octave Feuillet

A man never should kneel unless sure of
rising a conqueror

A defensive attitude is never agreeable
to a man

Bad to fear the opinion of people one
despises

Believing that it is for virtue's sake
alone such men love them

Camors refused, hesitated, made
objections, and consented

Confounding progress with discord,
liberty with license

Contempt for men is the beginning of
wisdom

Cried out, with the blunt candor of his
age

Dangers of liberty outweighed its
benefits

Demanded of him imperatively—the time
of day

Determined to cultivate ability rather
than scrupulousness

Disenchantment which follows possession

Do not get angry. Rarely laugh, and
never weep

Every one is the best judge of his own
affairs

Every road leads to Rome—and one as
surely as another

Every cause that is in antagonism with
its age commits suicide

God—or no principles!

Have not that pleasure, it is useless
to incur the penalties

He is charming, for one always feels in
danger near him

Inconstancy of heart is the special
attribute of man

Intemperance of her zeal and the
acrimony of her bigotry

Knew her danger, and, unlike most of
them, she did not love it

Man, if he will it, need not grow old:
the lion must

Never can make revolutions with gloves
on

Once an excellent remedy, is a
detestable regimen

One of those pious persons who always
think evil

Pleasures of an independent code of
morals

Police regulations known as religion

Principles alone, without faith in some
higher sanction

Property of all who are strong enough
to stand it

Put herself on good terms with God, in
case He should exist

'Semel insanivimus omnes.' (every one
has his madness)

Slip forth from the common herd, my
son, think for yourself

Suspicion that he is a feeble human
creature after all!

There will be no more belief in Christ
than in Jupiter

Ties that become duties where we only
sought pleasures

Truth is easily found. I shall read
all the newspapers

Two persons who desired neither to
remember nor to forget

Whether in this world one must be a
fanatic or nothing

Whole world of politics and religion
rushed to extremes

With the habit of thinking, had not
lost the habit of laughing

You can not make an omelette without
first breaking the eggs

THE RED LILY, By Anatole France

A woman is frank when she does not lie
uselessly

A hero must be human. Napoleon was
human

Anti-Semitism is making fearful
progress everywhere

Brilliancy of a fortune too new

Curious to know her face of that day

Disappointed her to escape the danger
she had feared

Do you think that people have not
talked about us?

Does not wish one to treat it with
either timidity or brutality

Does one ever possess what one loves?

