| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from The Boys' Life of Abraham Lincoln by Helen Nicolay: William L. Dayton of New Jersey. The Democratic candidate for
President that year was James Buchanan, "a Northern man with
Southern principles," very strongly in favor of slavery. Lincoln
took an active part in the campaign against him, making more than
fifty speeches in Illinois and the adjoining States. The
Democrats triumphed, and Buchanan was elected President; but
Lincoln was not discouraged, for the new Republican party had
shown unexpected strength throughout the North. Indeed, Lincoln
was seldom discouraged. He had an abiding faith that the people
would in the long run vote wisely; and the cheerful hope he was
able to inspire in his followers was always a strong point in his
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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 Voyage Out by Virginia Woolf: She looked round her. "I hate this place. I hate these people,"
she said. "I wish you'd come up to my room with me. I do want to
talk to you."
As Rachel had no wish to go or to stay, Evelyn took her by the wrist
and drew her out of the hall and up the stairs. As they went upstairs
two steps at a time, Evelyn, who still kept hold of Rachel's hand,
ejaculated broken sentences about not caring a hang what people said.
"Why should one, if one knows one's right? And let 'em all go
to blazes! Them's my opinions!"
She was in a state of great excitement, and the muscles of her arms
were twitching nervously. It was evident that she was only waiting
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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 Maggie: A Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane: table. She continued her lament.
"She had a bad heart, dat girl did, Jimmie. She was wicked
teh deh heart an' we never knowed it."
Jimmie nodded, admitting the fact.
"We lived in deh same house wid her an' I brought her up an'
we never knowed how bad she was."
Jimmie nodded again.
"Wid a home like dis an' a mudder like me, she went teh deh
bad," cried the mother, raising her eyes.
One day, Jimmie came home, sat down in a chair and began to
wriggle about with a new and strange nervousness. At last he spoke
Maggie: A Girl of the Streets |
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 A Prince of Bohemia by Honore de Balzac: should qualify as illegal,' he said when he told us the story, 'made,
as it was, at seven o'clock in the morning.'
" 'Go,' he answered, with the gesture and attitude of a Mirabeau,
'tell your master in what condition you find me.'
"The assistant apologized and withdrew. La Palferine, seeing the young
man on the landing, rose in the attire celebrated in verse in
/Britannicus/ to add, 'Remark the stairs! Pay particular attention to
the stairs; do not forget to tell him about the stairs!'
"In every position into which chance has thrown La Palferine, he has
never failed to rise to the occasion. All that he does is witty and
never in bad taste; always and in everything he displays the genius of
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