| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from A Second Home by Honore de Balzac: was brave; he accepted the post, led the insurgents, and was rewarded
by the nomination to the rank of captain in the army of Sambre-et-
Meuse, where he distinguished himself so far as to rise rapidly to be
a colonel. But at Lutzen he was so badly wounded that, after a year's
sufferings, he died in Paris.--The Bourbons returned; my mother could
obtain no pension, and we fell into such abject misery that we were
compelled to work for our living. For some time past she has been
ailing, poor dear, and I have never known her so little resigned; she
complains a good deal, and, indeed, I cannot wonder, for she has known
the pleasures of an easy life. For my part, I cannot pine for delights
I have never known, I have but one thing to wish for."
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from De Profundis by Oscar Wilde: but the horror of hell also. When I think about religion at all, I
feel as if I would like to found an order for those who CANNOT
believe: the Confraternity of the Faithless, one might call it,
where on an altar, on which no taper burned, a priest, in whose
heart peace had no dwelling, might celebrate with unblessed bread
and a chalice empty of wine. Every thing to be true must become a
religion. And agnosticism should have its ritual no less than
faith. It has sown its martyrs, it should reap its saints, and
praise God daily for having hidden Himself from man. But whether
it be faith or agnosticism, it must be nothing external to me. Its
symbols must be of my own creating. Only that is spiritual which
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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 Lord Arthur Savile's Crime, etc. by Oscar Wilde: chance had prevented my going to the club for several days, or I
might have got it in time to save him. Perhaps it was not too
late. I drove off to my rooms, packed up my things, and started by
the night-mail from Charing Cross. The journey was intolerable. I
thought I would never arrive. As soon as I did I drove to the
Hotel l'Angleterre. They told me that Erskine had been buried two
days before in the English cemetery. There was something horribly
grotesque about the whole tragedy. I said all kinds of wild
things, and the people in the hall looked curiously at me.
Suddenly Lady Erskine, in deep mourning, passed across the
vestibule. When she saw me she came up to me, murmured something
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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 Miracle Mongers and Their Methods by Harry Houdini: About twenty-two years ago, during one of
my many engagements at Kohl and
Middleton's, Chicago, there appeared at the same
house a marvelous ``rattle-snake poison
defier'' named Thardo. I watched her act with
deep interest for a number of weeks, never
missing a single performance. For the simple
reason that I worked within twelve feet from
her, my statement that there was absolutely
no fake attached to her startling performance
can be taken in all seriousness, as the details
Miracle Mongers and Their Methods |
