The Yard Quotes
"Hundreds of passengers arrived every day for their first experience of the great city, while others fled to Liverpool, Birmingham, Manchester, Nottingham, and all points between."
"Prostitution was illegal, of course, and they were a cheeky pair to be plying their wares so early in the day and in so public a place, but they were brave in their fashion, too, and arresting them would have been fruitless."
"Murderers, thieves, whores, and swindlers were all pressed together alongside that rarest of species, the honest citizen."
"The hierarchy of the Yard was unusual in that nobody outranked anyone else."
"There were times that Kett felt he had to stride up and down among them, barking orders and keeping everyone on task, but today, every one of the men in blue was hustling, working to do his part."
"The bald man stood at the edge of the crowd and watched as Sergeant Kett returned to the gallery."
"Constable Pringle brushed imaginary lint from his trousers and shot the cuffs of his crisp starched shirt."
"He had joined the force strictly for the dapper uniform and the pretty girls who noticed it."
"The dancing man was already outside the back hall at 4 Whitehall Place when Detective Inspector Walter Day arrived."
"Detective work is as much about logical deduction as it is dogged footwork."
"Nevil Hammersmith lit a cigarette and took a deep drag."
"Blackleg led Hammersmith to a row of tall brownstones skirted by a black wrought-iron fence."
"French Upholstery and Fine Furniture was a small shop on Charles Street."
"He was sure it would disappear into the rubbish pile before the week was out."
"How we treat the dead says much about us."
"The dead outnumber us, and we have no power over them."
"Our duty isn't to these bodies, our duty is to the Queen and to the law."
"The ones we care about are the ones that take the piss out of us."
"If the job of the Yard is to look the other way when we encounter dead children, then I have no interest in lasting long."
"Being an inspector with the Yard is a responsibility and an honor."
"You must stop thinking of this body as a boy. This is a laborer."
"The idea of someone who killed from habit and need was a relatively new one."
"You found this corpse in the chimney, correct?"
"This boy has no family asking us for justice."
"Every death is a tragedy, but I don’t understand what makes this one so special."
"I believe we always will dream about her."
"I’ll dance for you, bluebottle. I dance for 'em all, all the dead."
"What sane man does any of these things?"
"Only the least reputable places were still open, which was why Hammersmith was still out looking."
"The entire establishment was set up to swindle anyone who wasn’t in on the game."
"Hammersmith realized he was about to fall into yet another trap arranged by the same girl."
"You didn’t have to get rough," she said.
"What’s this, then?" the hairy brute said.
Hush now, little one," the barkeep said. "Let me have a look at it.
"I’ve been looking everywhere for you," he said.
"He wished now that he had taken the time to put on a pair of shoes."
"He shucked his sopping pajama shirt and twisted it in his tiny fists."
"Fenn wasn’t a baby, he could figure things out for himself."
"The bald man had told him that his parents and three sisters had moved away."
"Fenn picked up his pace as he passed more little shops and houses that he recognized."
"When he caught Fenn again, he would be well within his rights to be angry."
"His beard was trimmed and his throat was cut."
"Walter Day took a deep breath and knocked on the door."
"Behind him, the sound of a baby crying."
"Without Mr Little’s pay, how I’m gonna take care of these young’uns?"
"Was Inspector Little planning to grow a beard, by chance?"
"That’s a miserable experience that I wouldn’t wish on my most intimate enemy."
"I’m sure she wasn’t like that when he met her."
"We’re in the biggest city in the world, Day, and I think it’s trying to get rid of us."
"Get yourself a new shirt. That one’s much too small for you."
"My name is Bentley. Inspector Richard Bentley. I’m an associate of your husband’s. We work closely together at the Yard."
"You’ll need to ask Inspector Day for the file. He’s got all of Mr Little’s things."
"I spilled something on it." "Spilled something?" "Blood."
"Let me dance for you," the dancing man said.
"I’m sorry, I just thought perhaps … So many villains out there."
"I have a message for you. The messenger wants me to show you something."
"You might not know that Pringle was dead."
"I’ll look through these files and await your good news, then."
"Women these days were overreaching themselves."
"Surely not more important than the Jack the Ripper investigation."
"You’ve found me out, Claire. I’m afraid I am a self-aggrandizing heel."
"My wife died so recently that I’m unsure of how to describe myself now."
"Hard work is its own reward, don’t you think?"
"I’m sure you needn’t have resorted to all this in order to gain respect."
"Then my visit has not been a waste of time."
"I don’t see that there’s any reason for me to bring it up."
"For all the bad we see, you’ve shown me how to look for the good."
"Every moment of life should be spent accomplishing something."
"Death is there whether I see it or not, I’d rather see it and know it."
"London is locked in a sort of dance of propriety, and it seems to me that it has led to desperation among certain elements of our society."
"There’s no sense in spreading a joke until you’ve refined it. We’ll work on these jokes together, you and I."
"It’s hard to tell," Day said. "Most of what he wrote consisted of answers to specific questions we asked."
"He certainly didn’t appear to be a farmer when I saw him."
"The scarcity of police wagons is alarming. How can we hope to track anyone down when we have no transportation?"
"You worry me. I’ve already told these men and now I’m telling you: I don’t want you doing anything alone, and I mean anything at all."
"If he doesn’t, we know where to find him."
"Perhaps he ran out of time," Hammersmith said, "and this was merely the first of many confessions."
"I’ll get round to see him when I have the time."
"Detective work is more than the accumulation of evidence. Your instincts are good."
"Of course, I’d hoped you could tell me something about them when you have a chance to return to your laboratory."
"I believe he’s perfectly able. Handy bloke to have around, to tell the truth, but he badly needs a hot bath."
That’s wonderful. Bradley," she said, "why don’t you go and show your new penny to Elizabeth.
"Good-bye, Fenn," he said. "Always be brave." He said it quietly and nobody heard him.
"The commissioner wants to see you in his office soon’s you arrive. Looks to me like you’ve arrived."
"You will always be the most beautiful woman in London."