TitleThe Tongue - Cut SparrowAlternative TitleShita - kiri suzumeContributorThompson, David, 1835 - 1915 Eitaku, 1843-1890PublisherHasegawa Takejiro, TokyoDescription"A sparrow kept by a kind - hearted old woman licked some starch at the house of a cross old woman who lived next door. In a rage, the cross old woman cut out the tongue of the sparrow before it managed to fly away. Hearing of this incident, the kind old woman worried about the sparrow and went looking for it with her husband. The two finally came upon the home of the sparrow, which welcomed them and asked them to choose between a big wicker basket and a small one to take back with them as a token of the visit. They chose the small basket, and found it filled with treasure upon their return. The cross old woman went to the sparrow's home as well and chose the big wicker basket for her gift, but when she got it back home and opened it, a whole troop of frightful devils sprang out of it and tore her to pieces." (Kyoto University of Foreign Studies, LanguageEnglish
