| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Man in Lower Ten by Mary Roberts Rinehart: Hotchkiss retaliated with a spirited bang at the door with the tongs.
This brought another bullet. It was a ridiculous situation. Under
the circumstances, no doubt, we should have retired, at least until
we had armed ourselves, but Hotchkiss had no end of fighting spirit,
and as for me, my blood was up.
"Break the lock," I suggested, and Hotchkiss, standing at the side,
out of range, retaliated for every bullet by a smashing blow with
the tongs. The shots ceased after a half dozen, and the door was
giving, slowly. One of us on each side of the door, we were ready
for almost any kind of desperate resistance. As it swung open
Hotchkiss poised the tongs; I stood, bent forward, my arm drawn
The Man in Lower Ten |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The New Machiavelli by H. G. Wells: best of men, it's because I'm a part of you. . . . I can't go
through with it. If I go through with it, I shall be left--robbed
of pride--outraged--a woman beaten. . . ."
"I know," I said, "I know."
"I want to live alone. . . . I don't care for anything now but just
escape. If you can help me. . . ."
"I must take you away. There's nothing for us but to go away
together."
"But your work," she said; "your career! Margaret! Our promises!"
"We've made a mess of things, Isabel--or things have made a mess of
us. I don't know which. Our flags are in the mud, anyhow. It's
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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 Herodias by Gustave Flaubert: trembled before the insignia of Roman majesty.
The gorgeous litter, borne by eight men, came to a halt. From it
descended a youth. He wore many pearls upon his fingers, but he had a
protruding abdomen and his face was covered with pimples. A cup of
aromatic wine was offered to him. He drank it, and asked for a second
draught.
The tetrarch had fallen upon his knees before the proconsul, saying
that he was grieved beyond words not to have known sooner of the
favour of his presence within those domains; had he been aware of the
approach of his distinguished guest, he would have issued a command
that every person along the route should place himself at the
Herodias |
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 Gentle Grafter by O. Henry: Miss Sarah Malloy. The minute I see her I am pleased. She looked to be
the goods as ordered. No sign of the three p's about her--no peroxide,
patchouli, nor peau de soie; about twenty-two, brown hair, pleasant
ways--the kind of a lady for the place.
"A description of the sandbag, if you please," she begins.
"Why, ma'am," says I, "this graft of ours is so nice and refined and
romantic, it would make the balcony scene in 'Romeo and Juliet' look
like second-story work."
We talked it over, and Miss Malloy agreed to come in as a business
partner. She said she was glad to get a chance to give up her place as
stenographer and secretary to a suburban lot company, and go into
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