| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Golden Threshold by Sarojini Naidu: And they, who bear on Vedic brows
Their mystic symbols of belief;
And they, who worshipping the sun,
Fled o'er the old Iranian sea;
And they, who bow to Him who trod
The midnight waves of Galilee.
Sweet, sumptuous fables of Baghdad
The splendours of your court recall,
The torches of a Thousand Nights
Blaze through a single festival;
And Saki-singers down the streets,
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Alcibiades I by Plato: either of poetical or philosophical excellence; and (3) considering that we
have express testimony to the existence of contemporary writings bearing
the name of Alcibiades, we are compelled to suspend our judgment on the
genuineness of the extant dialogue.
Neither at this point, nor at any other, do we propose to draw an absolute
line of demarcation between genuine and spurious writings of Plato. They
fade off imperceptibly from one class to another. There may have been
degrees of genuineness in the dialogues themselves, as there are certainly
degrees of evidence by which they are supported. The traditions of the
oral discourses both of Socrates and Plato may have formed the basis of
semi-Platonic writings; some of them may be of the same mixed character
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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 Tin Woodman of Oz by L. Frank Baum: I can make her happy, it is proper that I should do so,
and in this way reward her for her faithfulness."
"Quite right, my friend!" agreed the Scarecrow.
"Will you accompany me on this errand?" asked the Tin
Emperor.
"Of course," said the Scarecrow.
"And will you take me along?" pleaded Woot the
Wanderer in an eager voice.
"To be sure," said the Tin Woodman, "if you care to
join our party. It was you who first told me it was my
duty to find and marry Nimmie Amee, and I'd like you to
The Tin Woodman of Oz |
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 Wyoming by William MacLeod Raine: to see my foreman first, just to relieve my mind. And, as you
were about to say, his friend might be brought in, too, since
they are together."
The young man promptly assented, though he had not been aware
that he was about to say anything of the kind.
They came in together, Bannister supported by McWilliams's arm.
The eyes of both mistress and maid brimmed over with tears when
they saw them. Helen dragged forward a chair for the sheepman,
and he sank into it. From its depths he looked up with his rare,
sweet smile.
"I've heard about it," he told her, in a low voice. "I've heard
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