| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from A Man of Business by Honore de Balzac: it; he looked almost like a postilion at a fancy ball. Underneath that
felted covering, moulded to the top of the wearer's cranium, appeared
an elderly profile, half-official, half-soldierly, with a comical
admixture of arrogance,--altogether something like caricatures of the
/Constitutionnel/. The sometime official finding that age, and hair-
powder, and the conformation of his spine made it impossible to read a
word without spectacles, sat displaying a very creditable expanse of
chest with all the pride of an old man with a mistress. Like old
General Montcornet, that pillar of the Vaudeville, he wore earrings.
Denisart was partial to blue; his roomy trousers and well-worn
greatcoat were both of blue cloth.
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from De Profundis by Oscar Wilde: months, in spite of a succession of great troubles reaching me from
the outside world almost without intermission, I have been placed
in direct contact with a new spirit working in this prison through
man and things, that has helped me beyond any possibility of
expression in words: so that while for the first year of my
imprisonment I did nothing else, and can remember doing nothing
else, but wring my hands in impotent despair, and say, 'What an
ending, what an appalling ending!' now I try to say to myself, and
sometimes when I am not torturing myself do really and sincerely
say, 'What a beginning, what a wonderful beginning!' It may really
be so. It may become so. If it does I shall owe much to this new
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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 In Darkest England and The Way Out by General William Booth: probably increase the evil with which you are attempting to deal, and
that you had much better let the whole thing alone.
There is at present no attempt at Concerted Action. Each one deals
with the case immediately before him, and the result is what might be
expected; there is a great expenditure, but the gains are, alas! very
small. The fact, however, that so much is subscribed for the temporary
relief and the mere alleviation of distress justifies my confidence
that if a Practical Scheme of dealing with this misery in a permanent,
comprehensive fashion be discovered, there will be no lack of the
sinews of war. It is well, no doubt, sometimes to administer an
anaesthetic, but the Cure of the Patient is worth ever so much more,
In Darkest England and The Way Out |
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 Pathology of Lying, Etc. by William and Mary Healy: mother and I get spunky. I feel lonesome and get mad. I feel
tired. I can't please my mother no matter how hard I try. I'd
like to go in some little home where I could have a chance.''
After a few days we found this girl in a decidedly good mood,
wanting to be helped. She willingly entered into the analysis of
her case with us and said she thought most of her trouble came
because she was a day-dreamer. ``Sometimes I dream of things in
the day time. I'll sit and stare and stare and think of
different things. I'll think I'm doing them. I'll dream of
things what I do and if I read a good play I'll dream of that.
When I think of myself or somebody starts looking at me I'll stop
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