Sentence:  “I don't mean all of your friends—only a small proportion—which, however, connects your circle with that deadly, idle, brainless bunch—the insolent chatterers at the opera,...the speed-mad fugitives from the furies of ennui, the neurotic <WSD>victims</WSD> of mental cirrhosis, […] !” 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  An unfortunate person who suffers from a disaster or other adverse circumstance.