The Big Four quotes
The lines readers remember from The Big Four, by Agatha Christie.
14 quotes · About the book
Standout lines
Perhaps all this is merely a legacy from one’s short leaves in the war, when it seemed a matter of such importance to secure a place near the gangway, and to be amongst the first to disembark lest one should waste precious minutes of one’s three or five days’ leave.
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I move my suitcases from one spot to another, and if I go down to the saloon for a meal, I bolt my food with an uneasy feeling that the boat may arrive unexpectedly whilst I am below.
Perhaps all this is merely a legacy from one’s short leaves in the war, when it seemed a matter of such importance to secure a place near the gangway, and to be amongst the first to disembark lest one should waste precious minutes of one’s three or five days’ leave.
On this particular July morning, as I stood by the rail and watched the white cliffs of Dover drawing nearer, I marvelled at the passengers who could sit calmly in their chairs and never even raise their eyes for the first sight of their native …
Order and method, and ‘the little grey cells.’
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“No, my friend Hastings,” he would say, “we leave that to Giraud and his friends. Hercule Poirot’s methods are his own.
Order and method, and ‘the little grey cells.’
Sitting at ease in our own armchairs we see the things that these others overlook, and we do not jump to the conclusion like the worthy Japp.”
“If he was sane, what would he be doing in a lunatic asylum? They all say they’re sane, you know.”
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The keeper permitted himself to laugh.
“If he was sane, what would he be doing in a lunatic asylum? They all say they’re sane, you know.”
Poirot said no more. He took the man in to see the body. The identification came immediately.
Hercule Poirot is not killed so easily, madame. I wish you good night.
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“
Hercule Poirot is not killed so easily, madame. I wish you good night.
”
Poirot has his virtues, but modesty is not one of them.
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“Mon ami, he overlooked the little grey cells of Hercule Poirot.”
Poirot has his virtues, but modesty is not one of them.
Do you not know that all celebrated detectives have brothers who would be even more celebrated than they are were it not for constitutional indolence?
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“You surprise me, Hastings.
Do you not know that all celebrated detectives have brothers who would be even more celebrated than they are were it not for constitutional indolence?
”
All quotes
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I: The Unexpected Guest
Perhaps all this is merely a legacy from one’s short leaves in the war, when it seemed a matter of such importance to secure a place near the gangway, and to be amongst the first to disembark lest one should waste precious minutes of one’s three or five days’ leave.
Show the passage
I move my suitcases from one spot to another, and if I go down to the saloon for a meal, I bolt my food with an uneasy feeling that the boat may arrive unexpectedly whilst I am below.
Perhaps all this is merely a legacy from one’s short leaves in the war, when it seemed a matter of such importance to secure a place near the gangway, and to be amongst the first to disembark lest one should waste precious minutes of one’s three or five days’ leave.
On this particular July morning, as I stood by the rail and watched the white cliffs of Dover drawing nearer, I marvelled at the passengers who could sit calmly in their chairs and never even raise their eyes for the first sight of their native …
Order and method, and ‘the little grey cells.’
Show the passage
“No, my friend Hastings,” he would say, “we leave that to Giraud and his friends. Hercule Poirot’s methods are his own.
Order and method, and ‘the little grey cells.’
Sitting at ease in our own armchairs we see the things that these others overlook, and we do not jump to the conclusion like the worthy Japp.”
II: The Man from the Asylum
“If he was sane, what would he be doing in a lunatic asylum? They all say they’re sane, you know.”
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The keeper permitted himself to laugh.
“If he was sane, what would he be doing in a lunatic asylum? They all say they’re sane, you know.”
Poirot said no more. He took the man in to see the body. The identification came immediately.
III: We Hear More About Li Chang Yen
“Mon ami,” he said, “if you wish you may wait in to put salt on the little bird’s tail, but for me I do not waste my time so.”
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As far as I could see, he had no reason to suspect that we had penetrated his disguise. He might, I thought, return and try to remove the body, but Poirot scoffed at my reasoning.
“Mon ami,” he said, “if you wish you may wait in to put salt on the little bird’s tail, but for me I do not waste my time so.”
“Well, then, Poirot,” I argued, “why did he run the risk of coming at all? If he intended to return later for the body, I can see some point in his visit. He would at least be removing the evidence against himself;
VII: The Radium Thieves
Hercule Poirot is not killed so easily, madame. I wish you good night.
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“
Hercule Poirot is not killed so easily, madame. I wish you good night.
”
VIII: In the House of the Enemy
Often have I blamed myself for letting you go.
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“You are alive—you are unhurt. It is magnificent.
Often have I blamed myself for letting you go.
”
X: We Investigate at Croftlands
“You always know so much more than I do, Hastings, that it becomes quite fatiguing.”
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“Well, at any rate we know that Gerald Paynter had nothing to do with it.”
“You always know so much more than I do, Hastings, that it becomes quite fatiguing.”
“You old fox,” I laughed. “You never will commit yourself.”
XI: A Chess Problem
Mon ami, he overlooked the little grey cells of Hercule Poirot.
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“
Mon ami, he overlooked the little grey cells of Hercule Poirot.
”
Poirot has his virtues, but modesty is not one of them.
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“Mon ami, he overlooked the little grey cells of Hercule Poirot.”
Poirot has his virtues, but modesty is not one of them.
XIV: The Peroxide Blonde
“The stars fight against us—but is it the stars?”
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“Yes,” murmured Poirot.
“The stars fight against us—but is it the stars?”
He lifted his head as though struck by a sudden idea. “Is it the stars, Hastings?
XV: The Terrible Catastrophe
“It is the greatest mistake to underestimate your adversary. Remember that, mon ami.”
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But he gave no clue as to the line on which he proposed to operate. Only over and over again he gave utterance to one phrase.
“It is the greatest mistake to underestimate your adversary. Remember that, mon ami.”
And I realized that that was the pitfall he was striving at all costs to avoid.
Do you not know that all celebrated detectives have brothers who would be even more celebrated than they are were it not for constitutional indolence?
Show the passage
“You surprise me, Hastings.
Do you not know that all celebrated detectives have brothers who would be even more celebrated than they are were it not for constitutional indolence?
”
XVI: The Dying Chinaman
Crimson roses express my temperament.
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I confess it frankly—he was my master! I sent a wreath to the funeral as a token of my admiration—an enormous one of crimson roses.
Crimson roses express my temperament.
”
XVII: Number Four Wins a Trick
“Mon ami, where there is the Big Four there is always danger.”
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“For you have a part to play, Hastings. An important part! Without you, I might well fail. Nevertheless, I felt that it was my duty to urge you to remain behind.”
“Mon ami, where there is the Big Four there is always danger.”
On arrival in Paris, we drove across to the Gare de l’Est, and Poirot at last announced our destination. We were bound for Bolzano and Italian Tyrol.
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