| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from New Arabian Nights by Robert Louis Stevenson: brother, Charlie Pendragon, an elderly young man, much broken with
dissipation, and very lame of one foot. The private secretary, to
whose entrance they paid no regard, could not avoid overhearing a
part of their conversation.
"To-day or never," said the lady. "Once and for all, it shall be
done to-day."
"To-day, if it must be," replied the brother, with a sigh. "But it
is a false step, a ruinous step, Clara; and we shall live to repent
it dismally."
Lady Vandeleur looked her brother steadily and somewhat strangely
in the face.
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Maggie: A Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane: mother. "It was prod'gal son, anyhow."
"I know dat," said Jimmie.
For a time they sat in silence. The mother's eyes gloated on
a scene her imagination could call before her. Her lips were set
in a vindictive smile.
"Aye, she'll cry, won' she, an' carry on, an' tell how Pete,
or some odder feller, beats 'er an' she'll say she's sorry an' all
dat an' she ain't happy, she ain't, an' she wants to come home agin,
she does."
With grim humor, the mother imitated the possible wailing
notes of the daughter's voice.
Maggie: A Girl of the Streets |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Out of Time's Abyss by Edgar Rice Burroughs: "You will not be punished," said Bradley. "There are four of you
left--if you four want to come along and work with us, we will
take you; but you will come as prisoners."
"It suits me," said Plesser. "Now that the captain-lieutenant is
dead you need not fear us. All our lives we have known nothing
but to obey his class. If I had not killed him, I suppose I
would be fool enough to obey him again; but he is dead. Now we
will obey you--we must obey some one."
"And you?" Bradley turned to the other survivors of the original
crew of the U-33. Each promised obedience.
The two dead Germans were buried in a single grave, and then the
Out of Time's Abyss |
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 Out of Time's Abyss by Edgar Rice Burroughs: held the rope to their ankles, and feeling them secure directed
the girl to mount the back of the leading Wieroo, himself upon
the other. Then he gave the signal for the two to rise together.
With loud flapping of the powerful wings the creatures took to
the air, circling once before they topped the trees upon the hill
and then taking a course due west out over the waters of the sea.
Nowhere about them could Bradley see signs of other Wieroos, nor
of those other menaces which he had feared might bring disaster
to his plans for escape--the huge, winged reptilia that are so
numerous above the southern areas of Caspak and which are often
seen, though in lesser numbers, farther north.
Out of Time's Abyss |
