| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Ancient Regime by Charles Kingsley: too, that it fell in with a temper of mind unsatisfied with the dry
dogmatism into which the popular creeds had then been frozen--
unsatisfied with their own Frenchified foppery and pseudo-
philosophy--unsatisfied with want of all duty, purpose, noble
thought, or noble work. With such a temper of mind it fell in: but
that very temper was open (as it always is) to those dreams of a
royal road to wisdom and to virtue, which have haunted, in all ages,
the luxurious and the idle.
Those who will, may read enough, and too much, of the wonderful
secrets in nature and science and theosophy, which men expected to
find and did not find in the higher degrees of Masonry, till old
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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 Battle of the Books by Jonathan Swift: imputation of pedantry, it is what he would never improve by.
This great town is usually provided with some player, mimic, or
buffoon, who hath a general reception at the good tables; familiar
and domestic with persons of the first quality, and usually sent
for at every meeting to divert the company, against which I have no
objection. You go there as to a farce or a puppet-show; your
business is only to laugh in season, either out of inclination or
civility, while this merry companion is acting his part. It is a
business he hath undertaken, and we are to suppose he is paid for
his day's work. I only quarrel when in select and private
meetings, where men of wit and learning are invited to pass an
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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 Lin McLean by Owen Wister: -more egregiously, perhaps, because they were play-acting and no serious
horde would go on so. Our final hundred yards of speed and copious
howling brought all dwellers in Separ out to gaze and disappear like
rabbits--all save the new agent in the station. Nobody ran out or in
there, and the horde whirled up to the tiny, defenceless building and
leaped to earth--except Lin and me; we sat watching. The innocent door
stood open wide to any cool breeze or invasion, and Honey Wiggin tramped
in foremost, hat lowering over eyes and pistol prominent. He stopped
rooted, staring, and his mouth came open slowly; his hand went feeling up
for his hat, and came down with it by degrees as by degrees his grin
spread. Then in a milky voice, he said: "Why, excuse me, ma'am!
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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 End of the Tether by Joseph Conrad: ing to the young captain of the Condor. Good fellow--
Harry Whalley--never very talkative. You never
knew what he was up to--a bit too off-hand with people
of consequence, and apt to take a wrong view of a fel-
low's actions. Fact was he had a too good opinion of
himself. He would have liked to tell him to get in and
drive him home to dinner. But one never knew. Wife
would not like it.
"And it's funny to think, Harry," he went on in a
big, subdued drone, "that of all the people on it there
seems only you and I left to remember this part of the
End of the Tether |
