--- title: Story of the Great Chief of the Animals. — Kaffir folk-lore · full text with trees description: Story of the Great Chief of the Animals., «Kaffir folk-lore» by George McCall Theal: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: There was once a woman who had occasion to leave her home for a short time, and who left her children in charge of a hare. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/23/) [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/) / Story of the Great Chief of the Animals. # Story of the Great Chief of the Animals. Story of the Great Chief of the Animals. of «Kaffir folk-lore» by George McCall Theal: the whole text, 31 sentences and 516 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 woman who had occasion to leave her home for a short time, and who left her children in charge of a hare.[1](1/ "tree and pragmatics") The place where they lived was close to a path, along which droves of wild animals were accustomed to pass.[2](2/ "tree and pragmatics") Soon after the woman left, the animals appeared, and the hare at sight of them became frightened.[3](3/ "tree and pragmatics") So she ran away to a distance, and stood to watch.[4](4/ "tree and pragmatics") Among the animals was one terrible monster, which called to the hare, and demanded to know what children those were.[5](5/ "tree and pragmatics") The hare told their names, upon which the animal swallowed them entire.[6](6/ "tree and pragmatics") When the woman returned, the hare told her what had happened.[7](7/ "tree and pragmatics") Then the woman gathered some dry wood, and sharpened two pieces of iron, which she took with her and went along the path.[8](8/ "tree and pragmatics") Now this was the chief of the animals; therefore, when she came on a hill over against him, the woman began to call out that she was looking for her children.[9](9/ "tree and pragmatics") The animal replied: “Come nearer, I cannot hear you.”[10](10/ "tree and pragmatics") When she went, he swallowed her also.[11](11/ "tree and pragmatics") The woman found her children alive, and also many other people, and oxen, and dogs.[12](12/ "tree and pragmatics") The children were hungry, so the woman with her pieces of iron cut some pieces of flesh from the animal’s ribs.[13](13/ "tree and pragmatics") She then made a fire and cooked the meat, and the children ate.[14](14/ "tree and pragmatics") The other people said: “We also are hungry, give us to eat.”[15](15/ "tree and pragmatics") Then she cut and cooked for them also.[16](16/ "tree and pragmatics") The animal felt uncomfortable under this treatment, and called his councillors together for advice, but they could suggest no remedy.[17](17/ "tree and pragmatics") He lay down and rolled in the mud, but that did not help him, and at last he went and put his head in the kraal fence, and died.[18](18/ "tree and pragmatics") His councillors were standing at a distance, afraid to approach him, so they sent a monkey to see how he was.[19](19/ "tree and pragmatics") The monkey returned and said: “Those whose home is on the mountains must hasten to the mountains; those whose home is on the plains must hasten to the plains; as for me, I go to the rocks.”[20](20/ "tree and pragmatics") Then the animals all dispersed.[21](21/ "tree and pragmatics") By this time the woman had succeeded in cutting a hole through the chief’s side, and came forth, followed by her children.[22](22/ "tree and pragmatics") Then an ox came out, and said: “Bo! bo! who helped me?”[23](23/ "tree and pragmatics") Then a dog, who said: “Ho! ho! who helped me?”[24](24/ "tree and pragmatics") Then a man, who said: “Zo! zo! who helped me?”[25](25/ "tree and pragmatics") Afterwards all the people and cattle came out.[26](26/ "tree and pragmatics") They agreed that the woman who helped them should be their chief.[27](27/ "tree and pragmatics") When her children became men, they were out hunting one day, and saw a monstrous cannibal, who was sticking fast in a mud hole.[28](28/ "tree and pragmatics") They killed him, and then returned to tell the men of their tribe what they had done.[29](29/ "tree and pragmatics") The men went and skinned the cannibal, when a great number of people came out of him also.[30](30/ "tree and pragmatics") These joined their deliverers, and so that people became a great nation.[31](31/ "tree and pragmatics") - ← previous: [The Story of the Glutton.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/22/) - next →: [Story of the Hare.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/24/) - ↑ back to [Kaffir folk-lore](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg71335/)