“For several days in succession fragments of a defeated army had passed through the town.”

—  Guy De Maupassant, book Boule de Suif

Boule de Suif (1880)
Context: For several days in succession fragments of a defeated army had passed through the town. They were mere disorganized bands, not disciplined forces. The men wore long, dirty beards and tattered uniforms; they advanced in listless fashion, without a flag, without a leader. All seemed exhausted, worn out, incapable of thought or resolve, marching onward merely by force of habit, and dropping to the ground with fatigue the moment they halted.

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Guy De Maupassant photo
Guy De Maupassant59
French writer 1850–1893

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