| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Dream Life and Real Life by Olive Schreiner: gone with the son to town; and the maids have gone to a dance; there is
only the old man and the two women left."
"But suppose," said the navvy, "he should have the gun at his bedside, and
loaded!"
"He never has," said Dirk; "it hangs in the passage, and the cartridges
too. He never thought when he bought it what work it was for! I only wish
the little white girl was there still," said Dirk; "but she is drowned. We
traced her footmarks to the great pool that has no bottom."
She listened to every word, and they talked on.
Afterwards, the little Bushman, who crouched over the fire, sat up
suddenly, listening.
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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 The Human Drift by Jack London: fingers. The pain is sickening. But there is no time. The
skiff, which is always perverse, is pounding against the barnacles
on the piles which threaten to scrape its gunwale off. It's drop
the peak! Down jib! Then you run lines, and pull and haul and
heave, and exchange unpleasant remarks with the bridge-tender who
is always willing to meet you more than half way in such repartee.
And finally, at the end of an hour, with aching back, sweat-soaked
shirt, and slaughtered hands, you are through and swinging along
on the placid, beneficent tide between narrow banks where the
cattle stand knee-deep and gaze wonderingly at you. Excitement!
Work! Can you beat it in a calm day on the deep sea?
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