But they reckon a snake must've been hiding in them tomato plants. By the time they found her on Wednesday her right hand had turned black, and she had a black lump under her eye too.
-- Woman (chapter 1)

Importance: This quote is substantially important because it introduces the reader to the circumvention of the law that takes place within the Church of Signs Following. Although the death of Molly Jameson takes place in the church, at the hand of one of Carson's snakes, the community at large believes that she suffered a fatal accident in her garden. And so the church is able to continue with its dangerous methods. This is substantial because if the populace had found out the truth right away, the events of the novel most likely would not have happened, as the church would have been shut down.

A church ain't no place to hide the truth, and a...
-- Adelaide Lyle (chapter 1)