Page:Early Greek philosophy by John Burnet, 3rd edition, 1920.djvu/135

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58. Most of these fragments are not in any way philosophical and those that appear to be so are easily accounted for otherwise. The intention of one of them (fr. 32) is clear. "Iris too" is a cloud, and we may infer that the same thing had been said of the sun, moon, and stars; for the doxographers tell us that these were all explained as "clouds ignited by motion." To the same context clearly belongs the explanation of the St. Elmo's fire which Aetios has preserved. "The things like stars that appear on ships," we