| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Letters of Robert Louis Stevenson by Robert Louis Stevenson: LE CHATIMENT, but breathes much of the same lovely goodness, and
has passages of power. Dostoieffsky is a devil of a swell, to be
sure. Have you heard that he became a stout, imperialist
conservative? It is interesting to know. To something of that
side, the balance leans with me also in view of the incoherency and
incapacity of all. The old boyish idea of the march on Paradise
being now out of season, and all plans and ideas that I hear
debated being built on a superb indifference to the first
principles of human character, a helpless desire to acquiesce in
anything of which I know the worst assails me. Fundamental errors
in human nature of two sorts stand on the skyline of all this modem
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Polly of the Circus by Margaret Mayo: of its desired effect. It was true that his position and hers
had points of similarity. She was apparently successful; as for
himself, he could not be sure. He knew he tried very hard and
that sometimes a tired mother or a sad- faced child looked up at
him with a smile that made the service seem worth while.
Polly mistook the pastor's revery for envy, and her tender heart
was quick to find consolation for him.
"You ain't got all the worst of it," she said. "If we tried to
play a dump like this for six months, we'd starve to death. You
certainly must give 'em a great show," she added, surveying him
with growing interest.
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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 Tales of Unrest by Joseph Conrad: indeed there existed a word that could solve that problem. We
pondered, and our hearts sank. We felt as though we three had been
called to the very gate of Infernal Regions to judge, to decide the
fate of a wanderer coming suddenly from a world of sunshine and
illusions.
"By Jove, he seems to have a great idea of our power," whispered
Hollis, hopelessly. And then again there was a silence, the feeble
plash of water, the steady tick of chronometers. Jackson, with bare
arms crossed, leaned his shoulders against the bulkhead of the cabin.
He was bending his head under the deck beam; his fair beard spread out
magnificently over his chest; he looked colossal, ineffectual, and
Tales of Unrest |
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 Unseen World and Other Essays by John Fiske: in the Rev. J. J. Tayler's work on "The Fourth Gospel," or in
Davidson's "Introduction to the New Testament." It must suffice
to mention that this gospel is not cited by Papias; that Justin,
Marcion, and Valentinus make no allusion to it, though, since it
furnishes so much that is germane to their views, they would
gladly have appealed to it, had it been in existence, when those
views were as yet under discussion; and that, finally, in the
great Quartodeciman controversy, A. D. 168, the gospel is not
only not mentioned, but the authority of John is cited by
Polycarp in flat contradiction of the view afterwards taken by
this evangelist. Still more, the assumption of Renan led at once
The Unseen World and Other Essays |
