JUST SO STORIES

By Rudyard Kipling

This book has these stories:

• How the Whale Got His Throat
• How the Camel Got His Hump
• How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin
• How the Leopard Got His Spots
• The Elephant's Child
• The Sing-Song of Old Man Kangaroo
• The Beginning of the Armadillos
• How the First Letter Was Written
• How the Alphabet Was Made
• The Crab That Played With the Sea
• The Cat That Walked by Himself
• The Butterfly That Stamped

HOW THE WHALE GOT HIS THROAT

Once there was a Whale.
This was long ago.
He lived in the sea.

The Whale ate fish.
He ate every kind of fish.
Starfish, crabs, and eels too.
He ate them all up.

Soon there was just one fish left.
It was a small, clever fish.
He swam near the Whale's ear.
That way he stayed safe.

The Whale said, "I am hungry!"

The clever fish had an idea.
"Have you tried eating a Man?" he asked.

"No," said the Whale. "What does he taste like?"

"Man tastes nice," said the fish.
"But he is a little bumpy."

"Bring me one!" said the Whale.

The fish gave directions.
"Swim far out to sea," he said.
"You will find a raft.
A sailor sits on it.
His ship sank in a storm.
He wears blue pants.
He wears straps called suspenders.
He has a small knife.
He is very, very clever."

So the Whale swam and swam.
He found the sailor at last.
The sailor was dipping his toes in the water.

The Whale opened his mouth wide.
He swallowed the sailor whole!
He swallowed the raft too.
He swallowed the pants and suspenders.
He swallowed the little knife.
Then the Whale smacked his lips.

But inside the Whale, the sailor was busy.
He jumped and stomped.
He danced and banged.
He would not sit still!
The Whale got the hiccups.

"Come out!" said the Whale.
"You are making me hiccup!"

"Not yet," said the sailor.
"Take me home first."
And he danced even more.

So the Whale swam to shore.
He swam to the sailor's home beach.
He opened his mouth wide to let him out.

But while they swam, the sailor had a plan.
He took his little knife.
He cut the raft into a grid, like a fence.
He tied it tight with his suspenders.
Then he wedged it inside the Whale's throat!

Now the Whale's throat had a grid in it.
He could not close it all the way.
He could not swallow big things anymore.

The sailor walked out onto the beach.
He went home to his mother.
He got married and lived happily.

And that is why whales cannot eat people.
The grid stays in their throat.
Now whales eat only tiny fish.

The little clever fish hid in the mud.
He was afraid the Whale was mad at him.

HOW THE CAMEL GOT HIS HUMP

Long ago, the world was new.
Animals were learning to work for Man.

But one Camel would not work.
He lived in a big, hot desert.
He ate sticks and thorns all day.
He was very, very lazy.

When anyone spoke to him, he said, "Humph!"
That is all he ever said.

The Horse came to him.
"Camel, come work like us," said the Horse.

"Humph!" said the Camel.

The Dog came too.
"Camel, come work like us," said the Dog.

"Humph!" said the Camel.

The Ox came too.
"Camel, come work like us," said the Ox.

"Humph!" said the Camel.

The Horse, Dog, and Ox told the Man.
The Man said, "I'm sorry.
That Camel will not work.
You must work extra hard instead."

This made the three animals angry.
They talked about it together.

Then a Djinn came by.
A Djinn is a magic spirit.
He watches over all deserts.

"Is it right to be lazy?" asked the Horse.

"No," said the Djinn. "Where is this lazy one?"

"He lives in your desert," said the Horse.
"He only says 'Humph!'"

The Djinn went to find the Camel.
The Camel was looking at his own reflection in the water.

"Why won't you work?" asked the Djinn.

"Humph!" said the Camel.

The Djinn sat and thought hard.
He was making magic.

"You made the others work extra," said the Djinn.

"Humph!" said the Camel again.

"I would not say that again," said the Djinn.

But the Camel said "Humph!" one more time.

Suddenly, his back began to puff up!
It grew into a big, round hump!

"Look at that," said the Djinn.
"That is your very own hump.
You made it by being lazy.
Now you can work for three days without eating.
Your hump will feed you.
Go join the others and work!"

So the Camel went to work at last.
And ever since that day, camels have humps.
We call it a "hump" now, to be kind.
But the Camel never made up for those three lazy days.
And he still does not behave very well.

HOW THE RHINOCEROS GOT HIS SKIN

Once upon a time, there was an island.
It was in the Red Sea.
No one lived there.

On this island lived a Parsee.
A Parsee is a person from Persia.
He wore a very shiny hat.
The sun sparkled on it brightly.