He couldn't understand, though, why we wanted to live out here.

I explained the whole thing to him very carefully, but it didn't seem to make much impression on him.

I believe he thinks Pomona has something the matter with her, and that we have come to stay out here in the fresh air so as not to take it." "What an extremely stupid man Mr.Ball must be!" I said.
The fire did not burn very well, and while I was at work at it, Euphemia spread a cloth upon the grass, and set forth bread and butter, cheese, sardines, potted ham, preserves, biscuits, and a lot of other things.
We did not wait for the kettle to boil, but concluded to do without tea or coffee, for this meal, and content ourselves with pure water.

For some reason or other, however, the creek water did not seem to be very pure, and we did not like it a bit.
"After lunch," said I, "we will go and look for a spring; that will be a good way of exploring the country." "If we can't find one," said Euphemia, "we shall have to go to the house for water, for I can never drink that stuff." Soon after lunch we started out.

We searched high and low, near and far, for a spring, but could not find one.
At length, by merest accident, we found ourselves in the vicinity of old John's little house.