silk.
They never expected anything like this. The more they took out the
more they found inside. The supply was inexhaustible, so that the
house at once became rich and prosperous. When the cross old woman who
had cut the Sparrow's tongue saw this, she was filled with envy, and
went and asked her neighbor where the Sparrow lived and all about the
way. "I will go, too," she said, and at once set out on her search.

Again the Sparrow brought out two wicker baskets, and asked as before,
"Will you take the heavy one, or shall I give you the light one?"

Thinking the treasure would be great in proportion to the weight of
the basket, the old woman replied, "Let me have the heavy one."

Receiving this, she started home with it on her back, the sparrows
laughing at her as she went. It was as heavy as a stone, and hard to
carry, but at last she got back with it to her house.

Then, when she took off the lid and looked in, a whole troop of
frightful creatures came bouncing out from the inside, and at once
they caught her up and flew away with her.

* * * * *

BATTLE OF THE MONKEY AND THE CRAB

A monkey and a Crab once met when going round a mountain.

The Monkey had picked up a persimmon-seed, and the Crab had a piece
of toasted rice-cake. The Monkey, seeing this, and wishing to get
something that could be turned to good account at once, said, "Pray,
exchange that rice-cake for this persimmon-seed." The Crab, without a
word, gave up his cake, and took the persimmon-seed and planted it. At
once it sprung up, and soon became a tree so high one had to look far
up to see it. The tree was full of persimmons, but the Crab had no
means of climbing it, so he asked the Monkey to scramble up and get
the fruit for him. The Monkey got up on a limb of the tree and began
to eat the persimmons. The unripe ones he threw at the Crab, but all
the ripe and good ones he put in his pouch. The Crab under the tree
thus got his shell badly bruised, and only by good luck escaped into
his hole, where he lay distressed with pain, and not able to get up.
Now, when the relatives and household of the Crab heard how matters
stood, they were surprised and angry, and declared war, and attacked
the Monkey, who, leading forth a numerous following, bade defiance to
the other party. The crabs, finding themselves unable to meet and
cope with this force, became still more exasperated and enraged,
and retreated into their