| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Profits of Religion by Upton Sinclair: Jesus say: "Blessed are ye poor." Another puts it: "Blessed are
the poor in spirit." The first one is crude and literal;
obviously the second must be what Jesus meant! In other words,
the professor and his church have made for their economic masters
a treacherous imitation virtue to be taught to wage-slaves, a
quality of submissiveness, impotence and futility, which they
call by the name of "spirituality". This virtue they exalt above
all others, and in its name they cut from the record of Jesus
everything which has relation to the realities of life!
So here is our Professor Peabody, sitting in the Plummer chair at
Harvard, writing on "Jesus Christ and the Social Question," 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 An Inland Voyage by Robert Louis Stevenson: countryman, a lean marionnette in wooden shoes, who spoke in prose
and in a broad PATOIS much appreciated by the audience. He took
unconstitutional liberties with the person of his sovereign; kicked
his fellow-marionnettes in the mouth with his wooden shoes, and
whenever none of the versifying suitors were about, made love to
Thisbe on his own account in comic prose.
This fellow's evolutions, and the little prologue, in which the
showman made a humorous eulogium of his troop, praising their
indifference to applause and hisses, and their single devotion to
their art, were the only circumstances in the whole affair that you
could fancy would so much as raise a smile. But the villagers of
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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 Master of the World by Jules Verne: feet. A modest altitude, often surpassed in this section of the
Alleghanies. As we were already more than three thousand feet above
sea level, the fatigue of the ascent could not be great. A few hours
should suffice to bring us to the crest of the crater. Of course,
difficulties might present themselves, precipices to scale, clefts
and breaks in the ridge might necessitate painful and even dangerous
detours. This was the unknown, the spur to our attempt. As I said,
our guides knew no more than we upon this point. What made me
anxious, was, of course, the common report that the Great Eyrie was
wholly inaccessible. But this remained unproven And then there was
the new chance that a fallen block had left a breach in the rocky
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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 Tanglewood Tales by Nathaniel Hawthorne: tones of her voice, and, indeed, almost doubt whether such a
little girl ever lived in the world. And whether she once lived
or no, I am convinced that she no longer survives, and that
therefore it is the merest folly to waste our own lives and
happiness in seeking her. Were we to find her, she would now be
a woman grown, and would look upon us all as strangers. So, to
tell you the truth, I have resolved to take up my abode here;
and I entreat you, mother, brother, and friend, to follow my
example."
"Not I, for one," said Telephassa; although the poor queen,
firmly as she spoke, was so travel-worn that she could hardly
Tanglewood Tales |
