| The first excerpt represents the element of Air. It speaks of mental influences and the process of thought, and is drawn from From London to Land's End by Daniel Defoe: would perhaps otherwise live at Falmouth. The chief commerce of
these towns, as to their sea-affairs, is the pilchards and
Newfoundland fishing, which is very profitable to them all. It had
formerly a conventual church, with a chantry and a religious house
(a cell to Kirton); but they are all demolished, and scarce the
ruins of them distinguishable enough to know one part from another.
Quitting Falmouth Haven from Penryn West, we came to Helston, about
seven miles, and stands upon the little River Cober, which,
however, admits the sea so into its bosom as to make a tolerable
good harbour for ships a little below the town. It is the fifth
town allowed for the coining tin, and several of the ships called
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The second excerpt represents the element of Fire. It speaks of emotional influences and base passions, and is drawn from Fables by Robert Louis Stevenson: sea was loud. There he was aware of a house, and a man that sat
there by the light of a candle, for he had no fire. Now the elder
son came in to him, and the man gave him water to drink, for he had
no bread; and wagged his head when he was spoken to, for he had no
words.
"Have you the touchstone of truth?" asked the elder son and when
the man had wagged his head, "I might have known that," cried the
elder son. "I have here a wallet full of them!" And with that he
laughed, although his heart was weary.
And with that the man laughed too, and with the fuff of his
laughter the candle went out.
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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 Chance by Joseph Conrad: having its own entrance.
But of course all this was silly. The marriage, the love, the
affairs of Captain Anthony were none of my business. I was on the
point of moving down the street for good when my attention was
attracted by a girl approaching the hotel entrance from the west.
She was dressed very modestly in black. It was the white straw hat
of a good form and trimmed with a bunch of pale roses which had
caught my eye. The whole figure seemed familiar. Of course! Flora
de Barral. She was making for the hotel, she was going in. And
Fyne was with Captain Anthony! To meet him could not be pleasant
for her. I wished to save her from the awkwardness, and as I
Chance |
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 Caesar's Commentaries in Latin by Julius Caesar: proelium committeret, nisi ipsius copiae prope hostium castra visae
essent, ut undique uno tempore in hostes impetus fieret, monte occupato
nostros expectabat proelioque abstinebat. Multo denique die per
exploratores Caesar cognovit et montem a suis teneri et Helvetios castra,
movisse et Considium timore perterritum quod non vidisset pro viso sibi
renuntiavisse. Eo die quo consuerat intervallo hostes sequitur et milia
passuum tria ab eorum castris castra ponit.
Postridie eius diei, quod omnino biduum supererat, cum exercitui
frumentum metiri oporteret, et quod a Bibracte, oppido Haeduorum longe
maximo et copiosissimo, non amplius milibus passuum XVIII aberat, rei
frumentariae prospiciendum existimavit; iter ab Helvetiis avertit
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