| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Little Rivers by Henry van Dyke: that joyous, innocent bevy could be compared with you for charm or
daring? How your dark eyes sparkled, and how the long brown
ringlets tossed around your small head, when you stood up that
evening, slim and straight, and taller by half a head than your
companions, in the lamp-lit room where the children were playing
forfeits, and said, "There is not one boy here that DARES to kiss
ME!" Then you ran out on the dark porch, where the honeysuckle
vines grew up the tall, inane Corinthian pillars.
Did you blame the boy for following? And were you very angry,
indeed, about what happened,--until you broke out laughing at his
cravat, which had slipped around behind his ear? That was the
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Lair of the White Worm by Bram Stoker: about paying any attention to Lady Arabella. He was himself a rich
man, how rich not even his uncle had the least idea, and would have
been surprised had he known.
The remainder of the journey was uneventful, and upon arrival at
Liverpool they went aboard the WEST AFRICAN, which had just come to
the landing-stage. There his uncle introduced himself to Mr.
Caswall, and followed this up by introducing Sir Nathaniel and then
Adam. The new-comer received them graciously, and said what a
pleasure it was to be coming home after so long an absence of his
family from their old seat. Adam was pleased at the warmth of the
reception; but he could not avoid a feeling of repugnance at the
Lair of the White Worm |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Schoolmistress and Other Stories by Anton Chekhov: burst. He was a very fat man, so he burst lengthways. Then
everything was taken from the young master, from Seryozha, to pay
the debts -- everything there was. Well, he had not gone very far
in his studies, he couldn't do anything, and the president
of the Rural Board, his uncle -- 'I'll take him' -- Seryozha, I
mean -- thinks he, 'for an agent; let him collect the insurance,
that's not a difficult job,' and the gentleman was young and
proud, he wanted to be living on a bigger scale and in better
style and with more freedom. To be sure it was a come-down for
him to be jolting about the district in a wretched cart and
talking to the peasants; he would walk and keep looking on the
The Schoolmistress and Other Stories |
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 Finished by H. Rider Haggard: your relatives might think disagreeable, especially in view of
the fact that, as I understand, you and Heda intend to marry."
"Still I think that I would rather face it out," he said in his
outspoken way, "even if it should mean that I could never return
to England. After all, of what have I to be afraid? I shot this
scoundrel because I was obliged to do so."
"Yes, but it is of this that you may have to convince a jury who
might possibly find a motive in Rodd's past, and your present,
relationship to the same lady. But what has she to say?"
"I have to say," whispered Heda, "that for myself I care nothing,
but that I could never bear to see all these stories about my
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