Brown, on the other hand, affected indignation at his being allowed to go with us another yard.
"Make a rope o' grass an' hang the swine!" he grumbled.
We decided to march on the village, retreat being obviously far too dangerous, and the only likely safe course being to follow up the chance success.

Sleep another night in the open among the mosquitoes and wild beasts, besides making us wretched at the mere suggestion, was likely to bring us all down with fever.

We preferred the thought of fever to the loneliness; for man is unlike all other nomads, and that is why the dog takes kindly to him; he must have a home of his own--a portable one, if you will--a tub like Diogenes--a Bedouin's tent--a cave, or a hole in the ground--something, so be he may rent it or own it or know for a fact he may sleep there when night comes.

Life in the open is only good fun when there is cover to take to at will.
All the way along the winding foot-track leading in every imaginable direction except toward the village, and only turning suddenly toward it when we had grown disgusted and decided to leave it and try to find another, Brown kept pointing out trees with suitable overhanging arms to which we might hang Coutlass.

The Greek, with eyes for nothing but the fat, hump-backed village cattle in the distance, seemed to think only of them, until Will commented on the fact, and Fred saw fit to drop a hint.
"Steal as much as a young calf, Coutlass, and we'll let Brown choose the tree! Try it on if you don't believe me!" The villagers closed their gate against us by dragging great piles of thorn across the gap in the rough palisade, but, as Coutlass pointed out, they would have to open it up again to let the cattle in before dark, so we sat down and ate the remaining fragments of the hippo tongue--no ambrosia by that time; it had to be eaten, to save it from utter waste! Then Coutlass once more did a first-class devil dance backward and forward this time before the gate, putting genius into it and fear into the hearts of the defenders.