| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner: before him.'
"Then Knowledge vanished.
"And the hunter turned. He went to his cage, and with his hands broke down
the bars, and the jagged iron tore his flesh. It is sometimes easier to
build than to break.
"One by one he took his plumed birds and let them fly. But when he came to
his dark-plumed bird he held it, and looked into its beautiful eyes, and
the bird uttered its low, deep cry--'Immortality!'
"And he said quickly: 'I cannot part with it. It is not heavy; it eats no
food. I will hide it in my breast; I will take it with me.' And he buried
it there and covered it over with his cloak.
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte by Karl Marx: its issue. With the former, the phrase surpasses the substance; with
this one, the substance surpasses the phrase.
The February revolution was a surprisal; old society was taken unawares;
and the people proclaimed this political stroke a great historic act
whereby the new era was opened. On the 2d of December, the February
revolution is jockeyed by the trick of a false player, and what is seer
to be overthrown is no longer the monarchy, but the liberal concessions
which had been wrung from it by centuries of struggles. Instead of
society itself having conquered a new point, only the State appears to
have returned to its oldest form, to the simply brazen rule of the sword
and the club. Thus, upon the "coup de main" of February, 1848, comes
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| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from A Book of Remarkable Criminals by H. B. Irving: the one no more than the other, a volcanic eruption kills mice
and men with the one hand. The divine command, `kill, kill and
spare not,' was intended not only for Joshua, but for men of all
time; it is the example of our rulers, our Fredericks and
Napoleons."
Butler was of the true Prussian mould. "In crime," he would say,
"as in war, no half measures. Let us follow the example of our
rulers whose orders in war run, `Kill, burn and sink,' and what
you cannot carry away, destroy.'" Here is the gospel of
frightfulness applied almost prophetically to crime. To Butler
murder is a principle of warfare; to Peace it was never more than
A Book of Remarkable Criminals |
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 Heart of the West by O. Henry: in the world for thee and me. He has killed many. Let him so die.
Bring your men, and give him no chance to escape."
"You used to think right much of him," said Sandridge.
Tonia dropped the lariat, twisted herself around, and curved a lemon-
tinted arm over the ranger's shoulder.
"But then," she murmured in liquid Spanish, "I had not beheld thee,
thou great, red mountain of a man! And thou art kind and good, as well
as strong. Could one choose him, knowing thee? Let him die; for then I
will not be filled with fear by day and night lest he hurt thee or
me."
"How can I know when he comes?" asked Sandridge.
Heart of the West |
