| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Beauty and The Beast by Bayard Taylor: subservient to Friend Donnelly's wishes in regard to the farming
operations as if the latter held the fee of the property. His
coming did not fill the terrible gap which De Courcy's death
had made, but seemed to make it less constantly and painfully
evident.
Susan Donnelly soon remarked a change, which she could neither
clearly define nor explain to herself, both in her husband and in
their daughter Sylvia. The former, although in public he preserved
the same grave, stately face,--its lines, perhaps, a little more
deeply marked,--seemed to be devoured by an internal unrest. His
dreams were of the old times: words and names long unused came from
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Agesilaus by Xenophon: step retreated; their opponents with much demureness following. Then
Agesilaus, detecting the common error under which both parties
laboured, sent round his own bodyguard of stalwart troopers with
orders to their predecessors (an order they would act upon themselves)
to charge the enemy at full gallop and not give him a chance to rally.
The Thessalians, in face of this unexpected charge, either could not
so much as rally, or in the attempt to do so were caught with their
horses' flanks exposed to the enemy's attack. Polycharmus, the
Pharsalian, a commandant of cavalry, did indeed succeed in wheeling,
but was cut down with those about him sword in hand. This was the
signal for a flight so extraordinary that dead and dying lined the
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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 Ferragus by Honore de Balzac: Madame Jules is so pretty, I'd bet on her. All that I have told you is
positive. Bourignard often plays at number 129. Saving your presence,
monsieur, he's a rogue who loves women, and he has his little ways
like a man of condition. As for the rest, he wins sometimes, disguises
himself like an actor, paints his face to look like anything he
chooses, and lives, I may say, the most original life in the world. I
don't doubt he has a good many lodgings, for most of the time he
manages to evade what Monsieur le vidame calls "parliamentary
investigations." If monsieur wishes, he could be disposed of
honorably, seeing what his habits are. It is always easy to get rid of
a man who loves women. However, this capitalist talks about moving
Ferragus |
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 Witch, et. al by Anton Chekhov: drink then for three days; they squandered on drink fifty roubles
of money belonging to the Mir, and then collected more for vodka
from all the households. On the first
day of the feast the Tchikildyeevs killed a sheep and ate of it
in the morning, at dinner-time, and in the evening; they ate it
ravenously, and the children got up at night to eat more. Kiryak
was fearfully drunk for three whole days; he drank up everything,
even his boots and cap, and beat Marya so terribly that they had
to pour water over her. And then they were all ashamed and sick.
However, even in Zhukovo, in this "Slaveytown," there was once an
outburst of genuine religious enthusiasm. It was in August, when
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