after waiting several days , as the dog shiro did not return , his master began to grow anxious . day after day went by and the good old man waited in vain . then he went to his neighbor and asked him to give him back his dog . without any shame or hesitation , the wicked neighbor answered that he had killed shiro because of his bad behavior . at this dreadful news shiro 's master wept many sad and bitter tears . great indeed , was his woful surprise , but he was too good and gentle to reproach his bad neighbor . learning that shiro was buried under the yenoki tree in the field , he asked the old man to give him the tree , in remembrance of his poor dog shiro . the old man did not in the least wish to lend it to his cruel neighbor , but he was too kind to refuse . so the envious man carried home the mortar , but he never brought it back . several days passed , and shiro 's master waited in vain for the mortar , so he went to call on the borrower . he asked him to be good enough to return the mortar if he had finished with it . he found him sitting by a big fire made of pieces of wood . on the ground lay what looked very much like pieces of a broken mortar . in answer to the old man 's inquiry , the wicked neighbor answered haughtily : " have you come to ask me for your mortar ? i broke it to pieces , and now i am making a fire of the wood . when i tried to pound cakes in it only some horrid smelling stuff came out . " 
the neighbor killed his dog .
why did the old man not want to lend the mortar to his neighbor ?
why did the old man not want to lend the mortar to his neighbor ?