| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Tales of the Klondyke by Jack London: hawsers and piles of dunnage, tripped on crazy guy-ropes and
insanely planted pegs, and fell again and again upon frozen dumps
and mounds of hoarded driftwood. At times, when he deemed he had
drawn clear, his head dizzy with the painful pounding of his heart
and the suffocating intake of his breath, he slackened down; and
ever the shadow leaped out of the gloom and forced him on in
heart-breaking flight. A swift intuition lashed upon him, leaving
in its trail the cold chill of superstition. The persistence of
the shadow he invested with his gambler's symbolism. Silent,
inexorable, not to be shaken off, he took it as the fate which
waited at the last turn when chips were cashed in and gains and
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Mistress Wilding by Rafael Sabatini: fears assumed more definite shape. If Wilding married her - and he
was a bold, masterful fellow who usually accomplished what he aimed
at - her fortune and estate must cease to be a pleasant pasture land
for bovine Richard. The boy thought at first of making terms with
Wilding; the idea was old; it had come to him when first he had
counted the chances of his sister's marrying. But he found himself
hesitating to lay his proposal before Mr. Wilding. And whilst he
hesitated Mr. Wilding made obvious headway. Still Richard dared not
do it. There was a something in Wilding's eye that cried him
danger. Thus, in the end, since he could not attempt a compromise with
this fine fellow, the only course remaining was that of direct
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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 An Old Maid by Honore de Balzac: nobles alone had the privilege in former days of having weather-vanes.
To right of the courtyard are the stables and coach-house; to left,
the kitchen, wood-house, and laundry.
One side of the porte-cochere, being left open, allowed the passers in
the street to see in the midst of the vast courtyard a flower-bed, the
raised earth of which was held in place by a low privet hedge. A few
monthly roses, pinkes, lilies, and Spanish broom filled this bed,
around which in the summer season boxes of paurestinus, pomegranates,
and myrtle were placed. Struck by the scrupulous cleanliness of the
courtyard and its dependencies, a stranger would at once have divined
that the place belonged to an old maid. The eye which presided there
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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 Fanny Herself by Edna Ferber: thought. "Now I begin to understand you," Fenger went on.
"You've decided to lop off all the excrescences, eh? Well,
I can't say that I blame you. A woman in business is
handicapped enough by the very fact of her sex." He stared
at her again. "Too bad you're so pretty."
"I'm not!" said Fanny hotly, like a school-girl.
"That's a thing that can't be argued, child. Beauty's
subjective, you know."
"I don't see what difference it makes, anyway."
"Oh, yes, you do." He stopped. "Or perhaps you don't,
after all. I forget how young you are. Well, now, Miss
Fanny Herself |