Each had regained freedom, but he did
not like to be alone

Each was moved with self-pity

Everybody knows about that

Fringe which makes an unlovely border
to the city

Gave value to her affability by not
squandering it

He could not imagine that often words
are the same as actions

He studied until the last moment

He is not intelligent enough to doubt

He does not bear ill-will to those whom
he persecutes

He knew now the divine malady of love

Her husband had become quite bearable

His habit of pleasing had prolonged his
youth

(Housemaid) is trained to respect my
disorder

I love myself because you love me

I can forget you only when I am with
you

I wished to spoil our past

I feel in them (churches) the grandeur
of nothingness

I have to pay for the happiness you
give me

I gave myself to him because he loved
me

I haven't a taste, I have tastes

I have known things which I know no
more

I do not desire your friendship

Ideas they think superior to love—
faith, habits, interests

Immobility of time

Impatient at praise which was not
destined for himself

Incapable of conceiving that one might
talk without an object

It was torture for her not to be able
to rejoin him

It is an error to be in the right too
soon

It was too late: she did not wish to
win

Jealous without having the right to be
jealous

Kisses and caresses are the effort of
a delightful despair

Knew that life is not worth so much
anxiety nor so much hope

Laughing in every wrinkle of his face

Learn to live without desire

Let us give to men irony and pity as
witnesses and judges

Life as a whole is too vast and too
remote

Life is made up of just such trifles

Life is not a great thing

Little that we can do when we are
powerful

Love is a soft and terrible force, more
powerful than beauty

Love was only a brief intoxication

Lovers never separate kindly

Made life give all it could yield

Magnificent air of those beggars of
whom small towns are proud

Miserable beings who contribute to the
grandeur of the past

Nobody troubled himself about that
originality

None but fools resisted the current

Not everything is known, but everything
is said

Nothing is so legitimate, so human, as
to deceive pain

One would think that the wind would put
them out: the stars

One who first thought of pasting a
canvas on a panel

One is never kind when one is in love

One should never leave the one whom one
loves

Picturesquely ugly

Recesses of her mind which she
preferred not to open

Relatives whom she did not know and who
irritated her

Seemed to him that men were grains in a
coffee-mill

She pleased society by appearing to
find pleasure in it

She is happy, since she likes to
remember

Should like better to do an immoral
thing than a cruel one

Simple people who doubt neither
themselves nor others

Since she was in love, she had lost
prudence

So well satisfied with his reply that
he repeated it twice

Superior men sometimes lack cleverness

That sort of cold charity which is
called altruism

That if we live the reason is that we
hope

That absurd and generous fury for
ownership

The most radical breviary of scepticism
since Montaigne

The door of one's room opens on the
infinite

The past is the only human reality—
Everything that is, is past

The one whom you will love and who will
love you will harm you

The violent pleasure of losing

The discouragement which the
irreparable gives

The real support of a government is the
Opposition

The politician never should be in
advance of circumstances

There is nothing good except to ignore
and to forget

There are many grand and strong things
which you do not feel

They are the coffin saying: 'I am the
cradle'

To be beautiful, must a woman have that
thin form

Trying to make Therese admire what she
did not know

Umbrellas, like black turtles under the
watery skies

Unfortunate creature who is the
plaything of life

Was I not warned enough of the sadness
of everything?

We are too happy; we are robbing life

What will be the use of having
tormented ourselves in this world

Whether they know or do not know, they
talk

Women do not always confess it, but it
is always their fault

You must take me with my own soul!

ABBE CONSTANTIN, By Ludovic Halevey

Ancient pillars of stone, embrowned and
gnawed by time

And they are shoulders which ought to
be seen

Believing themselves irresistible

But she will give me nothing but money

Duty, simply accepted and simply
discharged

Frenchman has only one real luxury—his
revolutions

God may have sent him to purgatory just
for form's sake

Great difference between dearly and
very much

Had not told all—one never does tell
all

He led the brilliant and miserable
existence of the unoccupied

If there is one! (a paradise)

In order to make money, the first thing
is to have no need of it

Love and tranquillity seldom dwell at
peace in the same heart

Never foolish to spend money. The
folly lies in keeping it

Often been compared to Eugene Sue, but
his touch is lighter

One half of his life belonged to the
poor

One may think of marrying, but one
ought not to try to marry

Succeeded in wearying him by her
importunities and tenderness

The women have enough religion for the
men

The history of good people is often
monotonous or painful

To learn to obey is the only way of
learning to command

CHRYSANTHEME, By Pierre Loti

Ah! the natural perversity of inanimate
things

Contemptuous pity, both for my
suspicions and the cause of them

Dull hours spent in idle and diffuse
conversation

Efforts to arrange matters we succeed
often only in disarranging

Found nothing that answered to my
indefinable expectations

Habit turns into a makeshift of
attachment

I know not what lost home that I have
failed to find

Irritating laugh which is peculiar to
Japan

Japanese habit of expressing myself
with excessive politeness

Ordinary, trivial, every-day objects

Prayers swallowed like pills by
invalids at a distance

Seeking for a change which can no
longer be found

Trees, dwarfed by a Japanese process

When the inattentive spirits are not
listening

Which I should find amusing in any one
else,—any one I loved

CONSCIENCE, By Hector Malot

As ignorant as a schoolmaster

As free from prejudices as one may be,
one always retains a few

Confidence in one's self is strength,
but it is also weakness

Conscience is a bad weighing-machine

Conscience is only an affair of
environment and of education

Find it more easy to make myself feared
than loved

For the rest of his life he would be
the prisoner of his crime

Force, which is the last word of the
philosophy of life

He did not sleep, so much the better!
He would work more

I believed in the virtue of work, and
look at me!

