A miller had three sons, his mill, a donkey and a tom cat; the sons had to grind, the donkey had to get grain and carry flour away and the cat had to catch the mice away. When the miller died, the three brothers divided their inheritance, the oldest received the mill, the second the donkey and the third the tom cat, further was nothing left for him. Thereon he was sad ans spoke to himself: "But I have gotten all the worst, my oldest brother can mill, my second can ride on his donkey, what can I start with the tom cat? Let me make a pair of fur gloves out of his pelt, so it's over." "Listen," said the tom cat, who had understood everything, what he said, "you do not need to kill me, to get a pair of bad gloves from my pelt, let only a pair of boots be made for me, that I can go out, and be seen among the people, then you will soon be helped." The miller's son was in wonderment, that the tom cat so spoke, but because the shoemaker just walked by, he called him in, and let a pair of boots be measured for him. When they were ready, the tom cat put them on, took a sack, made the bottom of the same full of corn, but on the top a string, with which one could pull it closed, then he threw it over his back and went on two legs, like a human, out the door.

En møller havde tre sønner, hans mølle, et æsel og en kat; sønnerne skulle male, æslet skulle hente korn og bære mel væk og katten skulle fange musene væk. Da mølleren døde, delte de tre brødre deres arv, den ældste fik møllen, den anden æslet og den tredje tomkatten, yderligere var der intet tilbage til ham. Derpå blev han ked af det og talte til sig selv: "Men jeg har fået det værste, min ældste bror kan fræse, min anden kan ride på sit æsel, hvad skal jeg begynde med Tomkatten? Lad mig lave et par pelshandsker ud af hans skind, så det er slut." "Hør her," sagde tomkatten, som havde forstået alt, hvad han sagde, "du behøver ikke at slå mig ihjel, for at få et par dårlige handsker af mit skind, lad kun et par støvler laves til mig, at Jeg kan gå ud og blive set blandt folket, så skal du snart hjælpes." Møllersønnen undrede sig over, at tomkatten sagde det, men fordi skomageren lige gik forbi, kaldte han ham ind og lod et par støvler måle til ham. Da de var klar, tog Tommekatten dem på, tog en sæk, gjorde bunden af ​​samme fuld af majs, men på toppen en snor, hvormed man kunne trække den lukket, så kastede han den over ryggen og gik på to ben, som et menneske, ud af døren.