| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Collection of Antiquities by Honore de Balzac: "Never," said the Marquis, riposting with a gesture which decided the
Chevalier to risk a great stroke to open his old friend's eyes.
"Very well," he said, "since you do not know it, I will tell you
myself that Chesnel has let your son have something already, something
like----"
"My son is incapable of accepting anything whatever from Chesnel," the
Marquis broke in, drawing himself up as he spoke. "He might have come
to YOU to ask you for twenty-five louis----"
"Something like a hundred thousand livres," said the Chevalier,
finishing his sentence.
"The Comte d'Esgrignon owes a hundred thousand livres to a Chesnel!"
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Tono Bungay by H. G. Wells: me against the wall, and her aunt appeared beside the sideboard
and stood with arms, looking from speaker to speaker, a sternly
gratified prophetess. It didn't occur to me then! How painful
it was to Marion for these people to witness my rebellion.
"But, George," said her father, "what sort of marriage do you
want? You don't want to go to one of those there registry
offices?"
"That's exactly what I'd like to do. Marriage is too private a
thing--"
"I shouldn't feel married," said Mrs. Ramboat.
"Look here, Marion," I said; "we are going to be married at a
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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 Gambara by Honore de Balzac: graceful /allegro/ in A major.
"Can you not hear the cries of the innocent dragged into this infernal
drama,--a persecuted creature? '/Non, non/,' " sang Gambara, who made
the consumptive piano sing. "His native land and tender emotions have
come back to him; his childhood and its memories have blossomed anew
in Robert's heart. And now his mother's shade rises up, bringing with
it soothing religious thoughts. It is religion that lives in that
beautiful song in E major, with its wonderful harmonic and melodic
progression in the words:
"Car dans les cieux, comme sur la terre,
Sa mere va prier pour lui.
Gambara |
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 Democracy In America, Volume 1 by Alexis de Toqueville: proprietors south of the Hudson constituted a superior class,
having ideas and tastes of its own, and forming the centre of
political action. This kind of aristocracy sympathized with the
body of the people, whose passions and interests it easily
embraced; but it was too weak and too short-lived to excite
either love or hatred for itself. This was the class which
headed the insurrection in the South, and furnished the best
leaders of the American revolution.
At the period of which we are now speaking society was
shaken to its centre: the people, in whose name the struggle had
taken place, conceived the desire of exercising the authority
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