| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Great Big Treasury of Beatrix Potter by Beatrix Potter: himself in a place that he had never
seen before, although he had lived all
his life in the house. It was a very
small stuffy fusty room, with boards,
and rafters, and cobwebs, and lath
and plaster.
Opposite to him--as far away as he
could sit--was an enormous rat.
"What do you mean by tumbling
into my bed all covered with smuts?"
said the rat, chattering his teeth.
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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 Chinese Boy and Girl by Isaac Taylor Headland: Cross-eyed Wang, another Club-footed Chang, another Bald-headed
Li. Any physical deformity or mental peculiarity may give him his
nickname. Even foreigners suffer in reputation from this national
bad habit.
A man whose face is covered with pockmarks is ridiculed by
children in the following rhyme, which is only a sample of what
might be produced on a score of other subjects:
Old pockmarked Ma,
He climbed up a tree,
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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 The Devil's Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce: where they were solemnly excommunicated and anathematized. In a
street of Toledo, some pigs that had wickedly run between the
viceroy's legs, upsetting him, were arrested on a warrant, tried and
punished. In Naples and ass was condemned to be burned at the stake,
but the sentence appears not to have been executed. D'Addosio relates
from the court records many trials of pigs, bulls, horses, cocks,
dogs, goats, etc., greatly, it is believed, to the betterment of their
conduct and morals. In 1451 a suit was brought against the leeches
infesting some ponds about Berne, and the Bishop of Lausanne,
instructed by the faculty of Heidelberg University, directed that some
of "the aquatic worms" be brought before the local magistracy. This
The Devil's Dictionary |
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 Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz by L. Frank Baum: realized that a kitten cannot be depended upon at all times to act
properly, since its nature is to destroy small animals and even birds
for food, and the tame cat that we keep in our houses today is
descended from the wild cat of the jungle--a very ferocious creature,
indeed. The Wizard knew that if Dorothy's pet was found guilty and
condemned to death the little girl would be made very unhappy; so,
although he grieved over the piglet's sad fate as much as any of them,
he resolved to save Eureka's life.
Sending for the Tin Woodman the Wizard took him into a corner
and whispered:
"My friend, it is your duty to defend the white kitten and try to save
Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz |
