| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Records of a Family of Engineers by Robert Louis Stevenson: resident factor of the island, blew with his ox-horn, calling
out to the natives to stand off and let the gentlemen come
forward to the laird; upon which one of the islanders, as
spokesman, called out, "God ha'e us, man! thou needsna mak'
sic a noise. It's no' every day we ha'e THREE HATTED MEN on
our isle." ' When the Surveyor of Taxes came (for the first
time, perhaps) to Sanday, and began in the King's name to
complain of the unconscionable swarms of dogs, and to menace
the inhabitants with taxation, it chanced that my grandfather
and his friend, Dr. Patrick Neill, were received by an old
lady in a Ronaldsay hut. Her hut, which was similar to the
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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 Oakdale Affair by Edgar Rice Burroughs: "Oh, I can't go to Payson," exclaimed the other girl.
"Someone would be sure to recognize me."
"You come in house with me," Giova assured her, "I
feex you so your own mother no know you. You mens
come too. I geeve you what to wear like Gypsy mens.
We got lots things. My father, him he steal many things
from our people after they drive us out. He go back
by nights an' steal."
The three followed her toward the little hovel since
there seemed no better plan than that which she had
offered. Giova and the other girl were in the lead, fol-
The Oakdale Affair |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Lady Baltimore by Owen Wister: sah!"
I showed him the kettle-supporter through a rent in its wrapping, and I
assisted him to stand upright. His injuries proved fortunately to be
slight (although I may say here that the shock to his ancient body kept
him away for a few days from the churchyard), and when I began to talk to
him about the incident, he seemed unwilling to say much in answer to my
questions. And when I offered to accompany him to where he lived, he
declined altogether, assuring me that it was close, and that he could
walk there as well as if nothing had happened to him; but upon my asking
him if I was on the right way to the carpenter's shop, he looked at me
curiously.
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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 The Witch, et. al by Anton Chekhov: answer my questions. On the seventh of this July the railway
watchman, Ivan Semyonovitch Akinfov, going along the line in the
morning, found you at the hundred-and-forty-first mile engaged in
unscrewing a nut by which the rails are made fast to the
sleepers. Here it is, the nut! . . . With the aforesaid nut he
detained you. Was that so?"
"Wha-at?"
"Was this all as Akinfov states?"
"To be sure, it was."
"Very good; well, what were you unscrewing the nut for?"
"Wha-at?"
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