Sharpe's Devil Quotes

“This world isn’t governed by honorable men, but by lawyers and politicians, and whenever such scum come across an honest man they have to kill him.”
― Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Devil

“In all history,” he went on, “can you name one great deed or one noble achievement ever done by a lawyer? Can you think of any single thing that any lawyer has ever done to increase human happiness by so much as a smile? Can you think of even one lawyer who could stand with the heroes?”
― Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Devil

“You can’t have freedom and lawyers, Sharpe, and I’ve discovered that lawyers are as ubiquitous to human society as rats are to a ship.”
― Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Devil

“Juan Fernandez islands.” Cochrane drew on the cigar and watched its smoke drift out the window. “The islands are three hundred fifty miles off the coast, in the middle of nothing! They’re where Robinson Crusoe was marooned, or rather where Alexander Selkirk, who was the original of Crusoe, spent four not uncomfortable years.”
― Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Devil

“He grinned at Sharpe. “Christ, but this is joy! What would we do for happiness if peace came?” He turned his horse clumsily, rammed his heels back, and whooped as the horse took off. “Let’s go get the whores!”
― Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Devil

“They make laws that no one wants, then make money disagreeing with each other what the damned law means, and the more they disagree the more money they make, but still they go on making laws, and they make them ever more complicated so that they can get paid for arguing ever more intricately with one another! I grant you they’re clever buggers, but God, how I hate lawyers.”
― Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Devil

“What did you want to achieve?” “Liberty, of course!” The answer was swift, but followed immediately by a deprecating smile. “Except I’ve learned there’s no such thing.” “There isn’t?” “You can’t have freedom and lawyers, Sharpe,”
― Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Devil

“abandoned the weapon because of its propensity to shatter the shoulders of the men pulling its trigger, but in Patrick Harper the seven-barreled gun had found a soldier capable of taming its brute ferocity. The gun was a cluster of seven half-inch barrels which were fired by a single lock, and was, in its effect, like a small cannon loaded with grapeshot.”
― Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe's Devil