--- title: The Story of Kenkebe. — Kaffir folk-lore · full text with trees description: The Story of Kenkebe., «Kaffir folk-lore» by George McCall Theal: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: There was once a great famine in a certain country, and the people were obliged to eat wild plants to keep themselves alive. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/19/) [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/) / [Kaffir folk-lore](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/) / The Story of Kenkebe. # The Story of Kenkebe. The Story of Kenkebe. of «Kaffir folk-lore» by George McCall Theal: the whole text, 119 sentences and 1714 words. The small number after every sentence leads to its own page with its syntax tree and pragmatics, parsed by Mova itself. There was once a great famine in a certain country, and the people were obliged to eat wild plants to keep themselves alive.[1](1/ "tree and pragmatics") Their principal food during this time was nongwes (Hypoxis, p. 385, “Harvey’s Gen. S. A. Plants”), which they dug out of the ground.[2](2/ "tree and pragmatics") There was living at that place a man called Kenkebe, and one day his wife said to him, “My husband, go to my father and ask him to give us some corn.”[3](3/ "tree and pragmatics") The man said: “Yes, I will go.”[4](4/ "tree and pragmatics") So he rose up early in the morning, and went on till he arrived at his father-in-law’s village, where he was received with every mark of kindness.[5](5/ "tree and pragmatics") A very large ox was killed for his entertainment.[6](6/ "tree and pragmatics") It was so large that it was six days before it was all eaten.[7](7/ "tree and pragmatics") His father-in-law asked of him the news.[8](8/ "tree and pragmatics") He said: “There is no news to tell to friends.[9](9/ "tree and pragmatics") All the news is this, that at my home there is not a grain to be eaten.[10](10/ "tree and pragmatics") Famine is over our heads.[11](11/ "tree and pragmatics") Will you give us some corn, for we are dying?”[12](12/ "tree and pragmatics") His father-in-law gave him seven bags (i.e. skins of animals dressed entire) full of millet, and his wife’s sisters went with him to carry them.[13](13/ "tree and pragmatics") When they came to a valley close by his home, he told his sisters-in-law that they could now go back to their father.[14](14/ "tree and pragmatics") They said: “How will you manage to carry all those bags alone?”[15](15/ "tree and pragmatics") He replied: “I shall be able to carry them all now, because we are not far from my home.”[16](16/ "tree and pragmatics") So those girls went back to their father.[17](17/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he carried the bags one by one, and hid them in a cave under a great rock that was there.[18](18/ "tree and pragmatics") Afterwards he took some of the millet and ground it.[19](19/ "tree and pragmatics") When it was ground very fine he made it into cakes just like nongwes.[20](20/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he dug some real nongwes out of the ground, and went home to his wife.[21](21/ "tree and pragmatics") He said to her: “There is a great famine at your father’s also.[22](22/ "tree and pragmatics") I found the people there eating themselves.”[23](23/ "tree and pragmatics") He told his wife to make a fire.[24](24/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he pretended to cut a piece of meat out of his thigh, and said: “So are they doing at your father’s village.[25](25/ "tree and pragmatics") Now, my wife, let us do the same.”[26](26/ "tree and pragmatics") His wife cut a piece from her leg and roasted it.[27](27/ "tree and pragmatics") The piece that Kenkebe put on the fire was some that he had brought home with him.[28](28/ "tree and pragmatics") Then Kenkebe s little boy said: “Why does my father’s meat smell nice in roasting, and my mother’s meat does not smell nice?”[29](29/ "tree and pragmatics") Kenkebe answered: “It is because it is taken from the leg of a man.”[30](30/ "tree and pragmatics") After this he gave his wife some nongwes to roast.[31](31/ "tree and pragmatics") He took for himself some of those he had made of corn.[32](32/ "tree and pragmatics") The little boy said: “Why do my father’s nongwes smell nice in roasting, and my mother’s do not smell nice?”[33](33/ "tree and pragmatics") Kenkebe said: “It is because they were dug by a man.”