Sanbō Ichiryō Zon (Three Parties, One Ryō Each)
三方一両損・さんぼういちりょうぞん
The story
Kintaro, a plasterer, finds a wallet and, using a note tucked inside, tracks down its owner, the carpenter Kichigoro, to return the three ryo. But Kichigoro, a true son of Edo, flatly refuses: money once dropped is no longer his. Their pushing the sum back and forth swells into a full-blown brawl, and the dispute is carried before the famous magistrate Ooka Echizen, who settles it so that all three parties end up one ryo the poorer.
What to listen for
The stubborn stand-off between two Edo men each forcing the money onto the other, and the brilliant ruling of Ooka Echizen that squares the whole thing away — a judgement whose wit is the heart of the piece.
Background
Ooka Echizen no Kami Tadasuke was a celebrated magistrate of Edo under the eighth shogun, Yoshimune, and this is one of the dramatized 'Ooka trials.' Behind the whole squabble lies the Edo ideal that a real townsman is too proud to hold onto money overnight.
Notable performers
五代目柳家小さん三代目三遊亭金馬