The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Lord Arthur Savile's Crime, etc. by Oscar Wilde: wife's hand, too.'
'Your second wife's,' said Mr. Podgers quietly, still keeping Sir
Thomas's hand in his. 'Your second wife's. I shall be charmed';
but Lady Marvel, a melancholy-looking woman, with brown hair and
sentimental eyelashes, entirely declined to have her past or her
future exposed; and nothing that Lady Windermere could do would
induce Monsieur de Koloff, the Russian Ambassador, even to take his
gloves off. In fact, many people seemed afraid to face the odd
little man with his stereotyped smile, his gold spectacles, and his
bright, beady eyes; and when he told poor Lady Fermor, right out
before every one, that she did not care a bit for music, but was
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Edingburgh Picturesque Notes by Robert Louis Stevenson: you may see a multitude of children playing Kiss-in-the-
Ring and Round the Mulberry-bush. Thus, when the
fugitive had managed to conceal himself in the tomb, his
old schoolmates had a hundred opportunities to bring him
food; and there he lay in safety till a ship was found to
smuggle him abroad. But his must have been indeed a
heart of brass, to lie all day and night alone with the
dead persecutor; and other lads were far from emulating
him in courage. When a man's soul is certainly in hell,
his body will scarce lie quiet in a tomb however costly;
some time or other the door must open, and the reprobate
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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 Ebb-Tide by Stevenson & Osbourne: me, as you please; I will make no resistance--only, I decline in
any way to help or to obey you; and I suggest you should put
Mr Huish in my place. He will make a worthy first officer to
your captain, sir.' He smiled, bowed, and turned to walk
forward.
'Where are you going, Herrick?' cried the captain, detaining
him by the shoulder.
'To berth forward with the men, sir,' replied Herrick, with
the same hateful smile. 'I've been long enough aft here with you
--gentlemen.
'You're wrong there,' said Davis. 'Don't you be too quick with
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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 Mountains by Stewart Edward White: gray over the ledges and boulders, down the sheet of
rock,--hop, slip, slide,--and along the side hill in
time to head off the first of the mustangs. During the
ten days of riding I saw no horse fall. The animal
I rode, Button by name, never even stumbled.
In the Black Hills years ago I happened to be one
of the inmates of a small mining-camp. Each night
the work-animals, after being fed, were turned loose
in the mountains. As I possessed the only cow-pony
in the outfit, he was fed in the corral, and kept up
for the purpose of rounding up the others. Every
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