§4.7#17 παχύνεται μὲν οὖν ὑπὸ πυρὸς μόνον, ὅσα ὕδατος πλέον ἔχει ἢ γῆς, πήγνυται δέ, ὅσα γῆς.
7 Now, those things that have more water than earth are thickened by fire alone, while those that have more of earth are solidified.
διὸ καὶ τὸ νίτρον καὶ οἱ ἅλες γῆς εἰσιν μᾶλλον, καὶ λίθος καὶ κέραμος.
Therefore both soda and salts consist more of earth, and also stone and pottery.
ἀπορώτατα δὲ ἔχει ἡ τοῦ ἐλαίου φύσις.
And the nature of oil is most puzzling.
εἰ μὲν γὰρ ὕδατος, ἔδει πήγνυσθαι ὑπὸ ψυχροῦ, εἰ δὲ γῆς πλέον, ὑπὸ πυρός· νῦν δὲ πήγνυται οὐδετέρου, παχύνεται δὲ ὑπʼ ἀμφοῖν.
For if it were of water, it ought to be solidified by cold, and if of more earth, by fire; but as it is, it is solidified by neither, but is thickened by both.
αἴτιον δʼ ἐστὶν ὅτι ἀέρος ἐστὶν πλῆρες.
And the cause is that it is full of air.
διὸ καὶ ἐν τῷ ὕδατι ἐπιπολάζει· καὶ γὰρ ὁ ἀὴρ φέρεται ἄνω.
Wherefore also it floats on water; for air also is carried upwards.
τὸ μὲν οὖν ψυχρὸν ἐκ τοῦ ἐνόντος πνεύματος ὕδωρ ποιοῦν παχύνει· ἀεὶ γάρ, ὅταν μειχθῇ ὕδωρ καὶ ἔλαιον, ἄμφοῖν γίγνεται παχύτερον.
The cold, then, by making water out of the breath contained within, thickens it; for always, when water and oil are mixed, the mixture becomes thicker than both.
ὑπὸ δὲ πυρὸς καὶ χρόνου παχύνεται καὶ λευκαίνεται, λευκαίνεται μὲν ἐξατμίζοντος εἴ τι ἐνῆν ὕδατος, παχύνεται δὲ διὰ τὸ μαραινομένου τοῦ θερμοῦ ἐκ τοῦ ἀέρος γίγνεσθαι ὕδωρ.
And by fire and time it is thickened and whitened: whitened because whatever water was in it evaporates, and thickened because, as the heat decays, water is formed out of the air.
ἀμφστέρως μὲν οὖν τὸ αὐτὸ γίγνεται πάθος, καὶ διὰ τὸ αὐτό, ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὡσαύτως.
Thus in both ways the same affection occurs, and due to the same cause, but not in the same manner.
παχύνεται μὲν οὖν ὑπʼ ἀμφοτέρων, οὐ ξηραίνεται δʼ ὑπ᾿ οὐδετέρου· οὔτε γὰρ ὁ ἥλιος οὔτε τὸ ψῦχος ξηραίνει· οὐ μόνον διότι γλίσχρον, ἀλλὰ καὶ διότι ἀέρος ἐστίν.
Thus it is thickened by both, but dried by neither; for neither the sun nor the cold dries it; not only because it is viscous, but also because it is of air.
οὐ ξηραίνεται δὲ τὸ ὕδωρ οὐδʼ ἕψεται ὑπὸ πυρός, ὅτι οὐκ ἀτμίζει διὰ γλισχρότητα.
And the water [in it] is not dried up, nor is it boiled by fire, because it does not evaporate due to viscosity.
ὅσα δὲ μεικτὰ ὕδατος καὶ γῆς, κατὰ τὸ πλῆθος ἐκατέρου ἄξιον λέγεσθαι· οἶνος γάρ τις καὶ πήγνυται καὶ ἕψεται, οἶον τὸ γλεῦκος.
But as for things mixed of water and earth, they should be described according to the quantity of each; for a certain kind of wine both solidifies and is boiled, like must.
ἀπέρχεται δὲ ἀπὸ πάντων τῶν τοιούτων ξηραινομένων τὸ ὕδωρ.
And water departs from all such things when they are dried.
σημεῖον δʼ ὅτι τὸ ὕδωρ· ἡ γὰρ ἀτμὶς συνίσταται εἰς ὕδωρ, ἐάν τις βούληται συλλέγειν· ὥστε ὅσοις λείπεταί τι, τοῦτο γῆς.
And the proof that it is water: for the vapor condenses into water, if one wishes to collect it; so that whatever residue is left in them, this is of earth.
ἔνια δὲ τούτων καὶ ὑπὸ ψυχροῦ, ὥσπερ εἴρηται, παχύνεται καὶ ξηραίνεται· τὸ γὰρ ψυχρὸν οὐ μόνον πήγνυσιν, ἀλλὰ ξηραίνει μὲν ὕδωρ, παχύνει δὲ τὸν ἀέρα ὕδωρ ποιοῦν· ἡ δὲ πῆξις εἴρηται ξηρασία τις οὖσα.
And some of these, as has been said, are both thickened and dried by cold; for the cold not only solidifies, but it dries water, and thickens the air by making it water; and solidification has been said to be a kind of drying.
ὅσα μὲν οὖν μὴ παχύνεται ὑπὸ τοῦ ψυχροῦ ἀλλὰ πήγνυται, ὕδατός ἐστι μᾶλλον, οἷον οἶνος καὶ οὖρον καὶ ὄξος καὶ κονία καὶ ὀρός· ὅσα δὲ παχύνεται μὴ ἐξατμίζοντα ὑπὸ πυρός, τὰ μὲν γῆς, τὰ δὲ κοινὰ ὕδατος καὶ ἀέρος, μέλι μὲν γῆς, ἔλαιον δʼ ἀέρος.
Now, those things that are not thickened by cold but are solidified consist rather of water, such as wine, urine, vinegar, lye, and whey; while those that are thickened by fire without evaporating, some consist of earth, others are common to water and air—honey of earth, and oil of air.
ἔστιν δὲ καὶ τὸ γάλα καὶ τὸ αἶμα ἀμφοῖν μὲν κοινὰ καὶ ὕδατος καὶ γῆς, μᾶλλον δὲ τὰ πολλὰ γῆς, ὥσπερ καὶ ἐξ ὅσων ὑγρῶν νίτρον γίγνεται καὶ ἅλες (καὶ λίθοι δʼ ἔκ τινων συνίστανται τοιούτων).
And both milk and blood are common to both, namely water and earth, but for the most part they consist rather of earth, just as also do those liquids from which soda and salts are formed (and indeed stones are condensed from some such liquids).
διὸ ἐὰν μὴ χωρισθῇ ὁ ὀρός, ἐκκάεται ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρὸς ἐρόμενος.
Therefore, if the whey is not separated, it is burnt up by fire when boiled.