| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Hiero by Xenophon: all other things? In fact, a compact force like this, so organised,
will prove most potent to preserve the interests of their friends and
to damage those of their opponents.
[8] Or, "that lie upon your borders," as Thebes and Megara were "nigh-
bordering" to Athens. Cf. Eur. "Rhes." 426; Soph. "Fr." 349.
And when, finally, the citizens discover it is not the habit of these
mercenaries to injure those who do no wrong, but their vocation rather
is to hinder all attempts at evil-doing; whereby they exercise a
kindly providence and bear the brunt of danger on behalf of the
community, I say it must needs be, the citizens will rejoice to pay
the expenses which the force entails. At any rate, it is for objects
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from A Simple Soul by Gustave Flaubert: perhaps expected to see even the picture of her nephew!
It was two weeks later that Liebard came into the kitchen at market-
time, and handed her a letter from her brother-in-law. As neither of
them could read, she called upon her mistress.
Madame Aubain, who was counting the stitches of her knitting, laid her
work down beside her, opened the letter, started, and in a low tone
and with a searching look said: "They tell you of a--misfortune. Your
nephew--"
He had died. The letter told nothing more.
Felicite dropped on a chair, leaned her head against the back, and
closed her lids; presently they grew pink. Then, with drooping head,
A Simple Soul |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Memoir of Fleeming Jenkin by Robert Louis Stevenson: It was in the year 1868, that the clouds finally rose. The
business in partnership with Mr. Forde began suddenly to pay well;
about the same time the patents showed themselves a valuable
property; and but a little after, Fleeming was appointed to the new
chair of engineering in the University of Edinburgh. Thus, almost
at once, pecuniary embarrassments passed for ever out of his life.
Here is his own epilogue to the time at Claygate, and his
anticipations of the future in Edinburgh.
' . . . . The dear old house at Claygate is not let and the pretty
garden a mass of weeds. I feel rather as if we had behaved
unkindly to them. We were very happy there, but now that it is
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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 Island Nights' Entertainments by Robert Louis Stevenson: was rubbish.
Altogether the best I could do was to lie still, see my shot-gun
handy, and wait for the explosion. But it was a solemn kind of a
business. The blackness of the night was like solid; the only
thing you could see was the nasty bogy glimmer of the dead wood,
and that showed you nothing but itself; and as for sounds, I
stretched my ears till I thought I could have heard the match burn
in the tunnel, and that bush was as silent as a coffin. Now and
then there was a bit of a crack; but whether it was near or far,
whether it was Case stubbing his toes within a few yards of me, or
a tree breaking miles away, I knew no more than the babe unborn.
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