A pipe for the hour of work; a cigarette for the hour of conception; a cigar for the hour of vacuity.
George GissingTo like Keats is a test of fitness for understanding poetry, just as to like Shakespeare is a test of general mental capacity.
George GissingI hate with a bitter hatred the names of lentils haricots - those pretentious cheats of the appetite, those tabulated humbugs, those certified aridites calling themselves human food!
George GissingOne of the shining moments of my day is that when, having returned a little weary from an afternoon walk, I exchange boots for slippers, out-of-doors coat for easy, familiar, shabby jacket, and, in my deep, soft-elbowed chair, await the tea-tray.... [H]ow delicious is the soft yet penetrating odour which floats into my study, with the appearance of the teapot!... What a glow does it bring after a walk in chilly rain!
George Gissing