Hans Vilhelm Kaalund “Den Dræbte And” (The Killed Duck)
This is a short fable about a duck who was killed by a huntsman and returns dying to her ducklings. I found it dark and sad. Many Danish stories tend to be more melancholy than scary. I have made a translation to English:
In the forest swam the clear river ;
A bloody Wild duck behind reeds lay ,
By the hunter’s riffle it was killed,
It had dragged itself to the nest .
Now it stood around the Ducklings small ,
They did not quite understand ,
They huddled under her wing , but it was limp –
” Awake, sweet mother, quack quack quack ! ”
Then they opened all their little beaks wide :
” We are so hungry , give us a little ! ”
But motherless ‘ were the poor little –
O , if you have a mother, be grateful for it!
