| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Twilight Land by Howard Pyle: farther he wandered the deeper he found himself in the thickets.
In the meantime he was like to die of hunger, for he had not a
bite to eat for more than a whole day.
"Perhaps," said he to himself, "there may be something in the
casket to stay my stomach;" and, so saying, he sat him down,
unlocked the casket, and raised the lid.
Such a yell as the poor wretch uttered ears never heard before.
Over he rolled upon his back and there lay staring with wide
eyes, and away scampered the jackass, kicking up his heels and
braying so that the leaves of the trees trembled and shook. For
no sooner had he lifted the lid than out leaped a great hideous
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll: `Humpty Dumpty saw it too,' the White Queen went on in a low
voice, more as if she were talking to herself. `He came to the
door with a corkscrew in his hand--'
`What did he want?' said the Red Queen.
`He said he WOULD come in,' the White Queen went on, `because
he was looking for a hippopotamus. Now, as it happened, there
wasn't such a thing in the house, that morning.'
`Is there generally?' Alice asked in an astonished tone.
`Well, only on Thursdays,' said the Queen.
`I know what he came for,' said Alice: `he wanted to punish
the fish, because--'
Through the Looking-Glass |
| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Burning Daylight by Jack London: she saw were three queens and a pair of eights, but nobody
guessed what she saw. Every player's eyes were on her face as
she scanned the cards, but no sign did she give. Her features
might have been carved from ice, for her expression was precisely
the same before, during, and after. Not a muscle quivered; nor
was there the slightest dilation of a nostril, nor the slightest
increase of light in the eyes. She laid the hand face down again
on the table, and slowly the lingering eyes withdrew from her,
having learned nothing.
MacDonald smiled benevolently. "I see you, Daylight, and I hump
this time for two thousand. How's that hunch, Jack?"
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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 House of Dust by Conrad Aiken: And the floorless room in which she called you 'friend.'
So many times, in doubt, she ran between them!--
Through windy corridors of darkening end.
Here she could stand with one dim light above her
And hear far music, like a sea in caverns,
Murmur away at hollowed walls of stone.
And here, in a roofless room where it was raining,
She bore the patient sorrow of rain alone.
Your words were walls which suddenly froze around her.
Your words were windows,--large enough for moonlight,
Too small to let her through.
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