"Language!" he said reprovingly. "Profanity won't do you no good, young man. Cursing and swearing won't 'elp you. You just drink your cuppertea and don't let's have no nonsense. If you'd made a 'abit in the past of drinking more tea and less of the other thing, you wouldn't be in what I may call your present predicament."
"Will you open this door?"
"No, sir. I will not open that door. There aren't going to be no doors opened till your conduct and behaviour has been carefully examined in the course of a day or so and we can be sure there'll be no verlence."
"Listen," said John, curbing a desire to jab at this man through the bars with the teaspoon. "I don't know who you are...."
"Flannery's the name, sir, as I said before. Sergeant-Major Flannery."
"... but I can't believe you're in this business...."
"Indeed I am, sir. I am Doctor Twist's assistant."
"But this man is a criminal, you fool...."
Sergeant-Major Flannery seemed pained rather than annoyed.
"Come, come, sir. A little civility, if you please. This, what I may call contumacious attitude, isn't helping you. Surely you can see that for yourself? Always remember, sir, the voice with the smile wins."