| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Pocket Diary Found in the Snow by Grace Isabel Colbron and Augusta Groner: hand, but it is written with a fine hard pencil, and you can see
distinctly that this is a woman's handwriting. And besides, the
skin on a man's thumb does not show the fine markings that you can
see here on these bits of bread that have been used for seals."
The commissioner rose from his seat. "You may be right, Muller.
We will take for granted, then, that there is a woman in trouble.
It remains to be seen whether she is insane or not."
"Yes, that remains to be seen," said Muller dryly, as he reached
for his overcoat.
"You are going before you read what is in the notebook?" asked
Commissioner von Mayringen.
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Scaramouche by Rafael Sabatini: way, cold-bloodedly wise. Others are not so circumspect; they
meet insult with insult, blow with blow, and blood is being shed
in private duels. The thing is reduced by these swordsmen of
the nobility to a system."
Andre-Louis nodded. He was thinking of Philippe de Vilmorin.
"Yes," he said, "it is an old trick of theirs. It is so simple and
direct - like themselves. I wonder only that they didn't hit upon
this system sooner. In the early days of the States General, at
Versailles, it might have had a better effect. Now, it comes a
little late."
"But they mean to make up for lost time - sacred name!" cried
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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 Faith of Men by Jack London: Kitty caused her daughter to be brought, and while the children,
after their manner, struck an acquaintance, the mothers indulged in
the talk of mothers and drank tea from cups so fragile that Jees
Uck feared lest hers should crumble to pieces beneath her fingers.
Never had she seen such cups, so delicate and dainty. In her mind
she compared them with the woman who poured the tea, and there
uprose in contrast the gourds and pannikins of the Toyaat village
and the clumsy mugs of Twenty Mile, to which she likened herself.
And in such fashion and such terms the problem presented itself.
She was beaten. There was a woman other than herself better fitted
to bear and upbring Neil Bonner's children. Just as his people
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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 The Figure in the Carpet by Henry James: may tell you now - why he went and why I consented to his going.
We knew the change would do it - that the difference of thought, of
scene, would give the needed touch, the magic shake. We had
perfectly, we had admirably calculated. The elements were all in
his mind, and in the secousse of a new and intense experience they
just struck light." She positively struck light herself - she was
literally, facially luminous. I stammered something about
unconscious cerebration, and she continued: "He'll come right home
- this will bring him."
"To see Vereker, you mean?"
"To see Vereker - and to see ME. Think what he'll have to tell
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