In his eyes everything was decided by
luck

Intelligent persons have no remorse

It is the first crime that costs

It is only those who own something who
worry about the price

Leant—and when I did not lose my
friends I lost my money

Leisure must be had for light reading,
and even more for love

Looking for a needle in a bundle of hay

Neither so simple nor so easy as they
at first appeared

One does not judge those whom one loves

People whose principle was never to pay
a doctor

Power to work, that was never disturbed
or weakened by anything

Reason before the deed, and not after

Repeated and explained what he had
already said and explained

She could not bear contempt

The strong walk alone because they need
no one

We are so unhappy that our souls are
weak against joy

We weep, we do not complain

Will not admit that conscience is the
proper guide of our action

You love me, therefore you do not know
me

ZIBELINE, By Phillipe de Massa

All that was illogical in our social
code

Ambiguity has no place, nor has
compromise

But if this is our supreme farewell,
do not tell me so!

Chain so light yesterday, so heavy
to-day

Every man is his own master in his
choice of liaisons

If I do not give all I give nothing

Indulgence of which they stand in need
themselves

Life goes on, and that is less gay than
the stories

Men admired her; the women sought some
point to criticise

Only a man, wavering and changeable

Ostensibly you sit at the feast without
paying the cost

Paris has become like a little country
town in its gossip

The night brings counsel

Their Christian charity did not extend
so far as that

There are mountains that we never climb
but once

You are in a conquered country, which
is still more dangerous

THE CHILD OF A CENTURY, By Alfred de Musset

A terrible danger lurks in the
knowledge of what is possible

Accustomed to call its disguise virtue

Adieu, my son, I love you and I die

All philosophy is akin to atheism

All that is not life, it is the noise
of life

And when love is sure of itself and
knows response

Because you weep, you fondly imagine
yourself innocent

Become corrupt, and you will cease to
suffer

Began to forget my own sorrow in my
sympathy for her

Beware of disgust, it is an incurable
evil

Can any one prevent a gossip

Cold silence, that negative force

Contrive to use proud disdain as a
shield

Death is more to be desired than a
living distaste for life

Despair of a man sick of life, or the
whim of a spoiled child

Do they think they have invented what
they see

Each one knows what the other is about
to say

Fool who destroys his own happiness

Force itself, that mistress of the
world

Funeral processions are no longer
permitted

Galileo struck the earth, crying:
"Nevertheless it moves!"

Good and bad days succeeded each other
almost regularly

Great sorrows neither accuse nor
blaspheme—they listen

Grief itself was for her but a means of
seducing

Happiness of being pursued

He who is loved by a beautiful woman is
sheltered from every blow

He lives only in the body

How much they desire to be loved who
say they love no more

Human weakness seeks association

I can not be near you and separated
from you at the same moment

I can not love her, I can not love
another

I boasted of being worse than I really
was

I neither love nor esteem sadness

I do not intend either to boast or
abase myself

Ignorance into which the Greek clergy
plunged the laity

In what do you believe?

Indignation can solace grief and
restore happiness

Is he a dwarf or a giant

Is it not enough to have lived?

It is a pity that you must seek
pastimes

Make a shroud of your virtue in which
to bury your crimes

Man who suffers wishes to make her whom
he loves suffer

Men doubted everything: the young men
denied everything

No longer esteemed her highly enough to
be jealous of her

Of all the sisters of love, the most
beautiful is pity

Perfection does not exist

Pure caprice that I myself mistook for
a flash of reason

Quarrel had been, so to speak, less sad
than our reconciliation

Reading the Memoirs of Constant

Resorted to exaggeration in order to
appear original

Sceptic regrets the faith he has lost
the power to regain

Seven who are always the same: the
first is called hope

She pretended to hope for the best

Sometimes we seem to enjoy unhappiness

"Speak to me of your love," she said,
"not of your grief"

St. Augustine

Suffered, and yet took pleasure in it

Suspicions that are ever born anew

Terrible words; I deserve them, but
they will kill me

There are two different men in you

Ticking of which (our arteries) can be
heard only at night

"Unhappy man!" she cried, "you will
never know how to love"

