"That is because I am so ugly!" thought the Duckling; and he shut his
eyes, but flew on further; and so he came out into the great moor, where
the wild ducks lived. Here he lay the whole night long, he was so
tired and sad.

Toward morning the wild ducks flew up, and looked at their new mate.

"What sort of a one are you?" they asked; and the Duckling turned about
to each, and bowed as well as he could. "You are really very ugly!" said
the Wild Ducks. "But that is all the same to us, so long as you do not
marry into our family."

Poor thing! he certainly did not think of marrying, and only dared ask
leave to lie among the reeds and drink some of the swamp water.

There he lay two whole days; then came thither two wild geese, or, more
truly, two wild ganders. It was not long since each had crept out of an
egg, and that's why they were so saucy.

"Listen, comrade," said one of them. "You're so ugly that I like you.
Will you go with us, and become a bird of passage? Near here is another
moor, where are a few sweet lovely wild geese, all unmarried, and all
able to say 'Quack!' You've a chance of making your fortune, ugly as
you are."

"Piff! paff!" sounded through the air; and both the ganders fell down
dead in the reeds, and the water became blood-red. "Piff! paff!" it
sounded again, and the whole flock of wild geese flew up from the reeds.
And then there was another report. A great hunt was going on. The
gunners lay around in the moor, and some were even sitting up in the
branches of the trees, which spread far over the reeds. The blue smoke
rose like clouds in among the dark trees, and hung over the water; and
the hunting dogs came--splash, splash!--into the mud, and the rushes and
reeds bent down on every side. That was a fright for the poor Duckling!
He turned his head to put it under his wing; and at that very moment a
frightful great dog stood close by the Duckling. His tongue hung far out
of his mouth, and his eyes glared horribly. He put his nose close to the
Duckling, showed his sharp teeth, and--splash, splash!--on he went
without seizing it.

"Oh, Heaven be thanked!" sighed the Duckling. "I am so ugly that even
the dog does not like to bite me!"

And so he lay quite quiet, while the shots rattled through the reeds and
gun after gun was fired. At last, late in the day, all was still: but
the poor little thing did not dare to rise up; he waited several hours
still before he looked around, and then hur