| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Faith of Men by Jack London: pouch, but I shall carry the recollection of it until I die. In
token of my appreciation, and in return for the moccasins on your
own feet, I will present to you these muclucs. They commemorate
Klooch and the seven blind little beggars. They are also souvenirs
of an unparalleled event in history, namely, the destruction of the
oldest breed of animal on earth, and the youngest. And their chief
virtue lies in that they will never wear out."
Having effected the exchange, he knocked the ashes from his pipe,
gripped my hand good-night, and wandered off through the snow.
Concerning this tale, for which I have already disclaimed
responsibility, I would recommend those of little faith to make a
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from A Second Home by Honore de Balzac: "Her name is Caroline Crochard?" asked the President, in a voice that
was evidently broken.
"Then you know her?" said the doctor, astonished.
"And the wretch's name is Solvet.--Ay, you have kept your word!"
exclaimed Granville; "you have roused my heart to the most terrible
pain it can suffer till it is dust. That emotion, too, is a gift from
hell, and I always know how to pay those debts."
By this time the Count and the doctor had reached the corner of the
Rue de la Chaussee d'Antin. One of those night-birds who wonder round
with a basket on their back and crook in hand, and were, during the
Revolution, facetiously called the Committee of Research, was standing
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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 The Lamentable Tragedy of Locrine and Mucedorus by William Shakespeare: along my comely and smooth cheeks, in as great plenty
as the water runneth from the buckingtubs, or red wine
out of the hogs heads: for trust me, gentlemen and my
very good friends, and so forth, the little god, nay the
desparate god Cuprit, with one of his vengible birdbolts,
hath shot me unto the heel: so not only, but also, oh
fine phrase, I burn, I burn, and I burn a, in love, in love,
and in love a. Ah, Strumbo, what hast thou seen? not
Dina with the Ass Tom? Yea, with these eyes thou hast
seen her, and therefore pull them out, for they will work
thy bale. Ah, Strumbo, hast thou heard? not the voice
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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 Muse of the Department by Honore de Balzac: the Upper House sooner than he had expected, and then saw what his
wife had done. He was so much delighted, that he paid the thirty
thousand francs without a word, just as he had formerly paid eight
thousand for decorating La Baudraye.
On his return from the Luxembourg, where he had been presented
according to custom by two of his peers--the Baron de Nucingen and the
Marquis de Montriveau--the new Count met the old Duc de Chaulieu, a
former creditor, walking along, umbrella in hand, while he himself sat
perched in a low chaise on which his coat-of-arms was resplendent,
with the motto, /Deo sic patet fides et hominibus/. This contrast
filled his heart with a large draught of the balm on which the middle
The Muse of the Department |