[34](34/ "tree and pragmatics") After eating, he went outside, but he had dropped one of his nongwes by the fire.[35](35/ "tree and pragmatics") When he went out the boy found the nongwe.[36](36/ "tree and pragmatics") He broke it in two and gave half to his mother.[37](37/ "tree and pragmatics") He said: “There is a difference between our nongwes and those of father’s.”[38](38/ "tree and pragmatics") His mother said: “Yes, my child, this one is made of corn.”[39](39/ "tree and pragmatics") The next morning, just at the first beginning of dawn, Kenkebe got up and went away with a pot in his hand.[40](40/ "tree and pragmatics") The boy was awake, and saw his father go out.[41](41/ "tree and pragmatics") So he called to his mother, and said: “Mother, mother, wake, my father is going away with the pot in his hand.”[42](42/ "tree and pragmatics") So she got up, and they followed after Kenkebe.[43](43/ "tree and pragmatics") They saw him go to the cave where he took some corn out of one of the bags and began to grind it.[44](44/ "tree and pragmatics") Then they went on top of the rock, and rolled a big stone over.[45](45/ "tree and pragmatics") When Kenkebe saw the stone coming he ran away, but it followed close behind him.[46](46/ "tree and pragmatics") He ran down the valley, the stone kept running too.[47](47/ "tree and pragmatics") He jumped into a deep hole in the river, down went the stone too.[48](48/ "tree and pragmatics") He ran up the hill, up went the stone also.[49](49/ "tree and pragmatics") He ran over the plain, but whenever he turned to look, the stone was there just behind him.[50](50/ "tree and pragmatics") So it continued all that day.[51](51/ "tree and pragmatics") At night he reached his own house, and then the stone stopped.[52](52/ "tree and pragmatics") His wife had already come home, and had brought with her one of the bags of corn.[53](53/ "tree and pragmatics") Kenkebe came in crying.[54](54/ "tree and pragmatics") His wife said to him: “Why do you cry as if you were a child?”[55](55/ "tree and pragmatics") He said: “Because I am very tired and very hungry.”[56](56/ "tree and pragmatics") She said: “Where are your clothes and your bag?”[57](57/ "tree and pragmatics") He replied: “I was crossing a river, and I fell down.[58](58/ "tree and pragmatics") The stream carried away my mantle, and my bag, and my kerries, and everything that was mine.”[59](59/ "tree and pragmatics") Then his wife gave him his mantle, which she had picked up when he was running away, and she said to him: “You are foolish to do such things.[60](60/ "tree and pragmatics") There is no food for you to-night.”[61](61/ "tree and pragmatics") The next morning Kenkebe rose early and went out to hunt with his two dogs.[62](62/ "tree and pragmatics") The name of the one was Tumtumse, and the name of the other was Mbambozozele.[63](63/ "tree and pragmatics") He found an eland with a young calf, which he drove to his place.[64](64/ "tree and pragmatics") He cut an ear off the calf and roasted it in the fire.[65](65/ "tree and pragmatics") It was fat, and he liked it so much that he cut the other ear off and cooked it also.[66](66/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he wished to kill the calf, but he said to himself: “If I kill this calf I shall not be able to get milk from the eland.”[67](67/ "tree and pragmatics") So he called his two dogs, and said to the one: “Tumtumse, my dog, if I kill this calf, will you imitate it and suck the eland for me?”[68](68/ "tree and pragmatics") The dog said: “No, I will bark like a dog.”[69](69/ "tree and pragmatics") Kenkebe said: “Get out of my sight and never come near me again, you ugly, useless animal.”[70](70/ "tree and pragmatics") He said to the other: “Mbambozozele, my dog, if I kill this calf, will you imitate it and suck the eland for me?”[71](71/ "tree and pragmatics") The dog said: “I will do so.”[72](72/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he killed the calf and ate it.[73](73/ "tree and pragmatics") He took the skin and put it upon Mbambozozele, so that the eland thought it was her calf that sucked before Kenkebe milked her.[74](74/ "tree and pragmatics") But one day the dog was sucking too long, and Kenkebe wanted him to leave off.[75](75/ "tree and pragmatics") He tried to drink just a few drops more, when his master got angry and struck him with a stick.