| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Wrecker by Stevenson & Osbourne: wasn't no night for panjammers, he could tell me": having
transacted all which, he would throw himself down in his bunk
and sleep his two hours with compunction. But the captain
neither ate nor slept. "You there, Mr. Dodd?" he would say,
after the obligatory visit to the glass. "Well, my son, we're one
hundred and four miles" (or whatever it was) "off the island,
and scudding for all we're worth. We'll make it to-morrow
about four, or not, as the case may be. That's the news. And
now, Mr. Dodd, I've stretched a point for you; you can see I'm
dead tired; so just you stretch away back to your bunk again."
And with this attempt at geniality, his teeth would settle hard
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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 Coxon Fund by Henry James: cheeks, what it was then that after all such a mind as that left
standing. "It leaves itself!" I could recollect devoutly replying.
I could smile at present for this remembrance, since before we got
to Ebury Street I was struck with the fact that, save in the sense
of being well set up on his legs, George Gravener had actually
ceased to tower. The universe he laid low had somehow bloomed
again--the usual eminences were visible. I wondered whether he had
lost his humour, or only, dreadful thought, had never had any--not
even when I had fancied him most Aristophanesque. What was the
need of appealing to laughter, however, I could enviously enquire,
where you might appeal so confidently to measurement? Mr.
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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 The Iliad by Homer: Achilles then went up to Mulius and struck him on the ear with a
spear, and the bronze spear-head came right out at the other ear.
He also struck Echeclus son of Agenor on the head with his sword,
which became warm with the blood, while death and stern fate
closed the eyes of Echeclus. Next in order the bronze point of
his spear wounded Deucalion in the fore-arm where the sinews of
the elbow are united, whereon he waited Achilles' onset with his
arm hanging down and death staring him in the face. Achilles cut
his head off with a blow from his sword and flung it helmet and
all away from him, and the marrow came oozing out of his backbone
as he lay. He then went in pursuit of Rhigmus, noble son of
The Iliad |
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 Cousin Pons by Honore de Balzac: On the way from the Rue de Normandie to the Rue de Richelieu, Pons
drew from the abstracted Schmucke the details of the story of the
modern prodigal son, for whom Death had killed the fatted innkeeper.
Pons, but newly reconciled with his nearest relatives, was immediately
smitten with a desire to make a match between Fritz Brunner and Cecile
de Marville. Chance ordained that the notary was none other than
Berthier, old Cardot's son-in-law and successor, the sometime second
clerk with whom Pons had been wont to dine.
"Ah! M. Berthier, you here!" he said, holding out a hand to his host
of former days.
"We have not had the pleasure of seeing you at dinner lately; how is
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