| The third excerpt represents the element of Water. It speaks of pure spiritual influences and feelings of love, and is drawn from Vendetta by Honore de Balzac: grace of her daughter seemed to have become her own. All was well with
her if Ginevra was happy. Her hair was white, and a few strands only
were seen above her white and wrinkled forehead, or beside her hollow
cheeks.
"It is now fifteen days," she said, "since Ginevra made a practice of
being late."
"Jean is so slow!" cried the impatient old man, buttoning up his blue
coat and seizing his hat, which he dashed upon his head as he took his
cane and departed.
"You will not get far," said his wife, calling after him.
As she spoke, the porte-cochere was opened and shut, and the old
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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 Travels with a Donkey in the Cevenne by Robert Louis Stevenson: burn the house, with the priest and the satellites of Baal.'
The fire caught readily. Out of an upper window Du Chayla and his
men lowered themselves into the garden by means of knotted sheets;
some escaped across the river under the bullets of the insurgents;
but the archpriest himself fell, broke his thigh, and could only
crawl into the hedge. What were his reflections as this second
martyrdom drew near? A poor, brave, besotted, hateful man, who had
done his duty resolutely according to his light both in the
Cevennes and China. He found at least one telling word to say in
his defence; for when the roof fell in and the upbursting flames
discovered his retreat, and they came and dragged him to the public
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