[76](76/ "tree and pragmatics") Thereupon the dog began to howl, and the eland saw how she had been deceived.[77](77/ "tree and pragmatics") At once she ran after Kenkebe and tried to stick him with her horns.[78](78/ "tree and pragmatics") He ran one way and the eland ran after him, then he ran another way, and still the eland chased him.[79](79/ "tree and pragmatics") His wife came out and saw him running.[80](80/ "tree and pragmatics") She cried out to him: “Jump up quickly on the big stone.”[81](81/ "tree and pragmatics") He did so, and the eland ran with such fury against that stone that it broke its head and fell down dead.[82](82/ "tree and pragmatics") They then cut the eland up and wanted to cook it, but there was no fire.[83](83/ "tree and pragmatics") Kenkebe said to his son: “Go to the village of the cannibals that is on that hill over the valley, and ask for some fire; but do not take any meat with you, lest they should smell it.”[84](84/ "tree and pragmatics") The boy went, but he hid a piece of meat and took it with him.[85](85/ "tree and pragmatics") When he got to the first house he asked for fire, but they sent him to the next.[86](86/ "tree and pragmatics") At the next they sent him farther, and so he had to go to the house that was farthest away.[87](87/ "tree and pragmatics") An old woman lived there.[88](88/ "tree and pragmatics") The boy gave her a little piece of meat, and said: “Do not cook it till I am far away with the fire.”[89](89/ "tree and pragmatics") But as soon as the boy was gone, she put it on the coals.[90](90/ "tree and pragmatics") The smell came to the noses of the cannibals, and they ran to the place and swallowed the old woman, and the meat, and the fire, and even the ashes.[91](91/ "tree and pragmatics") Then they ran after the boy.[92](92/ "tree and pragmatics") When he came near his own house, he cried out: “Hide yourselves, you that are at home.”[93](93/ "tree and pragmatics") His father said: “My son is saying we must gather wood that will make coals.”[94](94/ "tree and pragmatics") His mother said: “No, he is saying we must hide ourselves.”[95](95/ "tree and pragmatics") The boy cried again: “Hide yourselves.”[96](96/ "tree and pragmatics") Then his mother hid herself in a bush; an old woman that was there covered herself with ashes, and Kenkebe climbed up into a tree, with the breast of the eland in his hand.[97](97/ "tree and pragmatics") The boy slipped into a hole that was by the side of the path.[98](98/ "tree and pragmatics") The cannibals came to the place.[99](99/ "tree and pragmatics") First they ate the eland.[100](100/ "tree and pragmatics") Then one of them said: “Search under the ashes.”[101](101/ "tree and pragmatics") There they found the old woman, and they ate her.[102](102/ "tree and pragmatics") Then they said: “Search in the tree.”[103](103/ "tree and pragmatics") There they found Kenkebe.[104](104/ "tree and pragmatics") He cried very much, but they would not spare him.[105](105/ "tree and pragmatics") They ate him and the breast of the eland.[106](106/ "tree and pragmatics") Then the wise one said: “Look in the bush.”[107](107/ "tree and pragmatics") They looked there and found the wife of Kenkebe.[108](108/ "tree and pragmatics") They said: “We will eat her another time,” and so they took her home with them.[109](109/ "tree and pragmatics") They did not look for the boy.[110](110/ "tree and pragmatics") The woman made a plan to escape.[111](111/ "tree and pragmatics") She made beer for the cannibals, and they all came to drink.[112](112/ "tree and pragmatics") They sat together in a big house, and drank very much beer.[113](113/ "tree and pragmatics") Then she said: “Can I go out?”[114](114/ "tree and pragmatics") They said: “You can go, but come back quickly.”[115](115/ "tree and pragmatics") She said: “Shall I close the entrance?”[116](116/ "tree and pragmatics") They said: “Close it.”[117](117/ "tree and pragmatics") Then she took fire and put it on the house and all those cannibals were burnt to death.[118](118/ "tree and pragmatics") So the woman escaped, and afterwards lived happily with her son.[119](119/ "tree and pragmatics") - ← previous: [The Story of Long Snake.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/18/) - next →: [Another Story of Kenkebe.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/20/) - ↑ back to [Kaffir folk-lore](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/)