| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Door in the Wall, et. al. by H. G. Wells: violent trembling. Right under foot was a sheer depth of seventy
feet. It was a dangerous place. They pushed by a truck of fuel to
get to the railing that crowned the place. The reek of the
furnace, a sulphurous vapor streaked with pungent bitterness,
seemed to make the distant hillside of Hanley quiver. The moon was
riding out now from among a drift of clouds, halfway up the sky
above the undulating wooded outlines of Newcastle. The steaming
canal ran away from below them under an indistinct bridge, and
vanished into the dim haze of the flat fields towards Burslem.
"That's the cone I've been telling you of," shouted Horrocks;
"and, below that, sixty feet of fire and molten metal, with the air
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Master Key by L. Frank Baum: being more powerful than the projective force, will arrest the flight
of the missile and throw it back again. Therefore nothing can touch
your person that comes with any degree of force or swiftness, and you
will be safe from all ordinary weapons. When wearing this Garment you
will find it unnecessary to use the electric tube except on rare
occasions. Never allow revenge or animosity to influence your
conduct. Men may threaten, but they can not injure you, so you must
remember that they do not possess your mighty advantages, and that,
because of your strength, you should bear with them patiently."
Rob examined the garment with much curiosity. It glittered like
silver, yet was soft and pliable as lamb's wool. Evidently the Demon
The Master Key |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Ball at Sceaux by Honore de Balzac: exhausting to human beings. The old Vendeen knew better than any one
that if there is an art in choosing the right moment for coming
forward on the boards of the world, on those of the Court, in a
drawing-room or on the stage, it is still more difficult to quit them
in the nick of time. So during the first winter after the accession of
Charles X., he redoubled his efforts, seconded by his three sons and
his sons-in-law, to assemble in the rooms of his official residence
the best matches which Paris and the various deputations from
departments could offer. The splendor of his entertainments, the
luxury of his dining-room, and his dinners, fragrant with truffles,
rivaled the famous banquets by which the ministers of that time
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The fourth excerpt represents the element of Earth. It speaks of physical influences and the impact of the unseen on the visible world, and is drawn from The Pocket Diary Found in the Snow by Grace Isabel Colbron and Augusta Groner: I have a feeling as if I was being watched. And yet - I examined
the door, but there is no crack anywhere and the key is in the lock.
Still I seem to feel a burning glance resting on me. Ah! the
parrot! is this another delusion? Oh God, let it end soon! I am
not yet quite insane, but all these unknown dangers around me will
drive me mad. I must fight against them.
"Thursday. They brought me back my travelling bag. My attendant
is uneasy. She was longer in cleaning up the room than usual to-day.
She seemed to want to say something to me, and yet she did not dare
to speak. Is something to happen to-day then? I did not close my
eyes all night. Can one be made insane from a distance? hypnotised
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