The stork paraded about among them on his
long red legs, chattering away in Egyptian, the language he had learned
from his lady mother. All around the meadows and cornfields grew thick woods, and in the midst
of the forest was a deep lake. Yes, it was beautiful, it was delightful
in the country. In a sunny spot stood a pleasant old farmhouse circled all about with
deep canals; and from the walls down to the water's edge grew great
burdocks, so high that under the tallest of them a little child might
stand upright. The spot was as wild as if it had been in the very
center of the thick wood. In this snug retreat sat a duck upon her nest, watching for her young
brood to hatch; but the pleasure she had felt at first was almost gone;
she had begun to think it a wearisome task, for the little ones were so
long coming out of their shells, and she seldom had visitors. The other
ducks liked much better to swim about in the canals than to climb the
slippery banks and sit under the burdock leaves to have a gossip with
her. It was a long time to stay so much by herself. At length, however, one shell cracked, and soon another, and from each
came a living creature that lifted its head and cried "Peep, peep." "Quack, quack!" said the mother; and then they all tried to say it, too,
as well as they could, while they looked all about them on every side at
the tall green leaves. Their mother allowed them to look about as much
as they liked, because green is good for the eyes. "What a great world it is, to be sure," said the little ones, when they
found how much more room they had than when they were in the eggshell. "Is this all the world, do you imagine?" said the mother. "Wait till you
have seen the garden. Far beyond that it stretches down to the pastor's
field, though I have never ventured to such a distance. Are you all
out?" she continued, rising to look. "No, not all; the largest egg lies
there yet, I declare. I wonder how long this business is to last. I'm
really beginning to be tired of it;" but for all that she sat down
again. "Well, and how are you to-day?" quacked an old duck who came to pay her
a visit. "There's one egg that takes a deal of hatching. The shell is hard and
will not break," said the fond mother, who sat still upon her nest. "But
just look at the others. Have I not a pretty family? Are they not the
prettiest little ducklings you ever saw? They are the image of their
father--the good for naught! He never comes to see me." "Let me see the egg that will not break," said the old duck. "I've no
doubt it's a Guinea fowl's egg. The same thing happened to me once, and
a deal of trouble it gave me, for the young ones are afraid of the
water. I quacked and clucked, but all to no purpose. Let me take a look
at it. Yes, I am right; it's a Guinea fowl, upon my word; so take my
advice and leave it where it is. Come to the water and teach the other
children to swim." "I think I will sit a little while longer," said the mother. "I have sat
so long, a day or two more won't matter." "Very well, please yourself," said the old duck, rising; and she went
away. *       *       *       *       *

At last the great egg broke, and the latest bird cried "Peep, peep," as
he crept forth from the shell. How big and ugly he was! The mother duck
stared at him and did not know what to think. "Really," she said, "this
is an enormous duckling, and it is not at all like any of the others. I
wonder if he will turn out to be a Guinea fowl. Well, we shall see when
we get to the water--for into the water he must go, even if I have to
push him in myself." On the next day the weather was delightful. The sun shone brightly on
the green burdock leaves, and the mother duck took her whole family
down to the water and jumped in with a splash. "Quack, quack!" cried
she, and one after another the little ducklings jumped in. The water
closed over their heads, but they came up again in an instant and swam
about quite prettily, with their legs paddling under them as easily as
possible; their legs went of their own accord; and the ugly gray-coat
was also in the water, swimming with them. "Oh," said the mother, "that is not a Guinea fowl. See how well he uses
his legs, and how erect he holds himself! He is my own child, and he is
not so very ugly after all, if you look at him properly. Quack, quack! come with me now. I will take you into grand society and introduce you
to the farmyard, but you must keep close to me or you may be trodden
upon; and, above all, beware of the cat." When they reached the farmyard, there was a wretched riot going on; two
families were fighting for an eel's head, which, after all, was carried
off by the cat. "See, children, that is the way of the world," said the
mother duck, whetting her beak, for she would have liked the eel's head
herself. "Come, now, use your legs, and let me see how well you can
behave. You must bow your heads prettily to that old duck yonder; she is
the highest born of them all and has Spanish blood; therefore she is
well off. Don't you see she has a red rag tied to her leg, which is
something very grand and a great honor for a duck; it shows that every
one is anxious not to lose her, and that she is to be noticed by both
man and beast. Come, now, don't turn in your toes; a well-bred duckling
spreads his feet wide apart, just like his father and mother, in this
way; now bend your necks and say 'Quack!'" The ducklings did as they were bade, but the other ducks stared, and
said, "Look, here comes another brood--as if there were not enough of us
already! And bless me, what a queer-looking object one of them is; we
don't want him here"; and then one flew out and bit him in the neck. "Let him alone," said the mother; "he is not doing any harm." "Yes, but he is so big and ugly. He's a perfect fright," said the
spiteful duck, "and therefore he must be turned out. A little biting
will do him good." "The others are very pretty children," said the old duck with the rag on
her leg, "all but that one. I wish his mother could smooth him up a bit;
he is really ill-favored." "That is impossible, your grace," replied the mother. "He is not pretty,
but he has a very good disposition and swims as well as the others or
even better. I think he will grow up pretty, and perhaps be smaller. He
has remained too long in the egg, and therefore his figure is not
properly formed;" and then she stroked his neck and smoothed the
feathers, saying: "It is a drake, and therefore not of so much
consequence. I think he will grow up strong and able to take care of
himself." "The other ducklings are graceful enough," said the old duck. "Now make
yourself at home, and if you find an eel's head you can bring it to me." And so they made themselves comfortable; but the poor duckling who had
crept out of his shell last of all and looked so ugly was bitten and
pushed and made fun of, not only by the ducks but by all the poultry.