| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Margret Howth: A Story of To-day by Rebecca Harding Davis: laid the day-books and this ledger open on the desk for her. As
soon as he was gone, she shut the door, listening until his heavy
boots had thumped creaking down the rickety ladder leading to the
frame-rooms. Then she climbed up on the high office-stool
(climbed, I said, for she was a little, lithe thing) and went to
work, opening the books, and copying from one to the other as
steadily, monotonously, as if she had been used to it all her
life. Here are the first pages: see how sharp the angles are of
the blue and black lines, how even the long columns: one would
not think, that, as the steel pen traced them out, it seemed to
be lining out her life, narrow and black. If any such morbid
Margret Howth: A Story of To-day |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from The Two Noble Kinsmen by William Shakespeare: For best solicitation.
THESEUS.
Why, good Ladies,
This is a service, whereto I am going,
Greater then any was; it more imports me
Then all the actions that I have foregone,
Or futurely can cope.
1. QUEEN.
The more proclaiming
Our suit shall be neglected: when her Armes
Able to locke Iove from a Synod, shall
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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 In a German Pension by Katherine Mansfield: would have spent my wretched little pittance, and then--Yes, that was what
decided me, thinking about that 'then.' He was the only solution. And I
believed in him then. I thought his work had only to be recognised once,
and he'd roll in wealth. I thought perhaps we might be poor for a month--
but he said, if only he could have me, the stimulus...Funny, if it wasn't
so damned tragic! Exactly the contrary has happened--he hasn't had a thing
published for months--neither have I--but then I didn't expect to. Yes,
the truth is, I'm hard and bitter, and I have neither faith nor love for
unsuccessful men. I always end by despising them as I despise Casimir. I
suppose it's the savage pride of the female who likes to think the man to
whom she has given herself must be a very great chief indeed. But to stew
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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 Danny's Own Story by Don Marquis: and dey was mo' gwines-ON, an' talkin', an' some
on 'em 'lowed dey was gwine ter be no mo' wohk,
Marse Daniel. But arter a while dat settle HITse'f,
and dey all went back to wohk agin. Den some on
de niggers gits de notion, Marse Daniel, dey gwine
foh to VOTE. An' dey was mo' gwines-on, an' de Ku
Kluxes come a projickin' aroun' nights, like
de grave-yahds done been resu'rected, Marse
Daniel, an' den arter a while dat trouble settle
HITse'f.
"Den arter de Ku Kluxes dey was de time
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