How the First Letter was WrittenClass 9 English Chapter 3 Notes – Maharashtra Board

Summary: How the First Letter was Written

Long ago, in the Neolithic (later Stone) Age, a cave man named Tegumai lived happily with his wife Teshumai and his little daughter Taffy. None of them could read or write. Their long names describe their nature: a careful man, a lady who asks many questions, and a naughty little girl.

One day Tegumai and Taffy went to the Wagai river to spear fish. Tegumai broke his spear and had no spare one. Taffy wished they could write, so that they could send home for his other, black-handled spear.

A stranger from a faraway tribe, the Tewaras, came by. He did not understand their language. Tegumai, busy mending his spear, ignored him, so the stranger thought Tegumai was a great chief. When Taffy pulled at his magic shark's tooth and did not 'burst', he thought she was a wonderful child.

Taffy scratched pictures on birch-bark with the shark's tooth to show the way to the cave and ask for the spear. But her drawing was poor: the spear seemed stuck in her father's back, her hair stood on end, and the beavers looked like people. The stranger thought the chief was in danger and ran off to fetch help.

At the cave, Teshumai saw the picture and believed the stranger had attacked her husband and frightened Taffy. She screamed, and the other Neolithic ladies knocked him down and sat on him while she pulled his hair. The story shows, with humour, how easily a message can be misunderstood.

Key points to remember

• Author: Rudyard Kipling; the story is an adapted version of one of his 'Just So Stories'
• Setting: the Neolithic (later Stone) Age, a cave near the Wagai river and a beaver-swamp
• Tegumai Bopsulai — 'a man who never hurries to put his foot forward' — careful, slow, patient
• Teshumai Tewindrow — 'lady who asks very many questions' — curious, quick to react
• Taffimai Metallumai (Taffy) — 'small person without any manners' — naughty, clever, imaginative
• The Stranger-man belonged to the Tewara tribe and did not know their language
• The broken spear and the missing spare spear start the problem
• Taffy uses a shark's tooth to scratch a picture-letter on birch-bark
• The stranger misreads the picture as a call for help in a battle
• Teshumai misreads it as proof that the stranger hurt her family
• The story is told in a colloquial style, speaking directly to 'O Best Beloved'
• Message: communication needs a shared language; pictures alone can mislead

How the First Letter was Written – Notes

1. The story in simple words

• The family: Tegumai, his wife Teshumai and their daughter Taffy live happily in a cave. They cannot write and do not feel the need to.
• The problem: at the river Tegumai breaks his only spear by jabbing it too hard into the riverbed. Home is miles away; Taffy's legs are too short to run back, and the beaver-swamp is dangerous.
• Taffy's idea: she wishes they could write a message home. A Tewara stranger arrives, but he does not understand a word she says.
• The stranger's mistakes: because Tegumai ignores him, he thinks Tegumai is a proud chief; because Taffy touches his magic shark's tooth safely, he thinks she is wonderful. He gives her birch-bark to show his heart is pure; she thinks he wants their address.
• The picture-letter: Taffy draws her father, the spear, herself, the stranger, two trees, a hill, the beavers' heads, the cave and her mother with raised hands.
• The misunderstanding: the stranger runs to the cave to bring help for the 'chief'. Teshumai sees the drawing, believes her husband has been speared, and the ladies sit on the poor stranger.

2. Characters

• Tegumai — patient and careful like his name; he sits calmly and mends his spear instead of rushing. He also ignores Taffy and the stranger while working.
• Taffy — clever and full of ideas (she thinks of writing), but bossy, talkative and without manners; she stamps her foot, pulls the necklace and calls the stranger 'Silly!'.
• Teshumai — asks many questions and reacts fast; she screams and attacks the stranger before asking what happened.
• The Stranger-man — innocent, polite and calm, but he jumps to wrong conclusions and acts hastily, running off without even asking the way.

3. Humour in the story

• Funny long names with funny meanings.
• Repeated phrase '(and he was a Tewara)' — the joke grows each time.
• The stranger's wonder grows: 'very wonderful', 'very, very wonderful', 'very, very, very wonderful'.
• Taffy's baby talk: ''splain' (explain), ''fended' (offended), 'beautifullest', 'berangement' (arrangement).
• The ladies sit on the stranger 'in a long line of six' and are described as 'sitting patiently' on him — two humorous expressions.
• Teshumai says the matter is 'as plain as the nose on…' the stranger's face.

4. Style: talking to the listener

• Kipling tells the story as if speaking aloud to a child he calls 'O Best Beloved'.
• Examples: 'but we, O Best Beloved…'; and 'Now attend and listen!'; 'He did this, Best Beloved…'; 'did you know he was…?' (about the Tewara); 'Now this is the picture…'.
• This informal, colloquial style makes the story warm and funny to read aloud.

5. Grammar: main clauses and punctuation

• A main clause can stand alone as a sentence. Compound sentences join main clauses with and, but.
• '…all three very happy' and '…Taffy went too' are main clauses.
• In the sentence about Taffy not being spanked enough, the part 'as was good for her' is a subordinate clause.
• The story uses single inverted commas for speech; in double quotation marks they become “ ”.

Words and phrases to know

Key terms

How the First Letter was Written – Flashcards

Read the question, answer it in your head, then tap the card to check. 20 cards.

How the First Letter was Written – MCQ Quiz

15 questions. Tap an option — you will see at once if it is right and why.

How to study How the First Letter was Written

⏱ About 30 minutes

1. Read (12 min)
   Read the story aloud, enjoying the funny names and the repeated '(and he was a Tewara)'.
2. Learn (10 min)
   Learn the meaning of each name, the stranger's mistakes, the humorous expressions and the main-clause rule.
3. Practise (8 min)
   Answer the 'Try it yourself' questions, take the quiz and play 🎮 Play.