| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from A Man of Business by Honore de Balzac: have six hundred and thirty francs fifteen centimes to give you!'
"To his utter consternation, he saw Cerizet, emerged from his
wrappings like a butterfly from the chrysalis, holding out the
accursed bundle of documents.
" 'When I was down on my luck, I learned to act on the stage,' added
Cerizet. 'I am as good as Bouffe at old men.'
" 'I have fallen among thieves!' shouted Maxime.
" 'No, Monsieur le Comte, you are in Mlle. Hortense's house. She is a
friend of old Lord Dudley's; he keeps her hidden away here; but she
has the bad taste to like your humble servant.'
" 'If ever I longed to kill a man,' so the Count told me afterwards,
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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 Lost Princess of Oz by L. Frank Baum: more powerful than either of you, yet she could not defeat the wicked
Ugu, who has shut her up in a dungeon. We must go to the Shoemaker in
one mighty band, for only in union is there strength."
"That is excellent advice," said the Lavender Bear approvingly.
"But what can we do when we get to Ugu?" inquired the Cookie Cook
anxiously.
"Do not expect a prompt answer to that important question," replied
the Wizard, "for we must first plan our line of conduct. Ugu knows,
of course, that we are after him, for he has seen our approach in the
Magic Picture, and he has read of all we have done up to the present
moment in the Great Book of Records. Therefore we cannot expect to
The Lost Princess of Oz |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Ursula by Honore de Balzac: year. The clerk of the court, too poor, he said, to fling himself into
such extravagance, lived in a small way in a house standing half-way
down the Grand'Rue, the ground-floor of which was let to his sister,
the letter-postmistress of Nemours, a situation she owed to the
doctor's kind offices. Nevertheless, in the course of the year these
three families did meet together frequently, in the houses of friends,
in the public promenades, at the market, on their doorsteps, or, of a
Sunday in the square, as on this occasion; so that one way and another
they met nearly every day. For the last three years the doctor's age,
his economies, and his probable wealth had led to allusions, or frank
remarks, among the townspeople as to the disposition of his property,
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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 Frankenstein by Mary Shelley: than I possess to bear this injustice with patience.
September 12th
It is past; I am returning to England. I have lost my hopes of
utility and glory; I have lost my friend. But I will endeavour to
detail these bitter circumstances to you, my dear sister; and while
I am wafted towards England and towards you, I will not despond.
September 9th,
The ice began to move, and roarings like thunder were heard at
a distance as the islands split and cracked in every direction.
We were in the most imminent peril, but as we could only remain
passive, my chief attention was occupied by my unfortunate guest
Frankenstein |
