| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Concerning Christian Liberty by Martin Luther: in profane raiment, should dwell in profane places, should eat
and drink in the ordinary fashion, should not pray aloud, and
should leave undone all the things above mentioned, which may be
done by hypocrites.
And, to cast everything aside, even speculation, meditations, and
whatever things can be performed by the exertions of the soul
itself, are of no profit. One thing, and one alone, is necessary
for life, justification, and Christian liberty; and that is the
most holy word of God, the Gospel of Christ, as He says, "I am
the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in Me shall not
die eternally" (John xi. 25), and also, "If the Son shall make
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Historical Lecturers and Essays by Charles Kingsley: a dream to become a Gray Friar, and Buchanan answered in language
which had the unpleasant fault of being too clever, and--to judge
from contemporary evidence--only too true. The friars said nothing
at first; but when King James made Buchanan tutor to one of his
natural sons, they, "men professing meekness, took the matter
somewhat more angrily than befitted men so pious in the opinion of
the people." So Buchanan himself puts it: but, to do the poor
friars justice, they must have been angels, not men, if they did not
writhe somewhat under the scourge which he had laid on them. To be
told that there was hardly a place in heaven for monks, was hard to
hear and bear. They accused him to the king of heresy; but not
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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 Out of Time's Abyss by Edgar Rice Burroughs: placed them upon a still higher level and which gave them many
advantages over us, seeing which they thought only of mental
development--their minds became like stars and the rivers, moving
always in the same manner, never varying. They called this
tas-ad, which means doing everything the right way, or, in
other words, the Wieroo way. If foe or friend, right or wrong,
stood in the way of tas-ad, then it must be crushed.
"Soon the Galus and the lesser races of men came to hate and
fear them. It was then that the Wieroos decided to carry
tas-ad into every part of the world. They were very
warlike and very numerous, although they had long since adopted
Out of Time's Abyss |
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 The Gentle Grafter by O. Henry: pull out a pencil and tablet on you, and tell you a story you've
heard, and strikes you for the drinks. But Atterbury was shaky and
nervous all day.
The next day me and Buck comes down from the hotel about ten-thirty.
On the way we buys the papers, and the first thing we see is a column
on the front page about our little imposition. It was a shame the way
that reporter intimated that we were no blood relatives of the late
George W. Childs. He tells all about the scheme as he sees it, in a
rich, racy kind of a guying style that might amuse most anybody except
a stockholder. Yes, Atterbury was right; it behooveth the gaily clad
treasurer and the pearly pated president and the rugged vice-president
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