| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey: swelled; low, rolling clouds of dust began to rise above the
sage.
"It's a stampede, an' a hummer," said Lassiter.
"Oh, Lassiter! The herd's running with the valley! It leads into
the canyon! There's a straight jump-off!"
"I reckon they'll run into it, too. But that's a good many miles
yet. An', Jane, this valley swings round almost north before it
goes east. That stampede will pass within a mile of us."
The long, white, bobbing line of steers streaked swiftly through
the sage, and a funnel-shaped dust-cloud arose at a low angle. A
dull rumbling filled Jane's ears.
Riders of the Purple Sage |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Alcibiades II by Platonic Imitator: Hellenes and all the barbarians in exchange for your life?
ALCIBIADES: Certainly not: for then what use could I make of them?
SOCRATES: And would you accept them if you were likely to use them to a
bad and mischievous end?
ALCIBIADES: I would not.
SOCRATES: You see that it is not safe for a man either rashly to accept
whatever is offered him, or himself to request a thing, if he is likely to
suffer thereby or immediately to lose his life. And yet we could tell of
many who, having long desired and diligently laboured to obtain a tyranny,
thinking that thus they would procure an advantage, have nevertheless
fallen victims to designing enemies. You must have heard of what happened
|
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Montezuma's Daughter by H. Rider Haggard: a peculiar treasure to send to his masters the Spaniards.
'Beware how you speak, Teule,' answered the prince haughtily.
'Your words may be true, and yet did I not love you, you should rue
them even though you hold the spirit of Tezcat. Alas!' he added,
stamping on the ground, 'alas! that my uncle's madness should make
it possible that such words can be spoken. Oh! were I emperor of
Anahuac, in a single week the head of every Teule in Cholula should
deck a pinnacle of yonder temple.'
'Beware how you speak, prince,' I answered mocking him, 'for there
are those who did they hear, might cause YOU to rue YOUR words.
Still one day you may be emperor, and then we shall see how you
Montezuma's Daughter |
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 The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe: exceeding depth below the surface of the earth. No outlet was
observed in any portion of its vast extent, and no torch,
or other artificial source of light was discernible; yet a flood
of intense rays rolled throughout, and bathed the whole in a
ghastly and inappropriate splendour.
I have just spoken of that morbid condition of the auditory
nerve which rendered all music intolerable to the sufferer, with
the exception of certain effects of stringed instruments. It
was, perhaps, the narrow limits to which he thus confined himself
upon the guitar, which gave birth, in great measure, to the
fantastic character of the performances. But the fervid
The Fall of the House of Usher |
