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Updated: May 20, 2025
When the little old man came home from the hills, where he had been chopping wood, he found the sparrow gone. "Where is my little sparrow?" asked he. "It pecked at my starching-paste," answered the little old woman, "so I cut its evil tongue and let it fly away." "Alas! Alas!" cried the little old man. "Poor thing! Poor thing! Poor little tongue-cut sparrow! Where is your home now?"
The old woman said nothing more, and from that day she repented of her cross, unkind ways, and by degrees became a good old woman, so that her husband hardly knew her to be the same person, and they spent their last days together happily, free from want or care, spending carefully the treasure the old man had received from his pet, the tongue-cut sparrow.
The stories of the Tongue-cut Sparrow, and the Old Couple and their Dog, have been paraphrased in other works upon Japan; but I am not aware of their having been literally translated before. Once upon a time there lived an old man and an old woman. The old man, who had a kind heart, kept a young sparrow, which he tenderly nurtured.
And she wandered on and on over mountain and valley, and dale and river, until at last she saw the tongue-cut sparrow. "Well met, well met, Mr. Sparrow," cried she. "I have been looking forward with much pleasure to seeing you." And then she tried to flatter it with soft, sweet words. So the bird had to invite her to its nest-house, but it did not feast her nor say anything about a parting gift.
After walking for some hours the old woman had at last found the bamboo grove which she had made her husband carefully describe, and now she stood before it crying out: "Where is the tongue-cut sparrow's house? Where is the tongue-cut sparrow's house?" At last she saw the eaves of the house peeping out from amongst the bamboo foliage. She hastened to the door and knocked loudly.
Following his directions, she at last met the tongue-cut sparrow, and exclaimed "Well met! well met! Mr. Sparrow. I have been looking forward to the pleasure of seeing you." So she tried to flatter and cajole the sparrow by soft speeches. The bird could not but invite the dame to its home; but it took no pains to feast her, and said nothing about a parting gift.
Poor little tongue-cut sparrow! where is your home now?" and he wandered far and wide, seeking for his pet, and crying, "Mr. Sparrow! Mr. Sparrow! where are you living?"
"Oh," he replied, "I have been on a visit to the tongue-cut sparrow, and when I came away it gave me this wicker basket as a parting gift." Then they opened the basket to see what was inside, and lo and behold! it was full of gold, silver, and other precious things!
The next morning he rose early, as soon as ever the day broke, and snatching a hasty breakfast, started out over the hills and through the woods, stopping at every clump of bamboos to cry: "Where, oh where does my tongue-cut sparrow stay? Where, oh where, does my tongue-cut sparrow stay!"
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