| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Crisis in Russia by Arthur Ransome: of the processes visibly at work, tending to make her
condition worse and not better. But I wrote of things, not
of people. I wrote of the shortage of this and of that, but
not of the most serious of all shortages, which, while itself
largely due to those already discussed, daily intensifies them,
and points the way to that further stage of decay which is
threatened in the near future in Russia, and, in the more
distant future in Europe. I did not write of the shortage
deterioration of labor.
Shortage of labor is not peculiar to Russia. It is among the
postwar phenomena common to all countries. The war and
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Black Dwarf by Walter Scott: (in which to gratify him I willingly acquiesced), he left at my
disposal the rents of a great proportion of his estates, and
especially all those, which, having belonged to your mother,
reverted to him as a male fief. In this he may have thought that
he was acting with extreme generosity, while, in the opinion of
all impartial men, he will only be considered as having fulfilled
a natural obligation, seeing that, in justice, if not in strict
law, you must be considered as the heir of your mother, and I as
your legal administrator. Instead, therefore, of considering
myself as loaded with obligations to Sir Edward on this account,
I think I had reason to complain that these remittances were only
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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 The Warlord of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs: Of the cruel hatred of Phaidor, and the tender love of Thuvia,
and of how even when despair was the darkest those two red girls
had clung to the same hope and belief--that John Carter would
find a way to release them.
Presently we came to the chamber of Solan. I had been proceeding
without thought of caution, for I was sure that the city and the
palace were both in the hands of my friends by this time.
And so it was that I bolted into the chamber full into
the midst of a dozen nobles of the court of Salensus Oll.
The Warlord of Mars |
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 Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare: O looke, me thinks I see my Cozins Ghost,
Seeking out Romeo that did spit his body
Vpon my Rapiers point: stay Tybalt, stay;
Romeo, Romeo, Romeo, here's drinke: I drinke to thee.
Enter Lady of the house, and Nurse.
Lady. Hold,
Take these keies, and fetch more spices Nurse
Nur. They call for Dates and Quinces in the Pastrie.
Enter old Capulet.
Cap. Come, stir, stir, stir,
The second Cocke hath Crow'd,
Romeo and Juliet |
