| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey: fell right on her head. Jane, she's comin' to! She ain't bad
hurt!"
Fay's long lashes fluttered; her eyes opened. At first they
seemed glazed over. They looked dazed by pain. Then they
quickened, darkened, to shine with
intelligence--bewilderment--memory--and sudden wonderful
joy.
"Muvver--Jane!" she whispered.
"Oh, little Fay, little Fay!" cried Jane, lifting, clasping the
child to her.
"Now, we've got to rustle!" said Lassiter, in grim coolness.
Riders of the Purple Sage |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Adieu by Honore de Balzac: from the bank with odious selfishness. The major, fearing the fury of
this first rush, held back the countess and the general, but too late
he saw the whole raft covered, men pressing together like crowds at a
theatre.
"Savages!" he cried, "it was I who gave you the idea of that raft. I
have saved you, and you deny me a place."
A confused murmur answered him. The men at the edge of the raft, armed
with long sticks, pressed with violence against the shore to send off
the frail construction with sufficient impetus to force its way
through corpses and ice-floes to the other shore.
"Thunder of heaven! I'll sweep you into the water if you don't take
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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 Dreams by Olive Schreiner: willed to save me; they have not tried that I should forgive them!'
"I said to him, 'See here, be thou content; do not forgive: forget this
soul and its injury; go on your way. In the next world perhaps--'
"He cried, 'Go from me, you understand nothing! What is the next world to
me! I am lost now, today. I cannot see the sunlight shine, the dust is in
my throat, the sand is in my eyes! Go from me, you know nothing! Oh, once
again before I die to see that the world is beautiful! Oh, God, God, I
cannot live and not love. I cannot live and hate. Oh, God, God, God!' So
I left him crying out and came back here."
God said, "This man's soul must be saved."
And the angel said "How?"
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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 Criminal Sociology by Enrico Ferri: recourse to experts in handwriting, chemistry, or obstetrics; but
beyond these technical, special, and less frequent cases, in every
criminal trial the basis of inquiry is or ought to be formed by
the data of criminal biology, psychology, and psycho-pathology.
So that, over and above the knowledge of these sciences which is
necessary to judges, magistrates, and police officers, it is most
important that an expert, or several experts in criminal
anthropology should be attached to every court of criminal
inquiry.
This would provide us with an anthropological classification,
certain and speedy, of every convicted person, as well as a legal
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