To make war upon rebellion is messy and slow, like eating soup with a knife.

As long as the Arabs fight tribe against tribe, so long will they be a little people, a silly people, greedy, barbarous and cruel.

To me an unnecessary action, or shot, or casualty, was not only waste but sin.

The beginning and ending of the secret of handling Arabs is unremitting study of them.

All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible.

Cling tight to your sense of humour. You will need it every day.

An opinion can be argued with; a conviction is best shot. The logical end of a war of creeds is the final destruction of one, and Salammbo is the classical text-book instance.