| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Madam How and Lady Why by Charles Kingsley: But what happens to all the delicate little corals if a storm
comes on?
What, indeed? Madam How has made them so well and wisely, that,
like brave and good men, the more trouble they suffer the stronger
they are. Day and night, week after week, the trade-wind blows
upon them, hurling the waves against them in furious surf,
knocking off great lumps of coral, grinding them to powder,
throwing them over the reef into the shallow water inside. But
the heavier the surf beats upon them, the stronger the polypes
outside grow, repairing their broken houses, and building up fresh
coral on the dead coral below, because it is in the fresh sea-
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Tattine by Ruth Ogden [Mrs. Charles W. Ide]: room, and then Mrs. Kirk sat them down to three little blue bowls of
bread-and-milk, remarking, "shure you must be after being hungry from your
long drive," and the children ate it with far more relish than home
bread-and-milk was ever eaten.
"Now I'm doubting"" said Patrick, standing with his back to the cooking-stove
and with a corn-cob pipe in his mouth, "if it's the style to have
bread-and-milk at 'At Homes' in the city."
"Patrick," answered Tattine seriously, "we do not want this to be a city 'At
Home.' I don't care for them at all. Everybody stays for just a little while,
and everybody talks at once, and as loudly as they can, and at some of them
they only have tea and a little cake or something like that to eat," and
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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 Men of Iron by Howard Pyle: gave the lad his hand to kiss, and that ceremony done, held fast
to the hard, brown, sinewy fist of the young man with his soft
white hand, and raised him to his feet.
"By the mass!" said he, looking Myles over with smiling eyes,
"thou art a right champion in good sooth. Such as thou art haply
was Sir Galahad when he came to Arthur's court. And so they tell
me, thou hast stomach to brook the Sieur de la Montaigne, that
tough old boar of Dauphiny. Hast thou in good sooth the courage
to face him? Knowest thou what a great thing it is that thou hast
set upon thyself--to do battle, even in sport, with him?"
"Yea, your Majesty," answered Myles, "well I wot it is a task
Men of Iron |
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 Ion by Plato: us to doubt that these beautiful poems are not human, or the work of man,
but divine and the work of God; and that the poets are only the
interpreters of the Gods by whom they are severally possessed. Was not
this the lesson which the God intended to teach when by the mouth of the
worst of poets he sang the best of songs? Am I not right, Ion?
ION: Yes, indeed, Socrates, I feel that you are; for your words touch my
soul, and I am persuaded that good poets by a divine inspiration interpret
the things of the Gods to us.
SOCRATES: And you rhapsodists are the interpreters of the poets?
ION: There again you are right.
SOCRATES: Then you are the interpreters of interpreters?
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