| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Bunner Sisters by Edith Wharton: she had not known till that moment how much it was going to hurt
her to speak of Evelina to Mrs. Hochmuller. As her agitation
subsided she began to notice how much the appearance of the house
had changed. It was not only that winter had stripped the elm, and
blackened the flower-borders: the house itself had a debased and
deserted air. The window-panes were cracked and dirty, and one or
two shutters swung dismally on loosened hinges.
She rang several times before the door was opened. At length
an Irish woman with a shawl over her head and a baby in her arms
appeared on the threshold, and glancing past her into the narrow
passage Ann Eliza saw that Mrs. Hochmuller's neat abode had
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Nada the Lily by H. Rider Haggard: see that fight, if she never smiled before. This is my word: that we
fall upon the men of Dingaan twice, once in the glade of the forest
whither they will come presently, and, if we are beaten back, then we
must stand for the last time on the knees of the Witch in front of the
cave where Nada is. Say, Wolf, will the Grey Folk fight?"
"To the last, brother, so long as one is left to lead them, after that
I do not know! Still they have only fangs to set against spears.
Slaughterer, your plan is good. Come, I am rested."
So they rose and numbered their flock, and all were there, though it
was not as it had been years ago when first the Wolf-Brethren hunted
on Ghost Mountain; for many of the wolves had died by men's spears
Nada the Lily |
