| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from A Treatise on Parents and Children by George Bernard Shaw: starved and degraded by it: our millionaires and statesmen are
manifestly no more "captains of industry" or scientific politicians
than our bookmakers are mathematicians. For some time past a
significant word has been coming into use as a substitute for Destiny,
Fate, and Providence. It is "The Machine": the machine that has no
god in it. Why do governments do nothing in spite of reports of Royal
Commissions that establish the most frightful urgency? Why do our
philanthropic millionaires do nothing, though they are ready to throw
bucketfuls of gold into the streets? The Machine will not let them.
Always the Machine. In short, they dont know how.
They try to reform Society as an old lady might try to restore a
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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 Wife, et al by Anton Chekhov: representing a young man with a shaven face, a wide-brimmed hat,
and a plaid flung over his shoulder. The letters that followed
were as splendid as before, but now commas and stops made their
appearance in them, the grammatical mistakes disappeared, and
there was a distinctly masculine flavour about them. Katya began
writing to me how splendid it would be to build a great theatre
somewhere on the Volga, on a cooperative system, and to attract
to the enterprise the rich merchants and the steamer owners;
there would be a great deal of money in it; there would be vast
audiences; the actors would play on co-operative terms. . . .
Possibly all this was really excellent, but it seemed to me that
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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 Georgics by Virgil: With various treasures, yet broad-acred ease,
Grottoes and living lakes, yet Tempes cool,
Lowing of kine, and sylvan slumbers soft,
They lack not; lawns and wild beasts' haunts are there,
A youth of labour patient, need-inured,
Worship, and reverend sires: with them from earth
Departing justice her last footprints left.
Me before all things may the Muses sweet,
Whose rites I bear with mighty passion pierced,
Receive, and show the paths and stars of heaven,
The sun's eclipses and the labouring moons,
Georgics |
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 U. S. Project Trinity Report by Carl Maag and Steve Rohrer: The Site Monitoring Group consisted of a chief monitor, three other
monitors, and several medical doctors. This group had the following
functions (1; 10):
o Conduct ground surveys of the test area and mark areas of
radioactivity
o Conduct surveys of the Base Camp and roads leading into the test
area
o Provide protective clothing and equipment, including film badges and
pocket dosimeters, to personnel
o Monitor all personnel for radioactive contamination and provide for
their decontamination
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