| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Europeans by Henry James: down the road which was darkened over with long bosky shadows.
"Must you go straight home?" Acton asked.
But she made no answer. She said, after a moment, "Why have you
not been to see me?" He said nothing, and then she went on,
"Why don't you answer me?"
"I am trying to invent an answer," Acton confessed.
"Have you none ready?"
"None that I can tell you," he said. "But let me walk with you now."
"You may do as you like."
She moved slowly along the road, and Acton went with her.
Presently he said, "If I had done as I liked I would have come
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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 Enchanted Island of Yew by L. Frank Baum: in length.
"That's better," sighed the Dragon, contentedly. "I hope your Majesty
is now satisfied."
"No,--I am not satisfied!" declared King Terribus. "Why do you not
lash your tail?"
"Ah, I can't do that!" replied the Dragon. "It's all stiffened up
with rheumatism from the dampness of my cave. It hurts too much to
lash it."
"Well, then, gnash your teeth!" commanded the king.
"Tut--tut!" answered the Dragon, mildly; "I can't do that, either; for
since you had them so beautifully carved it makes my teeth ache to
The Enchanted Island of Yew |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from The Black Tulip by Alexandre Dumas: politics, his love of study, of the fine arts, of science,
and of flowers. He explained that, since the day when
Cornelius de Witt handed to him the parcel at Dort, he
himself had never touched, nor even noticed it.
To this it was objected, that in this respect he could not
possibly be speaking the truth, since the papers had been
deposited in a press in which both his hands and his eyes
must have been engaged every day.
Cornelius answered that it was indeed so; that, however, he
never put his hand into the press but to ascertain whether
his bulbs were dry, and that he never looked into it but to
The Black Tulip |
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 Menexenus by Plato: as is possible,--who is not hanging in suspense on other men, or changing
with the vicissitude of their fortune,--has his life ordered for the best.
He is the temperate and valiant and wise; and when his riches come and go,
when his children are given and taken away, he will remember the proverb--
"Neither rejoicing overmuch nor grieving overmuch," for he relies upon
himself. And such we would have our parents to be--that is our word and
wish, and as such we now offer ourselves, neither lamenting overmuch, nor
fearing overmuch, if we are to die at this time. And we entreat our
fathers and mothers to retain these feelings throughout their future life,
and to be assured that they will not please us by sorrowing and lamenting
over us. But, if the dead have any knowledge of the living, they will
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