| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from In the Cage by Henry James: had materially made of that lady, giving her, though the years and
the struggles had naturally not straightened a feature, an almost
super-eminent air. There were women in and out of Cocker's who
were quite nice and who yet didn't look well; whereas Mrs. Jordan
looked well and yet, with her extraordinarily protrusive teeth, was
by no means quite nice. It would seem, mystifyingly, that it might
really come from all the greatness she could live with. It was
fine to hear her talk so often of dinners of twenty and of her
doing, as she said, exactly as she liked with them. She spoke as
if, for that matter, she invited the company. "They simply give me
the table--all the rest, all the other effects, come afterwards."
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Son of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs: had killed Michael Sabrov; but here, in savage Africa, far from
home and friends what would they do to him and his faithful ape?
The lad knew that the penalty of murder was death. He even knew
that an accomplice might suffer the death penalty with the principal.
Who was there who would plead for them? All would be against them.
It was little more than a half-civilized community, and the chances
were that they would drag Akut and him forth in the morning and hang
them both to the nearest tree--he had read of such things being
done in America, and Africa was worse even and wilder than the
great West of his mother's native land. Yes, they would both be
hanged in the morning!
The Son of Tarzan |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne: who called it xyloidine. In 1838 another Frenchman, Pelouze,
investigated its different properties, and finally, in 1846,
Schonbein, professor of chemistry at Bale, proposed its employment
for purposes of war. This powder, now called pyroxyle, or
fulminating cotton, is prepared with great facility by simply
plunging cotton for fifteen minutes in nitric acid, then washing
it in water, then drying it, and it is ready for use."
"Nothing could be more simple," said Morgan.
"Moreover, pyroxyle is unaltered by moisture-- a valuable
property to us, inasmuch as it would take several days to charge
the cannon. It ignites at 170 degrees in place of 240, and its
From the Earth to the Moon |
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 Republic by Plato: said to have two names, monarchy and aristocracy, accordingly as rule is
exercised by one distinguished man or by many.
True, he replied.
But I regard the two names as describing one form only; for whether the
government is in the hands of one or many, if the governors have been
trained in the manner which we have supposed, the fundamental laws of the
State will be maintained.
That is true, he replied.
BOOK V.
Such is the good and true City or State, and the good and true man is of
the same pattern; and if this is right every other is wrong; and the evil
The Republic |
