--- title: It may have been that the country was more healthy, and we may have… — Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria · tree and pragmatics description: It may have been that the country was more healthy, and we may have been very fortunate, but the fact remains that where there was no ju-ju there were no deaths, and when we returned to the country of ju-ju deaths were of frequent occurrence. Who acts: country, we, ju. A sentence of «Ikom folk stori --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/1/98/) [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/) / [Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/) / [Opening](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/1/) / 98 # Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria, Opening, sentence 98 It may have been that the country was more healthy, and we may have been very fortunate, but the fact remains that where there was no ju-ju there were no deaths, and when we returned to the country of ju-ju deaths were of frequent occurrence. **Who acts:** country, we, ju · **What happens:** be, return · **To what, where:** healthy fact remains This is a sentence of «Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria» by Elphinstone Dayrell, Opening. The page gives its syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause: who acts (country, we, ju), what happens, when and where, as Mova's frames read it from the tree. **Mova's own parse.** This tree may be wrong. ## The tree {#tree} ```conllu # sent_id = book:pg70959:1:98 # text = It may have been that the country was more healthy, and we may have been very fortunate, but the fact remains that where there was no ju-ju there were no deaths, and when we returned to the country of ju-ju deaths were of frequent occurrence. 1 It it PRON PRP Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs 23 nsubj _ _ 2 may may AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 23 aux _ _ 3 have have AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 23 aux _ _ 4 been be AUX VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part 23 cop _ _ 5 that that SCONJ IN _ 10 mark _ _ 6 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 7 det _ _ 7 country country NOUN NN Number=Sing 10 nsubj _ _ 8 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 10 cop _ _ 9 more more ADV RBR Degree=Cmp 10 advmod _ _ 10 healthy healthy ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 23 amod _ SpaceAfter=No 11 , , PUNCT , _ 18 punct _ _ 12 and and CCONJ CC _ 18 cc _ _ 13 we we PRON PRP Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs 18 nsubj _ _ 14 may may AUX MD VerbForm=Fin 18 aux _ _ 15 have have AUX VB VerbForm=Inf 18 aux _ _ 16 been be AUX VBN Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part 18 cop _ _ 17 very very ADV RB _ 18 advmod _ _ 18 fortunate fortunate ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 10 conj _ SpaceAfter=No 19 , , PUNCT , _ 23 punct _ _ 20 but but CCONJ CC _ 23 cc _ _ 21 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 23 det _ _ 22 fact fact NOUN NN Number=Sing 23 compound _ _ 23 remains remains NOUN NNS Number=Ptan 0 root _ _ 24 that that PRON WDT PronType=Rel 27 obj _ _ 25 where where ADV WRB PronType=Rel 27 advmod _ _ 26 there there PRON EX PronType=Dem 27 expl _ _ 27 was be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 23 acl:relcl _ _ 28 no no DET DT PronType=Neg 31 det _ _ 29 ju ju NOUN NN Number=Sing 31 compound _ SpaceAfter=No 30 - - PUNCT HYPH _ 29 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 31 ju ju NOUN NN Number=Sing 27 nsubj _ _ 32 there there PRON EX PronType=Dem 33 expl _ _ 33 were be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 31 acl:relcl _ _ 34 no no DET DT PronType=Neg 35 det _ _ 35 deaths death NOUN NNS Number=Plur 33 nsubj _ SpaceAfter=No 36 , , PUNCT , _ 40 punct _ _ 37 and and CCONJ CC _ 40 cc _ _ 38 when when ADV WRB PronType=Int 40 advmod _ _ 39 we we PRON PRP Case=Nom|Number=Plur|Person=1|PronType=Prs 40 nsubj _ _ 40 returned return VERB VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Plur|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 23 conj _ _ 41 to to ADP IN _ 43 case _ _ 42 the the DET DT Definite=Def|PronType=Art 43 det _ _ 43 country country NOUN NN Number=Sing 40 obl _ _ 44 of of ADP IN _ 48 case _ _ 45 ju ju NOUN NN Number=Sing 47 compound _ SpaceAfter=No 46 - - PUNCT HYPH _ 45 punct _ SpaceAfter=No 47 ju ju NOUN NN Number=Sing 48 compound _ _ 48 deaths death NOUN NNS Number=Plur 52 obl _ _ 49 were be AUX VBD Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin 52 cop _ _ 50 of of ADP IN _ 52 case _ _ 51 frequent frequent ADJ JJ Degree=Pos 52 amod _ _ 52 occurrence occurrence NOUN NN Number=Sing 43 conj _ SpaceAfter=No 53 . . PUNCT . _ 23 punct _ _ ``` ## Pragmatics {#pragmatics} | # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | **is** | past | the country | | | | | healthy *property* | tree rules | | 2 | **is** | may · perfect | we | | | | | fortunate *property* | tree rules | | 3 | **is a** | may · perfect | ju | the healthy fact remains | | | | | tree rules | | 4 | **return** | past | we | | | | | to the country and frequent occurrence *result* | vn convert-26.6.2-1 «NP V S\_ING»: agent=Patient to country=Result | | 5 | **is** | past | we *not said here* | | | | | of frequent occurrence; of ju deaths | tree rules | One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree. **Text:** «Ikom folk stories from Southern Nigeria» by Elphinstone Dayrell, Project Gutenberg book 70959 (public domain in the USA). **Tree:** Mova's own parse, Elamur Cosmic License. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), the chapter read in order. - ← previous: [sentence 97](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/1/97/) - next →: [sentence 99](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/1/99/) - ↑ back to [Opening](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg70959/1/)