| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Essays of Travel by Robert Louis Stevenson: his finger. The light, as it reached the spot, showed us an elderly
man, thick-set, and grizzled with years; but the shifting and coarse
shadows concealed from us the expression and even the design of his
face.
So soon as the cook set eyes on him he gave a sort of whistle.
'IT'S ONLY A PASSENGER!' said he; and turning about, made, lantern
and all, for the galley.
'He's a man anyway,' cried Jones in indignation.
'Nobody said he was a woman,' said a gruff voice, which I recognised
for that of the bo's'un.
All this while there was no word of Blackwood or the doctor; and now
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from A Drama on the Seashore by Honore de Balzac: gambled till ten o'clock, and had to get back by way of the Carnouf
point. His uncle heard his hail, and he went over and fetched him, but
said nothing. When Jacques entered the house, his father said to
him,--
"'Sit there,' pointing to the stool. 'You are,' he said, 'before your
father and mother, whom you have offended, and who will now judge
you.'
"At this Jacques began to howl, for his father's face was all
distorted. His mother was rigid as an oar.
"'If you shout, if you stir, if you do not sit still on that stool,'
said Pierre, aiming the gun at him, 'I will shoot you like a dog.'
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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 Chinese Boy and Girl by Isaac Taylor Headland: mountains in the distance. He then changed it to one in which an
intoxicated man was leaning on a boy's shoulder, the inscription
to which said: "Any one is willing to assist a drunken man to
return home."
"This," he went on as he changed his blocks, "is a picture of Li
Pei, China's greatest poet. He lived more than a thousand years
ago. This represents the closing scene in his life. He was
crossing the river in a boat, and in a drunken effort to
get the moon's reflection from the water, he fell overboard
and was drowned." The child pointed to the sail at the
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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 A Voyage to Arcturus by David Lindsay: itself, it will reign supreme, and there will be no more struggling
of wills inside you."
"And that, I may tell you beforehand, Maskull," said Krag, grinning,
"is Crystalman's trump card."
"How do you mean?"
"You'll see. You'll renounce the world so eagerly that you'll want
to stay in the world merely to enjoy your sensations."
Gangnet smiled. "Krag, you see, is hard to please. You must neither
enjoy, nor renounce. What are you to do?"
Maskull turned toward Krag. "It's very odd, but I don't understand
your creed even yet. Are you recommending suicide?"
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