| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Crowd by Gustave le Bon: a new coat or a decoration.
Between the extreme limits of this series would find a place all
the forms of prestige resulting from the different elements
composing a civilisation--sciences, arts, literature, &c.--and it
would be seen that prestige constitutes the fundamental element
of persuasion. Consciously or not, the being, the idea, or the
thing possessing prestige is immediately imitated in consequence
of contagion, and forces an entire generation to adopt certain
modes of feeling and of giving expression to its thought. This
imitation, moreover, is, as a rule, unconscious, which accounts
for the fact that it is perfect. The modern painters who copy
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare: So louing Iealous of his liberty
Rom. I would I were thy Bird
Iul. Sweet so would I,
Yet I should kill thee with much cherishing:
Good night, good night
Rom. Parting is such sweete sorrow,
That I shall say goodnight, till it be morrow
Iul. Sleepe dwell vpon thine eyes, peace in thy brest
Rom. Would I were sleepe and peace so sweet to rest,
The gray ey'd morne smiles on the frowning night,
Checkring the Easterne Clouds with streakes of light,
Romeo and Juliet |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Under the Andes by Rex Stout: exhausted and wounded bodies.
Our last ounce of strength seemed to have been used up in our
desperate struggle down the side of the mountain; for many days we
lay on our backs absolutely unable to move a muscle and barely
conscious of life.
But the spark revived and fluttered. The day came when we
could hobble, with his assistance, to the door of the
hacienda and sit for hours in the invigorating sunshine; and
thenceforward our convalescence proceeded rapidly. Color came to
our cheeks and light to our eyes; and one sunny afternoon it was
decided that we should set out for Cerro de Pasco on the following
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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 In Darkest England and The Way Out by General William Booth: in a course at Glasgow University, graduated B.A. there. After this
he was on the staff of a Welsh paper. He married a decent girl,
and had several little ones, but giving way to drink, lost position,
wife, family, and friends. At times he would struggle up and recover
himself, and appears generally to have been able to secure a position,
but again and again his besetment overcame him, and each time he would
drift lower and lower. For a time he was engaged in secretarial work
on a prominent London Charity, but fell repeatedly, and at length was
dismissed. He came to us an utter outcast, was sent to Shelter and
Workshop got saved, and is now in a good situation. He gives every
promise, and those best able to judge seem very sanguine that at last a
In Darkest England and The Way Out |
