Outer Dark

by Cormac McCarthy

the constant wooden trundling of the wagon, a sound so labored and remorseless as should have spoken something more than mere progress upon the earth’s surface.

Funny the way a man’s day gets shorter and a woman’s longer.

Live by yourself and you bound to talk to yourself and when ye commence that folks start it up that you’re light in the head. But I reckon it’s all right to talk to a dog since most folks do even if a dog don’t understand and cain’t answer if he did.

Sure, the old man said. Even a snake ain’t all bad. They’s put here for some purpose. I believe they’s purpose to everthing. Don’t you believe thataway?

Kin ain’t nothin but trouble noway. Yes, Holme said. Trouble when you got em and trouble when you ain’t.

I wouldn’t name him because if you cain’t name somethin you cain’t claim it. You cain’t talk about it even. You cain’t say what it is.

Hard people makes hard times. I’ve seen the meanness of humans till I don’t know why God ain’t put out the sun and gone away.

I’ve run with hogs since I was just a shirttail and I ain’t never come to no real understandin of em. And I don’t doubt but what other folks has had the same experience. A hog is a hog. Pure and simple. And that’s about all ye can say about him. And smart, don’t think they ain’t. Smart as the devil. And don’t be fooled by one that ain’t got nary clove foot cause he’s devilish too.

A feller never knows what day’ll be his last in this vale of tears.

Water in the summer and fire in the winter is all the need I need. We ain’t talkin about what I need.

What needs a man to see his way when he’s sent there anyhow?