| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from A Legend of Montrose by Walter Scott: assuming a disguise to render his passage secure through the
Lowlands, in which he had been kindly assisted by his kinsman of
Menteith. By what means Allan M'Aulay had come to know him, he
could not pretend to explain. Those who knew Allan's prophetic
pretensions, smiled mysteriously; but he himself only replied,
that "the Earl of Montrose need not be surprised if he was known
to thousands, of whom he himself could retain no memory."
"By the honour of a cavalier," said Captain Dalgetty, finding at
length an opportunity to thrust in his word, "I am proud and
happy in having an opportunity of drawing a sword under your
lordship's command; and I do forgive all grudge, malecontent,
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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 Street of Seven Stars by Mary Roberts Rinehart: tiptoes on the chair.
The resulting illumination revealed a number of things: It showed
that the girl was young and comely and that she had been crying;
it revealed the fact that the coal-pail was empty and the stove
almost so; it let the initiated into the secret that the blackish
fluid in the cups had been made with coffee extract that had been
made of Heaven knows what; and it revealed in the cavernous
corner near the door a number of trunks. The girl, having lighted
all the candles, stood on the chair and looked at the trunks. She
was very young, very tragic, very feminine. A door slammed down
the hall and she stopped crying instantly. Diving into one of
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