| 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: with a tent. It is the most venerable and aristocratic form of
human habitation. Abraham and Sarah lived in it, and shared its
hospitality with angels. It is exempt from the base tyranny of the
plumber, the paper-hanger, and the gas-man. It is not immovably
bound to one dull spot of earth by the chains of a cellar and a
system of water-pipes. It has a noble freedom of locomotion. It
follows the wishes of its inhabitants, and goes with them, a
travelling home, as the spirit moves them to explore the
wilderness. At their pleasure, new beds of wild flowers surround
it, new plantations of trees overshadow it, and new avenues of
shining water lead to its ever-open door. What the tent lacks in
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne: minutes had never seemed so long to them!
"Seventeen minutes to nine," said Thomas Flanagan, as he cut the cards
which Ralph handed to him.
Then there was a moment of silence. The great saloon was perfectly quiet; but
the murmurs of the crowd outside were heard, with now and then a shrill cry.
The pendulum beat the seconds, which each player eagerly counted,
as he listened, with mathematical regularity.
"Sixteen minutes to nine!" said John Sullivan, in a voice which betrayed
his emotion.
One minute more, and the wager would be won. Andrew Stuart
and his partners suspended their game. They left their cards,
Around the World in 80 Days |
