| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Critias by Plato: must not be surprised, for I have told how they came to be introduced. The
tale, which was of great length, began as follows:--
I have before remarked in speaking of the allotments of the gods, that they
distributed the whole earth into portions differing in extent, and made for
themselves temples and instituted sacrifices. And Poseidon, receiving for
his lot the island of Atlantis, begat children by a mortal woman, and
settled them in a part of the island, which I will describe. Looking
towards the sea, but in the centre of the whole island, there was a plain
which is said to have been the fairest of all plains and very fertile.
Near the plain again, and also in the centre of the island at a distance of
about fifty stadia, there was a mountain not very high on any side. In
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Lily of the Valley by Honore de Balzac: Henriette? Absorbed in a duty comparable to that of a soldier at the
pickets, she forgot to eat; then I served her, sometimes on her lap, a
hasty meal which necessitated a thousand little attentions. We were
like children at a grave. She would order me sharply to prepare
whatever might ease the sick man's suffering; she employed me in a
hundred petty ways. During the time when actual danger obscured, as it
does during the battle, the subtile distinctions which characterize
the facts of ordinary life, she necessarily laid aside the reserve
which all women, even the most unconventional, preserve in their looks
and words and actions before the world or their own family. At the
first chirping of the birds she would come to relieve my watch,
The Lily of the Valley |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Fisherman's Luck by Henry van Dyke: think it is in the second volume, near the end.
Sir Walter Scott, who once described himself as
"No fisher,
But a well-wisher
To the game,"
has an amusing passage of angling in the third chapter of
REDGAUNTLET. Darsie Latimer is relating his adventures in
Dumfriesshire. "By the way," says he, "old Cotton's instructions,
by which I hoped to qualify myself for the gentle society of
anglers, are not worth a farthing for this meridian. I learned this
by mere accident, after I had waited four mortal hours. I shall
|
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 Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie: extracted the contents.
"DEAR SIR,
"Referring to your advertisement in this morning's paper, I may
be able to be of some use to you. Perhaps you could call and see
me at the above address at eleven o'clock to-morrow morning.
"Yours truly, "A. CARTER.
"27 Carshalton Gardens," said Tuppence, referring to the address.
"That's Gloucester Road way. Plenty of time to get there if we
tube."
"The following," said Tommy, "is the plan of campaign. It is my
turn to assume the offensive. Ushered into the presence of Mr.
Secret Adversary |
