| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Puck of Pook's Hill by Rudyard Kipling: had been milked and were grazing steadily with a tearing
noise that one could hear all down the meadow; and the
noise of the Mill at work sounded like bare feet running
on hard ground. A cuckoo sat on a gate-post singing his
broken June tune, 'cuckoo-cuck', while a busy kingfisher
crossed from the mill-stream, to the brook which ran on
the other side of the meadow. Everything else was a sort
of thick, sleepy stillness smelling of meadow-sweet and
dry grass.
Their play went beautifully. Dan remembered all his
parts - Puck, Bottom, and the three Fairies - and Una
|
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Men of Iron by Howard Pyle: thou or I get our quittance here. Let go, Gascoyne!" he cried,
shaking loose his friend's hold; "I tell thee he shall fight me!"
From that moment Blunt began to lose his head. No doubt he had
not thought of such a serious fight as this when he had given his
challenge, and there was a savage bull-dog tenacity about Myles
that could not but have had a somewhat demoralizing effect upon
him.
A few blows were given and taken, and then Myles's friends gave a
shout. Blunt drew back, and placed his hand to his shoulder. When
he drew it away again it was stained with red, and another red
stain grew and spread rapidly down the sleeve of his jacket. He
Men of Iron |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Hated Son by Honore de Balzac: soft brown poesy with which he had surrounded her; and when, before
she went to bed, they all--the grandmother, the nurse, the doctor, and
Gabrielle--knelt together to say their evening prayer, he added the
words,--
"Let us pray to God to bless my enterprise."
The eyes of the grandmother, who knew his intentions, were moistened
with what tears remained to her. Gabrielle's face was flushed with
happiness. The father trembled, so much did he fear some catastrophe.
"After all," his mother said to him, "fear not, my son. The duke would
never kill his grandchild."
"No," he replied, "but he might compel her to marry some brute of a
|
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 Symposium by Plato: No one will vote against you, Eryximachus, said Socrates. How can I oppose
your motion, who profess to understand nothing but matters of love; nor, I
presume, will Agathon and Pausanias; and there can be no doubt of
Aristophanes, whose whole concern is with Dionysus and Aphrodite; nor will
any one disagree of those whom I see around me. The proposal, as I am
aware, may seem rather hard upon us whose place is last; but we shall be
contented if we hear some good speeches first. Let Phaedrus begin the
praise of Love, and good luck to him. All the company expressed their
assent, and desired him to do as Socrates bade him.
Aristodemus did not recollect all that was said, nor do I recollect all
that he related to me; but I will tell you what I thought most worthy of
|
