A poor boy named Dummling lives with his mother. She dies and he inherits a small amount of money. He decides to become a soldier but is rejected due to his lack of height. He then tries to become a servant, but fails because of his clumsiness. Dummling's father had left him three feathers before he died. The first feather says "Whoever owns me will become rich." Dummling sells the feather for a large sum of money and becomes wealthy. However, he soon loses everything due to his foolishness. The second feather says "Whoever owns me will become wise." Dummling buys the feather but it does not make him intelligent. He still makes poor decisions and loses all his wealth again. Dummling then finds the third feather which says "Whoever owns me will be a king." However, he is not worthy of being a king due to his foolishness and lack of intelligence.
By Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm · First published 1819 · Genre: Fairy Tale, Fantasy, Adventure