| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from Weir of Hermiston by Robert Louis Stevenson: "Ay: Kirstie. She was named for me, or my grandmother at least - it's
the same thing," returned the aunt, and went on again about Dand, whom
she secretly preferred by reason of his gallantries.
"But what is your niece like?" said Archie at the next opportunity.
"Her? As black's your hat! But I dinna suppose she would maybe be what
you would ca' ILL-LOOKED a'thegither. Na, she's a kind of a handsome
jaud - a kind o' gipsy," said the aunt, who had two sets of scales for
men and women - or perhaps it would be more fair to say that she had
three, and the third and the most loaded was for girls.
"How comes it that I never see her in church?" said Archie.
" 'Deed, and I believe she's in Glesgie with Clem and his wife. A heap
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from An Inland Voyage by Robert Louis Stevenson: often again. Here is his first programme, as I found it on the
breakfast-table, and have kept it ever since as a relic of bright
days:
'MESDAMES ET MESSIEURS,
'MADEMOISELLE FERRARIO ET M. DE VAUVERSIN AURONT L'HONNEUR DE
CHANTER CE SOIR LES MORCEAUX SUIVANTS.
'MADERMOISELLE FERRARIO CHANTERA - MIGNON - OISEAUX LEGERS - FRANCE
- DES FRANCAIS DORMENT LA - LE CHATEAU BLEU - OU VOULEZ-VOUS ALLER?
'M. DE VAUVERSIN - MADAME FONTAINE ET M. ROBINET - LES PLONGEURS A
CHEVAL - LE MARI MECONTENT - TAIS-TOI, GAMIN - MON VOISIN
L'ORIGINAL - HEUREUX COMME CA - COMME ON EST TROMPE.'
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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 Two Poets by Honore de Balzac: you are giving us poetry out of a book. The extracts are very nice,
but the ladies feel a patriotic preference for the wine of the
country; they would rather have it."
"The French language does not lend itself very readily to poetry, does
it?" Astolphe remarked to Chatelet. "Cicero's prose is a thousand
times more poetical to my way of thinking."
"The true poetry of France is song, lyric verse," Chatelet answered.
"Which proves that our language is eminently adapted for music," said
Adrien.
"I should like very much to hear the poetry that has cost Nais her
reputation," said Zephirine; "but after receiving Amelie's request in
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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: they think they've got a soft thing, and they say they're goin' to
it. I've got to put a crimp in it, and you've got to help me.
Y'understand, Nan?"
"Yes," she said mechanically.
Her mind was working swiftly. The night, after all, perhaps, was
not to be so much of a failure! To get into intimate touch with
all the members of the clique was equally one of her objects, and,
failing Danglar himself to-night, here was an "open sesame" to the
re-treat of two of the others. She would never have a better chance,
or one in which risk and danger, under the chaperonage, as it were,
of Shluker here, were, if not entirely eliminated, at least reduced
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