TitleMy Lord Bag - O'Rice - T. Hasegawa versionAlternative TitleTawara no TodaContributorChamberlain, B.H. (Basil Hall), 1850 - 1935PublisherHasegawa, TokyoDescription"Once upon a time, there lived a brave warrior called "Tawara - no - Toda," or "My Lord Bag - o' - Rice." One day, when he was about to cross a bridge over a river flowing down from a lake, he saw a big serpent lying in his path. He calmly stepped on it to go on his way, and the serpent instantly changed into a tiny dwarf, who prostrated himself on the bridge, claimed that he dwelled on the bottom of the lake, and begged Tawara to avenge for him on the centipede living in the hills. Tawara agreed to do so on the spot, and the dwarf took him to his summer - house on the lake - bottom. While the dwarf was entertaining Tawara, the centipede over a mile long came creeping down from the hills. Tawara slew it with an arrow from his enormous bow. The dwarf rewarded him by giving him a large bronze bell, sword, suit of armour, roll of silk that never ran out no matter how much of it was used, and a bag of rice that never became empty. Tawara donated the bell to a temple and lived happily - and in opulence - ever after." (Kyoto University of Foreign Studies, LanguageEnglish
