A cock was once strutting up and down in a farmyard. Suddenly, he saw something shining on the ground. “Oh!” said the cock, “What is this shiny little thing?” The shining thing was a pearl. The cock stared at the pearl, closely. He pecked at it and scratched it a couple of times. The pearl rolled a few inches away from the cock’s foot, and landed next to some barley grains that the hens had missed. The cock went to gobble up those barley grains. But his foot slipped on the pearl. The cock turned around to look at the strange looking seed again. He eyed the pearl suspiciously. Upon pecking again, it did not break open. The cock gave a cluck of disgust. He said, “You may be a treasure for mankind. But for me, I would rather have the grains of barley.”
The Cock and the Pearl
