| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Illustrious Gaudissart by Honore de Balzac: and which he hid so cautiously that neither his wife nor the servant
who watched him had ever been able to discover its hiding-place.
The evening before Gaudissart reached Vouvray Madame Margaritis had
had more difficulty than usual in deceiving her husband, whose mind
happened to be uncommonly lucid.
"I really don't know how I shall get through to-morrow," she had said
to Madame Vernier. "Would you believe it, the good-man insists on
watching his two casks of wine. He has worried me so this whole day,
that I had to show him two full puncheons. Our neighbor, Pierre
Champlain, fortunately had two which he had not sold. I asked him to
kindly let me have them rolled into our cellar; and oh, dear! now that
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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 Vicar of Tours by Honore de Balzac: Mademoiselle Gamard to send his coffee to his own room. He also
avoided the annoyance of supper by taking tea in the houses of friends
with whom he spent his evenings. In this way he seldom saw his
landlady except at dinner; but he always came down to that meal a few
minutes in advance of the hour. During this visit of courtesy, as it
may be called, he talked to her, for the twelve years he had lived
under her roof, on nearly the same topics, receiving from her the same
answers. How she had slept, her breakfast, the trivial domestic
events, her looks, her health, the weather, the time the church
services had lasted, the incidents of the mass, the health of such or
such a priest,--these were the subjects of their daily conversation.
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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 Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle: and see that mine host draweth ale from the right butt,
for he hath good October, I know, and that brewed by Withold
of Tamworth." So saying, he went within and whispered to the host
to add a measure of Flemish strong waters to the good English ale;
which the latter did and brought it to them.
"By Our Lady," said the Tinker, after a long draught of the ale,
"yon same Withold of Tamworth--a right good Saxon name, too, I would
have thee know--breweth the most humming ale that e'er passed the lips
of Wat o' the Crabstaff."
"Drink, man, drink," cried Robin, only wetting his own lips meanwhile.
"Ho, landlord! Bring my friend another pot of the same.
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood |
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 Astoria by Washington Irving: Commodore Chauncey, commanding on Lake Ontario, that a
reinforcement of seamen was wanted in that quarter. The demand
was urgent, the crew of the Adams was immediately transferred to
that service, and the ship was laid up.
This was a most ill-timed and discouraging blow, but Mr. Astor
would not yet allow himself to pause in his undertaking. He
determined to send the Enterprise to sea alone, and let her take
the chance of making her unprotected way across the ocean. Just
at this time, however, a British force made its appearance off
the Hook; and the port of New York was effectually blockaded. To
send a ship to sea under these circumstances, would be to expose
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