| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Village Rector by Honore de Balzac: to live on, he helped to stop a mail-coach over there, down that
gorge; and then it was they condemned him. But, as I told you just
now, the rector persuaded him to give himself up. It wasn't easy to
convict him, for nobody dared testify against him; and his lawyer and
Monsieur Bonnet worked so hard they got him sentenced for ten years
only; which was pretty good luck after being a /chauffeur/--for he did
/chauffe/."
"Will you tell me what /chauffeur/ means?"
"If you wish it, madame, I will tell you what they did, as far as I
know about it from others, for I never was /chauffed/ myself. It
wasn't a good thing to do, but necessity knows no law. Well, this is
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Case of the Golden Bullet by Grace Isabel Colbron and Augusta Groner: gathering.
At the same time the noise of an opening door was heard, and steps
creaked over the snow. A man, evidently a servant, opened the
little door beside the great gate and held it for another man to
pass out. "You'll come back by the night train as usual, sir?"
he asked respectfully.
"Yes," replied the other, pushing back the dog, which fawned upon
him.
"Come back here, Tristan," called the servant, pulling the dog in
by his collar, as lie closed the door and re-entered the house.
The Councillor took the path to the station. He walked slowly,
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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 Maid Marian by Thomas Love Peacock: and crown it with fruit, and we will show the noble baron what we
mean by the altar."
The foresters did as the friar directed.
"Now, Little John," said the friar, "on with the cloak
of the abbot of Doubleflask. I appoint thee my clerk:
thou art here duly elected in full mote."
"I wish you were all in full moat together," said the baron,
"and smooth wall on both sides."
"Punnest thou?" said the friar. "A heinous anti-christian offence.
Why anti-christian? Because anti-catholic? Why anti-catholic? Because
anti-roman. Why anti-roman? Because Carthaginian. Is not pun from
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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 King James Bible: JER 9:8 Their tongue is as an arrow shot out; it speaketh deceit: one
speaketh peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth, but in heart he
layeth his wait.
JER 9:9 Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the LORD: shall
not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
JER 9:10 For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and
for the habitations of the wilderness a lamentation, because they are
burned up, so that none can pass through them; neither can men hear the
voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are
fled; they are gone.
JER 9:11 And I will make Jerusalem heaps, and a den of dragons; and I
 King James Bible |