... le 29 avril 1980
Quelques années plus tôt, il concluait une de ses dernières interventions publiques sur une allusion de fin lettré à Thomas de Quincey et De l'assassinat considéré comme un des beaux-arts :
Finally, I think I can best describe the insidious effect of murder on one's character by reading a paragraph from Thomas De Quincey's delightful essay Murder as One of the Fine Arts. He said:
"If once a man indulges himself in murder, very soon he comes to think little of robbing; and from robbing he comes next to drinking and Sabbath-breaking, and from that to incivility and procrastination. Once begun on this downward path, you never know where you are to stop. Many a man dates his ruin from some murder or other that perhaps he thought little of at the time."
They tell me that murder is committed every minute, so I don't want to waste any more of your time. I know you want to get to work. Thank you.
[On me dit que des meurtres sont commis à chaque instant. Je ne veux pas vous faire perdre votre temps. Je sais que vous voulez retourner au travail. Merci.]
