“There, conspicuous in the light of the conflagration, lay the dead body of a woman—the white face turned upward, the hands thrown out and clutched full of grass, the clothing deranged, the long dark hair in tangles and full of clotted blood. The greater part of the forehead was torn away, and from the jagged hole the brain protruded, overflowing the temple, a frothy mass of gray, crowned with clusters of crimson bubbles—the work of a shell.The child moved his little hands, making wild, uncertain gestures. He uttered a series of inarticulate and indescribable cries—something between the chattering of an ape and the gobbling of a turkey—a startling, soulless, unholy sound, the language of a devil. The child was a deaf mute.Then he stood motionless, with quivering lips, looking down upon the wreck.”

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About Ambrose Bierce

American journalist and short-story writer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Bierce’s work blends dark satire and existential cynicism. He is best known for his collection *The Devil’s Dictionary*, a witty and mordant compendium of definitions, and his haunting, often ambiguous short stories.

More from Ambrose Bierce (194 quotes) →
"There, conspicuous in the light of the conflagration, lay the dead bo…" — Ambrose Bierce | Daily Quotes