--- title: Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 2: the picture goes wrong and the whole Tribe comes — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 2: the picture goes wrong and the whole Tribe comes», a lesson of the books course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: Taffy finishes her picture, proud of it, and asks if the Strange --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/) / Just So Stories, How the First Letter… # Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 2: the picture goes wrong and the whole Tribe comes Lesson 85 of the books course of Mova's primary school: 21 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/0/) — Taffy finishes her picture, proud of it, and asks if the Stranger-man understands. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/1/) — He nods hard, but he is sure it means the great Chief is surrounded by enemies with spears. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/2/) — He races off for help without even asking the way, and Taffy sits down very pleased and tells her Daddy only that it is a surprise. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/3/) — By chance the Stranger-man finds Teshumai at her Cave, having lunch with other Stone Age ladies. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/4/) — He politely hands her the bark. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/5/) — She takes one look, screams, and the ladies knock him down and sit on him in a long line of six, while Teshumai pulls his hair. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/6/) — Teshumai reads the picture as a horror: Tegumai full of spears, Taffy's hair standing on end in fright, and a pack of people creeping up behind, which are really Taffy's beavers. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/7/) — The ladies fill the poor man's hair with mud, bang the tribal drums and call every chief of the Tribe. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/8/) — The Stranger-man is thumped, rolled on pebbles and called rude names, but he leads them all back to the river. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/9/) — There they find Taffy making daisy-chains and Tegumai happily spearing small carp with his mended spear. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/10/) — The whole Tribe has come, chiefs and all, armed to the teeth, shouting and frightening every fish for twenty miles. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/11/) — Teshumai hugs Taffy, and the Head Chief grabs Tegumai by his top-knot feathers and shakes him. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/12/) — Taffy draws «very hard and rather scratchily» and puts the spear into the Stranger-man's hand in the picture «just to remind you that you're to bring it». - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/14/) — Taffy says Mummy is «the most beautifullest Mummy there ever was», and draws the spear outside the Cave though it is really inside, «in case you forget». - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/15/) — The Stranger-man thinks the Chief «pretended not to notice me» because enemies were hiding in the bushes; he «raced off into the bushes like the wind». - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/17/) — Teshumai: «It's as plain as the nose on this Stranger-man's face»; this means it's very clear, but she is quite wrong. - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/18/) — What Teshumai sees: Tegumai with his arm broken, a spear in his back, a man ready to throw a spear, another throwing a spear from a Cave, and «a whole pack of people», which are «Taffy's beavers really». - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/21/) — Kipling lists the Tribe's chiefs with grand, funny titles borrowed from many lands, «Platoffs with their Platoons, and Dolmans with their Detachments», and says «Aren't those beautiful words, Best Beloved?» - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/22/) — Tegumai says: «Why, the whole dear, kind, nice, clean, quiet Tribe is here, Taffy», a joke, because they are loud and armed. - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/23/) — Real life: picture signs are still misread today. - [24](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/85-justso-first-letter-2-the-whole-tribe-comes/24/) — The same emoji can mean different things to different people, which is one reason we use words when it matters. - ← previous: [Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 1: a broken spear and a picture on birch-bark](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/84-justso-first-letter-1-a-broken-spear/) - next →: [Just So Stories, How the First Letter Was Written, part 3: «a great invention» and the road on Merrow Down](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/86-justso-first-letter-3-a-great-invention/) - ↑ back to [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/)