| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Lin McLean by Owen Wister: bald-faced horse alongside. He's fooling to the finish," Lin severely
commented, as if, after all this delay, there should at least be a
homestretch.
Presently, however, a homestretch seemed likely to occur. The bald-faced
horse executed some lively manoeuvres, and Tommy's voice reached us
faintly through the light spring air. He was evidently howling the
remarkable strain of yells that the cow-punchers invented as the speech
best understood by cows--Oi-ee, yah, whoop-yahye-ee, oooo-oop, oop,
oop-oop-oop-oop-yah-hee!" But that gives you no idea of it. Alphabets are
worse than photographs. It is not the lungs of every man that can produce
these effects, nor even from armies, eagles, or mules were such sounds
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Where There's A Will by Mary Roberts Rinehart: "Nothing. But I'm an old man, Minnie, a very old man."
"Stuff and nonsense," I exclaimed, alarmed. "You're only
seventy. That's what comes of saying in the advertising that you
are eighty--to show what the springs have done for you. It's
enough to make a man die of senility to have ten years tacked to
his age."
"And if," he went on, "if anything happens to me, Minnie, I'm
counting on you to do what you can for the old place. You've
been here a good many years, Minnie."
"Fourteen years I have been ladling out water at this spring," I
said, trying to keep my lips from trembling. "I wouldn't be at
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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 Complete Angler by Izaak Walton: plain with you, I will sing none. I am none of those that sing for meat,
but for company: I say,
'"Tis merry in hall,
When men sing all."
Piscator. I'll promise you I'll sing a song that was lately made, at my
request, by Mr. William Basse; one that hath made the choice songs of
the " Hunter in his Career," and of " Tom of Bedlam," and many others
of note; and this, that I will sing, is in praise of Angling.
Coridon. And then mine shall be the praise of a Countryman's life.
What will the rest sing of?
Peter. I will promise you, I will sing another song in praise of Angling
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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 Moon-Face and Other Stories by Jack London: would seem that all the color of his frame had gone into his eyes, for they
were startlingly blue. Also, they were laughing and merry eyes, within them
much of the naivete and wonder of the child; and yet, in an unassertive way.
they contained much of calm self-reliance and strength of purpose founded upon
self-experience and experience of the world.
>From out the screen of vines and creepers he flung ahead of him a miner's
pick and shovel and gold-pan. Then he crawled out himself into the open. He
was clad in faded overalls and black cotton shirt, with hobnailed brogans on
his feet, and on his head a hat whose shapelessness and stains advertised the
rough usage of wind and rain and sun and camp-smoke. He stood erect, seeing
wide-eyed the secrecy of the scene and sensuously inhaling the warm, sweet
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