We have had a mass celebrated, and it
cost us a large sum

What you take for love is nothing more
than desire

What human word will ever express thy
slightest caress

When passion sways man, reason follows
him weeping and warning

Who has told you that tears can wash
away the stains of guilt

Wine suffuses the face as if to prevent
shame appearing there

You believe in what is said here below
and not in what is done

You play with happiness as a child
plays with a rattle

You turn the leaves of dead books

Your great weapon is silence

Youth is to judge of the world from
first impressions

SERGE PANINE, By George Ohnet

A man weeps with difficulty before a woman

A uniform is the only garb which can hide
poverty honorably

Antagonism to plutocracy and hatred of
aristocrats

Because they moved, they thought they were
progressing

Cowardly in trouble as he had been insolent
in prosperity

Enough to be nobody's unless I belong to him

Even those who do not love her desire to
know her

Everywhere was feverish excitement, dissipation,
and nullity

Flayed and roasted alive by the critics

Forget a dream and accept a reality

Hard workers are pitiful lovers

He lost his time, his money, his hair, his
illusions

He was very unhappy at being misunderstood

Heed that you lose not in dignity what you gain
in revenge

I thought the best means of being loved were
to deserve it

I don't pay myself with words

Implacable self-interest which is the law of
the world

In life it is only nonsense that is
common-sense

Is a man ever poor when he has two arms?

Is it by law only that you wish to keep me?

It was a relief when they rose from the table

Men of pleasure remain all their lives
mediocre workers

Money troubles are not mortal

My aunt is jealous of me because I am a
man of ideas

Negroes, all but monkeys!

Nothing that provokes laughter more than a
disappointed lover

One amuses one's self at the risk of dying

Patience, should he encounter a dull page
here or there

Romanticism still ferments beneath the
varnish of Naturalism

Sacrifice his artistic leanings to popular
caprice

Scarcely was one scheme launched when another
idea occurred

She would have liked the world to be in mourning

Suffering is a human law; the world is an arena

Talk with me sometimes. You will not chatter
trivialities

The guilty will not feel your blows, but the
innocent

The uncontested power which money brings

They had only one aim, one passion—to enjoy
themselves

Unqualified for happiness

We had taken the dream of a day for eternal
happiness

What is a man who remains useless

Without a care or a cross, he grew weary
like a prisoner

You are talking too much about it to be
sincere

AN "ATTIC" PHILOSOPHER, By Emile Souvestre

Always to mistake feeling for evidence

Ambroise Pare: 'I tend him, God cures
him!'

Are we then bound to others only by the
enforcement of laws

Attach a sense of remorse to each of my
pleasures

Brought them up to poverty

But above these ruins rises a calm and
happy face

Carn-ival means, literally, "farewell
to flesh!"

Coffee is the grand work of a
bachelor's housekeeping

Contemptuous pride of knowledge

Death, that faithful friend of the
wretched

Defeat and victory only displace each
other by turns

Did not think the world was so great

Do they understand what makes them so
gay?

Each of us regards himself as the
mirror of the community

Ease with which the poor forget their
wretchedness

Every one keeps his holidays in his own
way

Fame and power are gifts that are
dearly bought

Favorite and conclusive answer of his
class—"I know"

