| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Vendetta by Honore de Balzac: father has two Corsicans in his service, and if he does not lie in
wait to kill you, they will."
"Ginevra," he said, "this feud, does it exist between you and me?"
The girl smiled sadly and bowed her head. Presently she raised it, and
said, with a sort of pride:--
"Oh, Luigi, our love must be pure and sincere, indeed, to give me
strength to tread the path I am about to enter. But it involves a
happiness that will last throughout our lives, will it not?"
Luigi answered by a smile, and pressed her hand.
Ginevra comprehended that true love could despise all vulgar
protestations at such a moment. This calm and restrained expression of
|
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 Island of Doctor Moreau by H. G. Wells: (if it was an accident), his gruesome pamphlet became notorious.
On the day of its publication a wretched dog, flayed and
otherwise mutilated, escaped from Moreau's house. It was in
the silly season, and a prominent editor, a cousin of the temporary
laboratory-assistant, appealed to the conscience of the nation.
It was not the first time that conscience has turned against the methods
of research. The doctor was simply howled out of the country.
It may be that he deserved to be; but I still think that the tepid
support of his fellow-investigators and his desertion by the great
body of scientific workers was a shameful thing. Yet some of
his experiments, by the journalist's account, were wantonly cruel.
The Island of Doctor Moreau |
