Original Publication Date: October 1887 (Meiji 20)
This Printing: October 1945 (Shōwa 20), 17th Reprint
Binding: 2-hole musubi-toji binding with red silk
Call Number: Special Collections (General Locked Shelving): By Appointment Only; PZ8.J272
Cataloger: Anika James
Author/Translator: Basil Hall Chamberlain
Artist: Suzuki Kason
Printer: N/A
Once there was a warrior named My Lord Bag-o'-Rice, who was always seeking out adventures. He came across a very long bridge one day, and as he started to cross he saw a twenty foot long serpent blocking the path. Unafraid, he walked over the serpent. As he stepped on it, the serpent transformed into a tiny Dwarf, who immediately thanked him for being brave enough to pass by and free him from his curse. The Dwarf explained that his enemy was the Centipede atop the mountain, and asked the warrior to join him for a feast in his home beneath the lake. They rejoiced together, sharing a wonderful meal, drinking and singing, when they suddenly heard a monstrous thudding. The Centipede was approaching, and it appeared to have an army of a thousand men. The warrior saw that it was no army, just a thousand legs, covered in sticky poison. He grabbed his massive bow, and shot at its forehead. The warrior never missed, and yet the arrow did not stick. His second shot was the same, and the Centipede was almost in the water. The Warrior knew that human spittle would kill the Centipede, and spat on his final arrow, and hit and killed the Centipede at last. Suddenly, the warrior was back at his castle, surrounded by gifts from the Dwarf. He was given a large bronze bell for his religion and bravery, a sword of infinite victory, armor that no arrow could pierce, a roll of silk which never ran out, and a bag of rice. The rice never depleted, and he is named for this gift as it was both strange and wonderful, providing the warrior with the means to keep him and his family healthy.
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