19. A rich merchant died far away from his home and left everything to his slave with the exception of one thing which his only son was afterwards to claim. When the slave first came into possession of the property, he refused to give up that article. The rabbi then said, “Choose the servant and so you will also get the property." That was the meaning of the father who left the codicil in his will so as to safeguard his property thus.
The Merchant Whose Slave Held the Key to His Inheritance
Gaster, Exempla of the Rabbis No. 399