| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Little Rivers by Henry van Dyke: together every year, and consider the flowers and the birds, and
confess our faults and mistakes and our unbelief under these silent
stars, and hear the river murmuring our absolution, we shall die
young, even though we live long: we shall have a treasure of
memories which will be like the twin-flower, always a double
blossom on a single stem, and carry with us into the unseen world
something which will make it worth while to be immortal."
1894.
A SONG AFTER SUNDOWN
"There's no music like a little river's. It plays the same tune
(and that's the favourite) over and over again, and yet does not
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Enemies of Books by William Blades: and had I to execute judgment on the criminal binders of certain
precious volumes I have seen, where the untouched maiden sheets
entrusted to their care have, by barbarous treatment, lost dignity,
beauty and value, I would collect the paper shavings so ruthlessly shorn off,
and roast the perpetrator of the outrage over their slow combustion.
In olden times, before men had learned to value the relics of our printers,
there was some excuse for the sins of a binder who erred from ignorance
which was general; but in these times, when the historical and antiquarian
value of old books is freely acknowledged, no quarter should be granted
to a careless culprit.
It may be supposed that, from the spread of information,
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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 The Rescue by Joseph Conrad: row. And if put to it," he argued, "I can make shift to kill a
man with my fist anyhow; and then--don't ye see--you know what
you're doing and are not so apt to start a trouble from sheer
temper or funk--see?"
In this case he did his best to kill a man with a blow from the
shoulder and catching up another by the middle flung him at the
naked, wild crowd. "He hurled men about as the wind hurls broken
boughs.
He made a broad way through our enemies!" related Wasub in his
jerky voice. It is more probable that Lingard's quick movements
and the amazing aspect of such a strange being caused the
The Rescue |
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 Court Life in China by Isaac Taylor Headland: city and give him a few lessons in government.
As the Empress Dowager had been behaving herself so circumspectly
during all the summer months, allowing the Emperor to test
himself as a ruler, one can scarcely blame her for not wanting to
be bottled up in the Summer Palace when she had done nothing to
deserve it. When therefore this second delegation of officials,
consisting of the two highest in rank in the empire, came to
request her to once more take charge of the government, she
called her sedan chair and started for the capital. She went
without an army, but was accompanied by those of her palace
eunuchs on whom she could implicitly depend, and enough of them
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