| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson: should run in under his sword. I, on my part, clambered up into
the berth with an armful of pistols and something of a heavy
heart, and set open the window where I was to watch. It was a
small part of the deck that I could overlook, but enough for our
purpose. The sea had gone down, and the wind was steady and kept
the sails quiet; so that there was a great stillness in the ship,
in which I made sure I heard the sound of muttering voices. A
little after, and there came a clash of steel upon the deck, by
which I knew they were dealing out the cutlasses and one had been
let fall; and after that, silence again.
I do not know if I was what you call afraid; but my heart beat
Kidnapped |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Concerning Christian Liberty by Martin Luther: is what Paul says: "Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ," victory over sin and death, as he
says, "The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the
law" (1 Cor. xv. 56, 57).
>From all this you will again understand why so much importance is
attributed to faith, so that it alone can fulfil the law and
justify without any works. For you see that the First
Commandment, which says, "Thou shalt worship one God only," is
fulfilled by faith alone. If you were nothing but good works from
the soles of your feet to the crown of your head, you would not
be worshipping God, nor fulfilling the First Commandment, since
|
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from A Drama on the Seashore by Honore de Balzac: the poor man was now obliged to live by his daily labor. His wife was
dead of the fever, and money was owing for Perotte's nursing. The wife
of Pierre Cambremer owed about one hundred francs to divers persons
for the little girl,--linen, clothes, and what not,--and it so chanced
that she had sewed a bit of Spanish gold into her mattress for a nest-
egg toward paying off that money. It was wrapped in paper, and on the
paper was written by her: 'For Perotte.' Jacquette Brouin had had a
fine education; she could write like a clerk, and had taught her son
to write too. I can't tell you how it was that the villain scented the
gold, stole it, and went off to Croisic to enjoy himself. Pierre
Cambremer, as if it was ordained, came back that day in his boat; as
|
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 Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain: universal peace would begin then, to end no more
forever...... Me-e-e-yow-ow-ow-ow -- fzt! -- wow!"
Hang him, I supposed he was in earnest, and was
beginning to be persuaded by him, until he exploded
that cat-howl and startled me almost out of my clothes.
But he never could be in earnest. He didn't know
what it was. He had pictured a distinct and perfectly
rational and feasible improvement upon constitutional
monarchy, but he was too feather-headed to know it,
or care anything about it, either. I was going to give
him a scolding, but Sandy came flying in at that
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court |
