| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Return of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs: to follow her, saying that they had already remained in the
vault too long to prevent suspicion from falling upon her
even if they returned to the temple.
"I will hide you, and then return alone," she said, "telling
them that I was long unconscious after you killed Tha, and
that I do not know whither you escaped."
And so she led him through winding corridors of gloom,
until finally they came to a small chamber into which a little
light filtered through a stone grating in the ceiling.
"This is the Chamber of the Dead," she said. "None will
think of searching here for you--they would not dare. I will
The Return of Tarzan |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Man that Corrupted Hadleyburg by Mark Twain: approving applause; friends swarmed to him and shook him by the hand
and congratulated him, and Billson was shouted down and not allowed
to say a word. The Chair hammered and hammered with its gavel, and
kept shouting:
"But let us proceed, gentlemen, let us proceed!"
At last there was a measurable degree of quiet, and the hatter said:
"But what is there to proceed with, sir, but to deliver the money?"
Voices. "That's it! That's it! Come forward, Wilson!"
The Hatter. "I move three cheers for Mr. Wilson, Symbol of the
special virtue which--"
The cheers burst forth before he could finish; and in the midst of
The Man that Corrupted Hadleyburg |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Fantastic Fables by Ambrose Bierce: "Who is your master?" inquired the Statesman.
"He is the Statesman who saved his country," answered the Race
Horse.
"There appears to be some mistake," the other said. "Why did he
wish to travel so fast?"
"So as to be there in time to get the country that he saved."
"I guess he got it," said the other, and limped along, sighing.
An AErophobe
A CELEBRATED Divine having affirmed the fallibility of the Bible,
was asked why, then, he preached the religion founded upon it.
"If it is fallible," he replied, "there is the greater reason that
Fantastic Fables |
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 Woman and Labour by Olive Schreiner: the labours of life were divided between us. While man went forth to hunt,
or to battle with the foe who would have dispossessed us of all, we
laboured on the land. We hoed the earth, we reaped the grain, we shaped
the dwellings, we wove the clothing, we modelled the earthen vessels and
drew the lines upon them, which were humanity's first attempt at domestic
art; we studied the properties and uses of plants, and our old women were
the first physicians of the race, as, often, its first priests and
prophets.
We fed the race at our breast, we bore it on our shoulders; through us it
was shaped, fed, and clothed. Labour more toilsome and unending than that
of man was ours; yet did we never cry out that it was too heavy for us.
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