■ あらすじ　
　 家の台所の穴に団子を落とした陽気な婆が団子を追って穴に落ち、別世界へ行った。地蔵の警告も聞かず団子を探して進んだ婆は、鬼に見つかり、その住処<すみか>に連れて行かれ、米が増える不思議な
杓文字<しゃもじ>を使って毎日鬼たちの飯作りをさせられた。家へ帰りたくなった婆は杓文字を持って脱走し、舟で川を渡っていると、泳げない鬼たちは川の水を飲み干して婆を捕まえようとしたので、婆は鬼たちに向かっておかしな顔をして見せた。鬼たちが笑って吐き出した水で
川の水位が戻り、まんまと逃げ切った婆は家へ帰り、その杓文字を
使って団子を作って売り、金持ちになった。

■ Outline of this story
　A funny old woman who lost a dumpling of rice flour down a hole in the kitchen of her cottage crawled into the hole in pursuit of it and found herself in another country. After continuing to hunt for the dumpling against the warning of Jizo, she was found by "oni" (i.e., devil), which took her to its home. There, she was forced to cook meals for them everyday using a magical wooden rice-paddle that made the rice multiply. Longing to return to her cottage, she escaped with the rice-paddle, and tried to cross the river in a boat. The devils, who couldn't swim, attempted to recapture her by drinking the river dry. Then, the old woman turned toward them and made a funny face. The devils burst out laughing, and the river water returned to its normal level. Having made good her escape, the old woman returned safely home, where she used the magical rice-paddle to make dumplings and became rich by selling them.

Note
　The story was apparently created by Lafcadio Hearn, based on tales found across the country about characters chasing after dumplings or rice balls and entering a different world. The first half leading up to the encounter with the Jizo in the search for the lost dumpling recalls the tale "Jizo Jodo," and the second half about restoring the water level by making the devils laugh is reminiscent of the conclusion of "Soramame-no-Hashigo" ("The Ladder of Broad Beans"), a tale told in what is now Akita Prefecture.