A father, nearing the end of his life, called his three sons. Having no money, he gave his eldest a rooster, his second son a scythe, and his youngest a cat. "These gifts seem worthless," he said, "but your fortune depends on finding a land where they are unknown."
After the father's death, the eldest son set off with his rooster. Everywhere he went, roosters were common. Finally, he reached an island where people knew nothing of roosters or telling time at night. He described the rooster as a proud creature with a ruby-red crown that crowed at fixed hours. The islanders were delighted and bought it for as much gold as a donkey could carry.
The second son, seeing this success, left with his scythe. He too found his tool commonplace until he chanced upon an island where people harvested grain by shooting it with cannons—a noisy and wasteful method. He demonstrated his scythe, mowing the grain quietly and efficiently. Amazed, the people bought it for a horse-load of gold.
The youngest son faced the same challenge with his cat, as cats were plentiful on the mainland. He sailed to an island overrun by mice, where cats were unknown. The cat quickly proved its worth by catching mice in the king's palace. The king bought it for a mule laden with gold.
In the palace, the cat hunted tirelessly until, growing thirsty, it meowed. The strange sound terrified the king and his court, who fled. They sent a herald to demand the cat leave, but it only meowed again, which was interpreted as a refusal. In panic, they fired cannons at the palace, setting it ablaze. The cat escaped through a window just in time.