How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
And so Danny went to Texas and broke mules for the duration of the war. And Pilon marched about Oregon with the infantry, and Big Joe, as shall be later made clear, went to jail. (Preface.27)
The novel starts out with our friends being tamed by the government in various ways. Whether they are in the army or in jail, Danny, Pilon, and Big Joe are all being trained by the government to follow orders and stay in line. The fact that these activities are all mentioned together shows that there are similarities between jail and the army.
Quote #2
Danny [...] walked back up Alvarado Street, breaking windows as he went, and in the second block a policeman took him in hand. Danny's great respect for the law caused him to go quietly. If he had not just been discharged from the army after the victory over Germany, he would have been sentenced to six months. As it was, the judge gave him only thirty days. (1.6)
The idea that Danny has "great respect for the law" seems contradictory, since we just saw him go up a street breaking windows. But his respect for the law isn't in following it; it's in accepting the consequences of his actions. It's almost like an idea of civil disobedience, but without any cause behind it.
Quote #3
In a little while he had one wall decorated with squashed bedbugs, each named for a local dignitary [...] Tito Ralph, the jailer, was scandalized; but he made no complaint because Danny had not included either the justice of the peace who had sentenced him or any of the police force. He had a vast respect for the law. (1.8)
Here's some more evidence of Danny's "respect for the law," and now we can tell that the narrator's tongue is digging pretty far into his cheek. First of all, the fact that there are bedbugs eating Danny alive in the jail shows how little respect the law has for him, and the fact that he names the bugs after the mayor and his associates is obviously disrespectful. But Danny seems to hold policemen in special regard, possibly because he doesn't hold them responsible for what they do.