| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from At the Earth's Core by Edgar Rice Burroughs: of Phutra.
Dian and I were ready to embark, but I was anxious
to witness the first clash between two fair-sized armies
of the opposing races of Pellucidar. I realized that this
was to mark the historic beginning of a mighty struggle
for possession of a world, and as the first emperor
of Pellucidar I felt that it was not alone my duty,
but my right, to be in the thick of that momentous struggle.
As the opposing army approached we saw that there were many
Mahars with the Sagoth troops--an indication of the vast
importance which the dominant race placed upon the outcome
At the Earth's Core |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from A Daughter of Eve by Honore de Balzac: to deceive her husband! Next she thought of borrowing the money from
the Rothschilds, who had so much, or from the archbishop of Paris,
whose mission it was to help persons in distress; darting thus from
thought to thought, seeking help in all. She deplored belonging to a
class opposed to the government. Formerly, she could easily have
borrowed the money on the steps of the throne. She thought of
appealing to her father, the Comte de Granville. But that great
magistrate had a horror of illegalities; his children knew how little
he sympathized with the trials of love; he was now a misanthrope and
held all affairs of the heart in horror. As for the Comtesse de
Granville, she was living a retired life on one of her estates in
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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 Hellenica by Xenophon: to assist their agents at Aulon.[12] As soon as the capture was
effected, and one of the horsemen was back with the list of names
taken down on the information of Cinadon, they lost no time in
apprehending the soothsayer Tisamenus and the rest who were the
principals in the conspiracy. When Cinadon[13] himself was brought
back and cross-examined, and had made a full confession of the whole
plot, his plans, and his accomplices, they put to him one final
question: "What was your object in undertaking this business?" He
answered: "I wished to be inferior to no man in Lacedaemon." Let that
be as it might, his fate was to be taken out forthwith in irons, just
as he was, and to be placed with his two hands and his neck in the
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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 Little Britain by Washington Irving: all their elegant aspirings. Their ambition, being now no longer
restrained, broke out into a blaze, and they openly took the
field against the family of the butcher. It is true that the
Lambs, having had the first start, had naturally an advantage of
them in the fashionable career. They could speak a little bad
French, play the piano, dance quadrilles, and had formed high
acquaintances; but the Trotters were not to be distanced.
When the Lambs appeared with two feathers in their hats, the
Miss Trotters mounted four, and of twice as fine colors. If the
Lambs gave a dance, the Trotters were sure not to be
behindhand: and though they might not boast of as good
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