| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Heroes by Charles Kingsley: Then out and spoke the magic bough which stood upon the
ARGO'S beak, 'Because Father Zeus is angry, all this has
fallen on you; for a cruel crime has been done on board, and
the sacred ship is foul with blood.'
At that some of the heroes cried, 'Medeia is the murderess.
Let the witch-woman bear her sin, and die!' And they seized
Medeia, to hurl her into the sea, and atone for the young
boy's death; but the magic bough spoke again, 'Let her live
till her crimes are full. Vengeance waits for her, slow and
sure; but she must live, for you need her still. She must
show you the way to her sister Circe, who lives among the
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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 $30,000 Bequest and Other Stories by Mark Twain: I will be your friend." It IS a good friend to me, and my only one;
it is my sister.
That first time that she forsook me! ah, I shall never forget that--
never, never. My heart was lead in my body! I said, "She was all
I had, and now she is gone!" In my despair I said, "Break, my heart;
I cannot bear my life any more!" and hid my face in my hands,
and there was no solace for me. And when I took them away,
after a little, there she was again, white and shining and beautiful,
and I sprang into her arms!
That was perfect happiness; I had known happiness before, but it was
not like this, which was ecstasy. I never doubted her afterward.
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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 Pupil by Henry James: really ought."
Pemberton stared. He had learnt enough French slang from Morgan to
know that to filer meant to cut sticks. "Ah my dear fellow, don't
turn me off!"
Morgan pulled a Greek lexicon toward him - he used a Greek-German -
to look out a word, instead of asking it of Pemberton. "You can't
go on like this, you know."
"Like what, my boy?"
"You know they don't pay you up," said Morgan, blushing and turning
his leaves.
"Don't pay me?" Pemberton stared again and feigned amazement.
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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 White Moll by Frank L. Packard: even if they were of the underworld, who had not swerved from the
loyalty they had once professed to the White Moll.
It brought a new train of thought, and she paused suddenly in her
walk. She might rally around her some of those underworld intimates
upon whose allegiance she felt she could depend, and use them now,
to-night, in behalf of the Adventurer; she would be sure then to be
a match for Danglar, no matter what turn affairs took. And then,
with an impatient shake of her head, she hurried on again. There
was no time for that. It would take a great deal of time to find
and pick her men; she had even wasted time herself, where there was
no time to spare, in the momentary pause during which she had given
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