| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from In Darkest England and The Way Out by General William Booth: far greater.
Then think of the great boon this Scheme will be to the children,
bringing them out of the slums, wretched hovels, and filthy surroundings
in which they are being reared for lives of abomination of every
description, into the fields, amongst the green trees and cottage homes,
where they can grow up with a chance of saving both body and soul.
Think again of the change this Scheme will make for these poor
creatures from the depressing, demoralising surroundings, of the
unsightly, filthy quarters in which they are huddled together, to the
pure air and sights and sounds of the country. There is much talk
about the beneficial influence of pictures, music and literature upon
In Darkest England and The Way Out |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Phoenix and the Turtle by William Shakespeare: Love and constancy is dead;
Phoenix and the turtle fled
In a mutual flame from hence.
So they lov'd, as love in twain
Had the essence but in one;
Two distincts, division none:
Number there in love was slain.
Hearts remote, yet not asunder;
Distance, and no space was seen
'Twixt the turtle and his queen;
But in them it were a wonder.
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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 Grimm's Fairy Tales by Brothers Grimm: about the large teeth from her sister, she was not afraid of them, and
engaged herself without delay to the old woman.
The first day she was very obedient and industrious, and exerted
herself to please Mother Holle, for she thought of the gold she should
get in return. The next day, however, she began to dawdle over her
work, and the third day she was more idle still; then she began to lie
in bed in the mornings and refused to get up. Worse still, she
neglected to make the old woman's bed properly, and forgot to shake it
so that the feathers might fly about. So Mother Holle very soon got
tired of her, and told her she might go. The lazy girl was delighted
at this, and thought to herself, 'The gold will soon be mine.' Mother
Grimm's Fairy Tales |
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 Abyssinia by Father Lobo: any resistance. To all these stories the prince listened with
unthinking credulity. The monks, encouraged by this, fell to the
business, and brought a man above a hundred years old, whom, because
he could not support himself on horseback, they had tied on the
beast, and covered him with black wool. He was followed by a black
cow (designed for a sacrifice to the demon of the place), and by
some monks that carried mead, beer, and parched corn, to complete
the offering.
No sooner were they arrived at the foot of the mountain than every
one began to work: bags were brought from all parts to convey away
the millions which each imagined would be his share. The Xumo, who
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