| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Talisman by Walter Scott: of the Christian leaguers.
When the usual salutations had been made by these dignitaries,
and courteously returned by King Richard, the Marquis of
Montserrat commenced an explanation of the motives of their
visit, sent, as he said they were, by the anxious kings and
princes who composed the Council of the Crusaders, "to inquire
into the health of their magnanimous ally, the valiant King of
England."
"We know the importance in which the princes of the Council hold
our health," replied the English King; "and are well aware how
much they must have suffered by suppressing all curiosity
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from In Darkest England and The Way Out by General William Booth: not clear his land all at once. He lives on a small portion of it,
and goes on digging and delving little by little, until, after many
years of Herculean labour, he hews out for himself, and his children
after him, a freehold estate. Freehold estates, I admit, are not to be
had for the picking up on English soil, but if a man will but work in
England as they work in Canada or in Australia, he will find as little
difficulty in making a livelihood here as there.
I may be wrong, but when I travel abroad and see the desperate struggle
on the part of peasant proprietors and the small holders in mountainous
districts for an additional patch of soil, the idea of cultivating
which would make our agricultural labourers turn up their noses in
In Darkest England and The Way Out |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Tom Grogan by F. Hopkinson Smith: Crimmins relapsed into silence, and began patting the floor with
his foot. The prolonged stillness was becoming uncomfortable.
"I was tellin' ye about the meetin' we had to the Union last
night. We was goin' over the list of members, an' we didn't find
yer name. The board thought maybe ye'd like to come in wid us.
The dues is only two dollars a month. We're a-regulatin' the
prices for next year, stevedorin' an' haulin', an' the rates'll be
sent out next week." The stopper was now out of the oil-bottle.
"How many members have ye got?" she asked quietly.
"Hundred an' seventy-three in our branch of the Knights."
"All pay two dollars a month?"
|
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 Burning Daylight by Jack London: be a lesson to him and his ilk, and concluded with the fervent
hope that some day his big motor-car would smash up and smash him
with it.
He was like a big bear raiding a bee-hive and, regardless of the
stings, he obstinately persisted in pawing for the honey. He
gritted his teeth and struck back. Beginning with a raid on two
steamship companies, it developed into a pitched battle with a
city, a state, and a continental coastline. Very well; they
wanted fight, and they would get it. It was what he wanted, and
he felt justified in having come down from the Klondike, for here
he was gambling at a bigger table than ever the Yukon had
|
