“’A woman cannot transfer her heart,’ she had said. Phineas was well aware that many women do transfer their hearts; but he had gone to this woman too soon after the wrench which her love had received; he had been too sudden with his proposal for a transfer; and the punishment for such ill judgement must be that success would now be impossible to him.”
“…it is so difficult for a man to go back to the verdure and
malleability of pupildom, who has once escaped from the necessary humility of
its conditions.”
“Poor old man! He had run through all the pleasures of life
too quickly, and had not much left with which to amuse himself.”
“A man must live, even though his heart be broken, and
living he must dine.”
In all of these examples, a certain good sense, humor and
economy of phrase is evident, as throughout the book.
