| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Poems by Bronte Sisters: In vain--in vain! Thou canst not rise:
Thy prison roof confines thee there;
Its slender wires delude thine eyes,
And quench thy longings with despair.
Oh, thou wert made to wander free
In sunny mead and shady grove,
And far beyond the rolling sea,
In distant climes, at will to rove!
Yet, hadst thou but one gentle mate
Thy little drooping heart to cheer,
And share with thee thy captive state,
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Tales and Fantasies by Robert Louis Stevenson: a row of fieldside trees beshaded it; on the right, it was
bordered by naked fallows, undulating down-hill to the
Queensferry Road; in front, Corstorphine Hill raised its
snow-bedabbled, darkling woods against the sky. John looked
all about him, drinking the clear air like wine; then his
eyes returned to the cabman's face as he sat, not
ungleefully, awaiting John's communication, with the air of
one looking to be tipped.
The features of that face were hard to read, drink had so
swollen them, drink had so painted them, in tints that varied
from brick-red to mulberry. The small grey eyes blinked, the
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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 Glinda of Oz by L. Frank Baum: never seen one like it before.
"Sing!" said Reera to the bird, which had perched
itself on a big wooden peg -- as if it had been in the
cottage before and knew just what to do.
And the bird sang jolly, rollicking songs with words
to them -- just as a person who had been carefully
trained might do. The songs were entertaining and Ervic
enjoyed listening to them. In an hour or so the bird
stopped singing, tucked its head under its wing and
went to sleep. Reera continued knitting but seemed
thoughtful.
Glinda 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 On Revenues by Xenophon: [15] "A good substantial property."
[16] Or, "on the other hand, I affirm that the outlay necessary to
form the capital for my present project will be more remunerative
than any other that can be named." As to the scheme itself see
Grote, "Plato," III. ch. xxxix.; Boeckh, op. cit. (pp. 4, 37, 136,
600 seq. Eng. tr.) Cf. Demosth. "de Sym." for another scheme, 354
B.C., which shows the "sound administrative and practical
judgment" of the youthful orator as compared with "the benevolent
dreams and ample public largess in which Xenophon here indulges."
--Grote, op. cit. p. 601.
[17] L40:12:4 = 1000 drachmae.
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