| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Concerning Christian Liberty by Martin Luther: resisted, and will resist, as long as the spirit of faith shall
live in me. Not that I am striving after impossibilities, or
hoping that by my labours alone, against the furious opposition
of so many flatterers, any good can be done in that most
disordered Babylon; but that I feel myself a debtor to my
brethren, and am bound to take thought for them, that fewer of
them may be ruined, or that their ruin may be less complete, by
the plagues of Rome. For many years now, nothing else has
overflowed from Rome into the world--as you are not
ignorant--than the laying waste of goods, of bodies, and of
souls, and the worst examples of all the worst things. These
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Paz by Honore de Balzac: independence in Paris? the freedom to let herself be taken in by
ruined or dissipated men who pretend to love her. I pray to God to
leave me this husband who is so kind, so obliging, so little fault-
finding, and who is beginning to stand in awe of me."
"You are honest, and I love you the better for it," said Thaddeus,
taking her hand which she yielded to him, and kissing it. "In solemn
moments like these there is unspeakable satisfaction in finding a
woman without hypocrisy. It is possible to converse with you. Let us
look to the future. Suppose that God does not grant your prayer,--and
no one cries to him more than I do, 'Leave me my friend!' Yes, these
fifty nights have not weakened me; if thirty more days and nights are
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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 Insidious Dr. Fu-Manchu by Sax Rohmer: force of will whilst the American was under the influence of the drug.
But I could not understand how Fu-Manchu had gained access to locked
chambers on the third story of a building.
"Smith," I said, "those bird tracks on the window-sill--
they furnish the key to a mystery which is puzzling me."
"They do," said Smith, glancing impatiently at his watch.
"Consult your memories of Dr. Fu-Manchu's habits--especially your
memories of his pets."
I reviewed in my mind the creatures gruesome and terrible which
surrounded the Chinaman--the scorpions, the bacteria, the noxious
things which were the weapons wherewith he visited death upon
The Insidious Dr. Fu-Manchu |
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 Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas: master; he ought to aid you in your search; we have so many
means of gaining information."
"My lord, to a well-bred dog it is only necessary to show
one end of a track; he is certain to reach the other."
"But this relation you mentioned -- do you wish me to speak
to him?" said Mazarin, who was anxious to make a friend
about Cromwell's person.
"Thanks, my lord, I will speak to him myself. He will treat
me better the next time I see him."
"You have the means, then, of touching him?"
"I have the means of making myself feared."
Twenty Years After |
