--- title: How the Camel Got His Hump — Just so stories · full text with trees description: How the Camel Got His Hump, «Just so stories» by Rudyard Kipling: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: NOW this is the next tale, and it tells how the Camel got his big hump. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/) / [Just so stories](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/) / How the Camel Got His Hump # How the Camel Got His Hump How the Camel Got His Hump of «Just so stories» by Rudyard Kipling: the whole text, 54 sentences and 1122 words. Every sentence has its own page with its syntax tree and pragmatics, parsed by Mova itself; 1 of them are in the tales treebank and were checked by a teacher model. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/1/) — NOW this is the next tale, and it tells how the Camel got his big hump. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/2/) — In the beginning of years, when the world was so new and all, and the Animals were just beginning to work for Man, there was a Camel, and he lived in the middle of a Howling Desert because he did not want to work; and besides, he was a Howler himself. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/3/) — So he ate sticks and thorns and tamarisks and milkweed and prickles, most ‘scruciating idle; and when anybody spoke to him he said ‘Humph!’ - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/4/) — Just ‘Humph!’ and no more. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/5/) — Presently the Horse came to him on Monday morning, with a saddle on his back and a bit in his mouth, and said, ‘Camel, O Camel, come out and trot like the rest of us.’ - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/6/) — ‘Humph!’ said the Camel; and the Horse went away and told the Man. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/7/) — Presently the Dog came to him, with a stick in his mouth, and said, ‘Camel, O Camel, come and fetch and carry like the rest of us.’ - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/8/) — ‘Humph!’ said the Camel; and the Dog went away and told the Man. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/9/) — Presently the Ox came to him, with the yoke on his neck and said, ‘Camel, O Camel, come and plough like the rest of us.’ - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/10/) — ‘Humph!’ said the Camel; and the Ox went away and told the Man. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/11/) — At the end of the day the Man called the Horse and the Dog and the Ox together, and said, ‘Three, O Three, I’m very sorry for you (with the world so new-and-all); but that Humph-thing in the Desert can’t work, or he would have been here by now, so I am going to leave him alone, and you must work double-time to make up for it.’ - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/12/) — That made the Three very angry (with the world so new-and-all), and they held a palaver, and an \_indaba\_, and a \_punchayet\_, and a pow-wow on the edge of the Desert; and the Camel came chewing on milkweed \_most\_ ‘scruciating idle, and laughed at them. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/13/) — Then he said ‘Humph!’ and went away again. - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/14/) — Presently there came along the Djinn in charge of All Deserts, rolling in a cloud of dust (Djinns always travel that way because it is Magic), and he stopped to palaver and pow-pow with the Three. — checked by a teacher - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/15/) — ‘Djinn of All Deserts,’ said the Horse, ‘is it right for any one to be idle, with the world so new-and-all?’ - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/16/) — ‘Certainly not,’ said the Djinn. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/17/) — ‘Well,’ said the Horse, ‘there’s a thing in the middle of your Howling Desert (and he’s a Howler himself) with a long neck and long legs, and he hasn’t done a stroke of work since Monday morning. - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/18/) — He won’t trot.’ - [19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/19/) — ‘Whew!’ said the Djinn, whistling, ‘that’s my Camel, for all the gold in Arabia! - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/20/) — What does he say about it?’ - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/21/) — ‘He says “Humph!”’ said the Dog; ‘and he won’t fetch and carry.’ - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/22/) — ‘Does he say anything else?’ - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/23/) — ‘Only “Humph!”; and he won’t plough,’ said the Ox. - [24](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/24/) — ‘Very good,’ said the Djinn. - [25](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/25/) — ‘I’ll humph him if you will kindly wait a minute.’ - [26](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/26/) — The Djinn rolled himself up in his dust-cloak, and took a bearing across the desert, and found the Camel most ‘scruciatingly idle, looking at his own reflection in a pool of water. - [27](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/27/) — ‘My long and bubbling friend,’ said the Djinn, ‘what’s this I hear of your doing no work, with the world so new-and-all?’ - [28](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/28/) — ‘Humph!’ said the Camel. - [29](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/29/) — The Djinn sat down, with his chin in his hand, and began to think a Great Magic, while the Camel looked at his own reflection in the pool of water. - [30](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/30/) — ‘You’ve given the Three extra work ever since Monday morning, all on account of your ‘scruciating idleness,’ said the Djinn; and he went on thinking Magics, with his chin in his hand. - [31](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/31/) — ‘Humph!’ said the Camel. - [32](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/32/) — ‘I shouldn’t say that again if I were you,’ said the Djinn; you might say it once too often. - [33](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/33/) — Bubbles, I want you to work.’ - [34](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/34/) — And the Camel said ‘Humph!’ again; but no sooner had he said it than he saw his back, that he was so proud of, puffing up and puffing up into a great big lolloping humph. - [35](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/35/) — ‘Do you see that?’ said the Djinn. - [36](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/36/) — ‘That’s your very own humph that you’ve brought upon your very own self by not working. - [37](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/37/) — To-day is Thursday, and you’ve done no work since Monday, when the work began. - [38](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/38/) — Now you are going to work.’ - [39](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/39/) — ‘How can I,’ said the Camel, ‘with this humph on my back?’ - [40](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/40/) — ‘That’s made a-purpose,’ said the Djinn, ‘all because you missed those three days. - [41](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/41/) — You will be able to work now for three days without eating, because you can live on your humph; and don’t you ever say I never did anything for you. - [42](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/42/) — Come out of the Desert and go to the Three, and behave. - [43](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/43/) — Humph yourself!’ - [44](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/44/) — And the Camel humphed himself, humph and all, and went away to join the Three. - [45](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/45/) — And from that day to this the Camel always wears a humph (we call it ‘hump’ now, not to hurt his feelings); but he has never yet caught up with the three days that he missed at the beginning of the world, and he has never yet learned how to behave. - [46](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/46/) — THE Camel’s hump is an ugly lump Which well you may see at the Zoo; But uglier yet is the hump we get From having too little to do. - [47](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/47/) — Kiddies and grown-ups too-oo-oo, If we haven’t enough to do-oo-oo, We get the hump-- Cameelious hump-- The hump that is black and blue! - [48](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/48/) — We climb out of bed with a frouzly head And a snarly-yarly voice. - [49](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/49/) — We shiver and scowl and we grunt and we growl At our bath and our boots and our toys; - [50](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/50/) — And there ought to be a corner for me (And I know there is one for you) When we get the hump-- Cameelious hump-- The hump that is black and blue! - [51](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/51/) — The cure for this ill is not to sit still, Or frowst with a book by the fire; But to take a large hoe and a shovel also, And dig till you gently perspire; - [52](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/52/) — And then you will find that the sun and the wind. - [53](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/53/) — And the Djinn of the Garden too, Have lifted the hump-- The horrible hump-- The hump that is black and blue! - [54](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/3/54/) — I get it as well as you-oo-oo-- If I haven’t enough to do-oo-oo-- We all get hump-- Cameelious hump-- Kiddies and grown-ups too! - ← previous: [How the Whale Got His Throat](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/2/) - next →: [How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/4/) - ↑ back to [Just so stories](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2781/)