| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Heart of the West by O. Henry: face--no curls or frizzes; that's the way she looked. Now I'll tell
you the way they work the game; it's simple. When she wants a man, she
manages it so that every time he looks at her he finds her looking at
him. That's all.
"The next evening Solly was to go to Coney Island with me at seven. At
eight o'clock he hadn't showed up. I went out and found a cab. I felt
sure there was something wrong.
"'Drive to the Back Home Restaurant on Third Avenue,' says I. 'And if
I don't find what I want there, take in these saddle-shops.' I handed
him the list.
"'Boss,' says the cabby, 'I et a steak in that restaurant once. If
Heart of the West |
The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Philosophy 4 by Owen Wister: back notes, "you've put us on to their curves enough. Go on."
The instructor turned a few pages forward in the thick book of his own
neat type-written notes and then resumed,--
"The self-knowledge of matter in motion."
"Skip it," put in the first tennis boy.
"We went to those lectures ourselves," explained the second, whirling
through another dishevelled notebook. "Oh, yes. Hobbes and his gang.
There is only one substance, matter, but it doesn't strictly exist.
Bodies exist. We've got Hobbes. Go on."
The instructor went forward a few pages more in his exhaustive volume.
He had attended all the lectures but three throughout the year, taking
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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 Wrong Box by Stevenson & Osbourne: 'What makes you think me deep?' asked Morris with an air of
pleased simplicity.
'Because you won't compromise,' said the lawyer. 'You're deep
dog, Morris, very deep dog, not t' compromise--remarkable deep
dog. And a very good glass of wine; it's the only respectable
feature in the Finsbury family, this wine; rarer thing than a
title--much rarer. Now a man with glass wine like this in cellar,
I wonder why won't compromise?'
'Well, YOU wouldn't compromise before, you know,' said the
smiling Morris. 'Turn about is fair play.'
'I wonder why _I_ wouldn' compromise? I wonder why YOU wouldn'?'
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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 In the Cage by Henry James: so helpless, and yet not a bit haughty nor outraged. She was only
mystified and scared. "Oh, you know--?"
"Yes, I know!" Our young friend smiled, meeting the other's eyes,
and, having made Juno blush, proceeded to patronise her. "I'LL do
it"--she put out a competent hand. Her ladyship only submitted,
confused and bewildered, all presence of mind quite gone; and the
next moment the telegram was in the cage again and its author out
of the shop. Then quickly, boldly, under all the eyes that might
have witnessed her tampering, the extraordinary little person at
Cocker's made the proper change. People were really too giddy, and
if they WERE, in a certain case, to be caught, it shouldn't be the
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