| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Paz by Honore de Balzac: piqued air. "She lives in the rue Saint-Lazare, in a pretty apartment
on the third story, all velvet and silk, like a princess. She has two
lives, her circus life and the life of a pretty woman."
"Does she love you?"
"She loves me--now you will laugh--solely because I'm a Pole. She saw
an engraving of Poles rushing with Poniatowski into the Elster,--for
all France persists in thinking that the Elster, where it is
impossible to get drowned, is an impetuous flood, in which Poniatowski
and his followers were engulfed. But in the midst of all this I am
very unhappy, madame."
A tear of rage fell from his eyes and affected the countess.
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Maggie: A Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane: behind the bar. He was immaculate in white jacket and apron and
his hair was plastered over his brow with infinite correctness.
No customers were in the place. Pete was twisting his napkined
fist slowly in a beer glass, softly whistling to himself and
occasionally holding the object of his attention between his eyes
and a few weak beams of sunlight that had found their way over
the thick screens and into the shaded room.
With lingering thoughts of the woman of brilliance and
audacity, the bartender raised his head and stared through the
varying cracks between the swaying bamboo doors. Suddenly
the whistling pucker faded from his lips. He saw Maggie walking
Maggie: A Girl of the Streets |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Moon-Face and Other Stories by Jack London: that it had been sold, and broke out afresh, this time with genuine applause
in acknowledgment of her victory. She chose this as the happy moment for her
exit, and with a bow and a backward retreat, she was off the stage in Letty's
arms.
The worst was past, and for the rest of the evening she moved about among the
amateurs and professionals, talking, listening, observing, finding out what it
meant and taking mental notes of it all. Charley Welsh constituted himself her
preceptor and guardian angel, and so well did he perform the self-allotted
task that when it was all over she felt fully prepared to write her article.
But the proposition had been to do two turns, and her native pluck forced her
to live up to it. Also, in the course of the intervening days, she discovered
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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 Polly of the Circus by Margaret Mayo: When Polly gained courage, Douglas sometimes persuaded her to
read to him--and the little corrections that he made at these
times soon became noticeable in her manner of speech. She was so
eager, so starved for knowledge, that she drank it as fast as he
could give it. It was during their talks about grammar that
Mandy generally fell asleep in her rocker, her unfinished sewing
still in her lap.
When a letter came from Jim and Toby, it was always shared
equally by Mandy and Hasty, Polly and the pastor. But at last a
letter came from Jim only, and Douglas, who was asked to read it,
faltered and stopped after the first few words.
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