| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Collected Articles by Frederick Douglass: our true situation, and, in a peculiarly quiet way, addressing me,
Mr. Taber said: "Thee get in." I never obeyed an order with more alacrity,
and we were soon on our way to our new home. When we reached "Stone Bridge"
the passengers alighted for breakfast, and paid their fares to the driver.
We took no breakfast, and, when asked for our fares, I told the driver
I would make it right with him when we reached New Bedford.
I expected some objection to this on his part, but he made none.
When, however, we reached New Bedford, he took our baggage,
including three music-books,--two of them collections by Dyer,
and one by Shaw,--and held them until I was able to redeem them
by paying to him the amount due for our rides. This was soon done,
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Pellucidar by Edgar Rice Burroughs: been buried. There was a cavity where I had carefully
smoothed the earth over the hiding-place of the docu-
ment--the manuscript was gone!
Frantically I searched the whole interior of the cave
several times over, but without other result than a com-
plete confirmation of my worst fears. Someone had been
here ahead of me and stolen the great secret.
The one thing within Pellucidar which might free
Dian and me was gone, nor was it likely that I should
ever learn its whereabouts. If a Mahar had found it,
which was quite improbable, the chances were that the
Pellucidar |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Virginibus Puerisque by Robert Louis Stevenson: the face, with a lean forehead, a narrow nose and a fine
nostril, sits with a drawing-board upon his knees. He has
just paused to render himself account of some difficulty, to
disentangle some complication of line or compare neighbouring
values. And there, without any perceptible wrinkling, you
have rendered for you exactly the fixed look in the eyes, and
the unconscious compression of the mouth, that befit and
signify an effort of the kind. The whole pose, the whole
expression, is absolutely direct and simple. You are ready to
take your oath to it that Colonel Lyon had no idea he was
sitting for his picture, and thought of nothing in the world
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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 Reason Discourse by Rene Descartes: they may be instructed, ought rather to content themselves with the
opinions of such than trust for more correct to their own reason.
For my own part, I should doubtless have belonged to the latter class, had
I received instruction from but one master, or had I never known the
diversities of opinion that from time immemorial have prevailed among men
of the greatest learning. But I had become aware, even so early as during
my college life, that no opinion, however absurd and incredible, can be
imagined, which has not been maintained by some on of the philosophers;
and afterwards in the course of my travels I remarked that all those whose
opinions are decidedly repugnant to ours are not in that account
barbarians and savages, but on the contrary that many of these nations
Reason Discourse |
