| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Outlaw of Torn by Edgar Rice Burroughs: awful carnage the foul fiend had wrought on his mas-
ter's household. He be abroad, Bertrade, and I canst
think of naught more horrible than to fall into his
hands."
"Why, Mary, thou didst but recently say thy very
self that Norman of Torn was most courteous to thee
when he sacked this, thy father's castle. How be it
thou so soon has changed thy mind?"
"Yes, Bertrade, he was indeed respectful then, but
who knows what horrid freak his mind may take, and
they do say that he be cruel beyond compare. Again,
The Outlaw of Torn |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift: and kept as far as I could from the edge, for fear of falling.
The wife minced a bit of meat, then crumbled some bread on a
trencher, and placed it before me. I made her a low bow, took
out my knife and fork, and fell to eat, which gave them exceeding
delight. The mistress sent her maid for a small dram cup, which
held about two gallons, and filled it with drink; I took up the
vessel with much difficulty in both hands, and in a most
respectful manner drank to her ladyship's health, expressing the
words as loud as I could in English, which made the company laugh
so heartily, that I was almost deafened with the noise. This
liquor tasted like a small cider, and was not unpleasant. Then
Gulliver's Travels |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Concerning Christian Liberty by Martin Luther: These works, however, must not be done with any notion that by
them a man can be justified before God—for faith, which alone is
righteousness before God, will not bear with this false
notion--but solely with this purpose: that the body may be
brought into subjection, and be purified from its evil lusts, so
that our eyes may be turned only to purging away those lusts. For
when the soul has been cleansed by faith and made to love God, it
would have all things to be cleansed in like manner, and
especially its own body, so that all things might unite with it
in the love and praise of God. Thus it comes that, from the
requirements of his own body, a man cannot take his ease, but is
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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 Frances Waldeaux by Rebecca Davis: no child could touch. No man or woman could touch her as
long as she lived. Not even her son."
As Bauzy could make nothing of this, he could only nod
and laugh civilly. But presently he, too, grew silent,
glancing at her uncomfortably from time to time.
They drove through great red fields of sarasson,
hedged by long banks of earth, which were masses of
golden gorse and bronzed and crimson ferns. The sun
shone, the clover-scented air was full of the joyous
buzzing of bees and chirp of birds.
"It is a gay, blessed day!" Bauzy said, thanks to the
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