Achmed Abdullah

“ Do you think she'll kill herself—like Lisaveta?
Touati
No. She'll marry again. You see, we have no children. And now so many of us Turks died in this war—so we need more children, more sons—to fight again—a few years hence—to die again—perhaps to win—
Plotkine
Oh, you wish to reconquer what you have lost?
Touati
Of course.
Plotkine
Yes, I see; you love your country. And I love mine. But must we die on the battlefield to prove our love?
Touati
It's the best proof.
Plotkine
No. It's the last proof.
Touati
The last proof only for ourselves. There are others will come after us. ”

“ Touati (grimly)
Well, captain, even a desert will grow wheat if you give it enough manure—and just look about you; look at yourself and at me—smell our dead comrades. Oh, there'll be enough manure, enough stinking dung for a good, rich crop. (Laughs.) Everything for which one dies is good. And then, there are so many human beings in this world. ”

“ I have no children. And what possible good is it to Bulgaria if I die here? The priests will babble as before, the tschinovniks will steal as before—and the comrades who return home will brag about their heroic deeds and their decorations. Nobody will think of me. ”