| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Hidden Masterpiece by Honore de Balzac: think, most remarkable." And with the end of his brush he pointed to a
spot of clear light color.
Porbus struck the old man on the shoulder, turning to Poussin as he
did so, and said, "Do you know that he is one of our greatest
painters?"
"He is a poet even more than he is a painter," answered Poussin
gravely.
"There," returned Porbus, touching the canvas, "is the ultimate end of
our art on earth."
"And from thence," added Poussin, "it rises, to enter heaven."
"How much happiness is there!--upon that canvas," said Porbus.
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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 Father Sergius by Leo Tolstoy: welcomed in the others. On entering society he determined to
have relations with some society lady, and to his own surprise
quickly accomplished this purpose. He soon realized, however,
that the circles in which he moved were not the highest, and that
though he was received in the highest spheres he did not belong
to them. They were polite to him, but showed by their whole
manner that they had their own set and that he was not of it.
And Kasatsky wished to belong to that inner circle. To attain
that end it would be necessary to be an aide-de-camp to the
Emperor--which he expected to become--or to marry into that
exclusive set, which he resolved to do. And his choice fell on a
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