Fear of losing a moment from business

Finishes his sin thoroughly before he
begins to repent

Fortune sells what we believe she gives

Her kindness, which never sleeps

Houses are vessels which take mere
passengers

Hubbub of questions which waited for no
reply

I make it a rule never to have any hope

Ignorant of what there is to wish for

Looks on an accomplished duty neither
as a merit nor a grievance

Make himself a name: he becomes public
property

Moderation is the great social virtue

More stir than work

My patronage has become her property

No one is so unhappy as to have nothing
to give

Not desirous to teach goodness

Nothing is dishonorable which is useful

Our tempers are like an opera-glass

Poverty, you see, is a famous
schoolmistress

Power of necessity

Prisoners of work

Progress can never be forced on without
danger

Question is not to discover what will
suit us

Richer than France herself, for I have
no deficit in my budget

Ruining myself, but we must all have
our Carnival

Satisfy our wants, if we know how to
set bounds to them

Sensible man, who has observed much and
speaks little

So much confidence at first, so much
doubt at las

Sullen tempers are excited by the
patience of their victims

The happiness of the wise man costs but
little

The man in power gives up his peace

Two thirds of human existence are
wasted in hesitation

Virtue made friends, but she did not
take pupils

We do not understand that others may
live on their own account

We are not bound to live, while we are
bound to do our duty

What have you done with the days God
granted you

What a small dwelling joy can live

You may know the game by the lair

A WOODLAND QUEEN, By Andre Theuriet

Accustomed to hide what I think

Amusements they offered were either
wearisome or repugnant

Consoled himself with one of the pious
commonplaces

Dreaded the monotonous regularity of
conjugal life

Fawning duplicity

Had not been spoiled by Fortune's gifts

How small a space man occupies on the
earth

Hypocritical grievances

I am not in the habit of consulting the
law

I measure others by myself

It does not mend matters to give way
like that

Like all timid persons, he took refuge
in a moody silence

More disposed to discover evil than
good

Nature's cold indifference to our
sufferings

Never is perfect happiness our lot

Opposing his orders with steady,
irritating inertia

Others found delight in the most
ordinary amusements

Plead the lie to get at the truth

Sensitiveness and disposition to
self-blame

The ease with which he is forgotten

There are some men who never have had
any childhood

Those who have outlived their illusions

Timidity of a night-bird that is made
to fly in the day

To make a will is to put one foot into
the grave

Toast and white wine (for breakfast)

Vague hope came over him that all would
come right

Vexed, act in direct contradiction to
their own wishes

Women: they are more bitter than death

Yield to their customs, and not
pooh-pooh their amusements

You have considerable patience for a
lover

You must be pleased with yourself—that
is more essential

If you wish to read the entire context of any of these quotations, select a short segment and copy it into your clipboard memory—then open the appropriate eBook and paste the phrase into your computer's find or search operation.

Find any Project Gutenberg eBook or Author

These quotations were collected from the works of the author by David Widger while he was preparing etexts for Project Gutenberg. Comments and suggestions will be most welcome.

*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FRENCH IMMORTALS: QUOTES AND IMAGES, COMPLETE ***

Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will be renamed.

Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.

START: FULL LICENSE

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE

PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK

To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or online at www.gutenberg.org/license.

Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works

1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™ electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property (trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in your possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.

1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg™ electronic works even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project Gutenberg™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.

1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the United States and you are located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg™ works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg™ name associated with the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg™ License when you share it without charge with others.

1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project Gutenberg™ work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any country other than the United States.

1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:

1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™ work (any work on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, copied or distributed:

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.

1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg™ trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™ License for all works posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.

1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg™ License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg™.

1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project Gutenberg™ License.

1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg™ work in a format other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website (www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.

1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works provided that:

- • You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.”

- • You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™ License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™ works.

- • You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of receipt of the work.

- • You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works.

1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.

1.F.

1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment.

1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.

1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem.

1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.

1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.

1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any Defect you cause.

Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg™

Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from people in all walks of life.

Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™’s goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ collection will remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure and permanent future for Project Gutenberg™ and future generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org.

Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation

The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state’s laws.

The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact

Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation

Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission of increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations ($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt status with the IRS.

The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate.

While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who approach us with offers to donate.

International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.

Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate.

Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg™ electronic works

Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.

Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.

Most people start at our website which has the main PG search facility: www.gutenberg.org.

This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™, including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.

Table of Contents

- QUOTES AND IMAGES: THE FRENCH IMMORTALS
- THE FRENCH IMMORTALS
- CONTENTS
- THE INK STAIN, By Rene Bazin
- JACQUELINE, By Therese Bentzon (Mme. Blanc)
- GERFAUT, By Charles de Bernard
- COSMOPOLIS, By Paul Bourget
- PRINCE ZILAH, By Jules Claretie
- A ROMANCE OF YOUTH, By Francois Coppee
- FROMONT AND RISLER, By Alphonse Daudet
- CINQ MARS, By Alfred de Vigny
- M.M. AND BEBE, By Gustave Droz
- MONSIEUR DE CAMORS, By Octave Feuillet
- THE RED LILY, By Anatole France
- ABBE CONSTANTIN, By Ludovic Halevey
- CHRYSANTHEME, By Pierre Loti
- CONSCIENCE, By Hector Malot
- ZIBELINE, By Phillipe de Massa
- THE CHILD OF A CENTURY, By Alfred de Musset
- SERGE PANINE, By George Ohnet
- AN "ATTIC" PHILOSOPHER, By Emile Souvestre

- A WOODLAND QUEEN, By Andre Theuriet

- Find any Project Gutenberg eBook or Author

- THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE