is a heavy sea the water
splashes over us, yet we thank our God for it. We stay there over
night in our human forms, and without it we could never revisit our
beloved Fatherland, for our flight takes two of the longest days in
the year. We are only permitted to visit the home of our fathers once
a year, and we dare only stay for eleven days. We hover over this big
forest from whence we catch a glimpse of the palace where we were
born, and where our father lives; beyond it we can see the high
church towers where our mother is buried. We fancy that the trees and
bushes here are related to us; and the wild horses gallop over the
moors, as we used to see them in our childhood. The charcoal burners
still sing the old songs we used to dance to when we were children.
This is our Fatherland, we are drawn towards it, and here we have
found you again, dear little sister! We may stay here two days longer,
and then we must fly away again across the ocean to a lovely country
indeed, but it is not our own dear Fatherland. How shall we ever take
you with us! We have neither ship nor boat!"

"How can I deliver you!" said their sister, and they went on talking
to each other nearly all night; they only dozed for a few hours.

Elise was awakened in the morning by the rustling of the swans' wings
above her; her brothers were again transformed, and were wheeling
round in great circles till she lost sight of them in the distance.
One of them, the youngest, stayed behind. He laid his head against her
bosom, and she caressed it with her fingers. They remained together
all day. Towards evening the others came back, and as soon as the sun
went down they took their natural forms.

"To-morrow we must fly away, and we dare not come back for a whole
year, but we can't leave you like this! Have you courage to go with
us? My arm is strong enough to carry you over the forest, so surely
our united strength ought to be sufficient to bear you across the
ocean."

"Oh yes; take me with you," said Elise.

They spent the whole night in weaving a kind of net of the elastic
bark of the willow bound together with tough rushes; they made it both
large and strong. Elise lay down upon it, and when the sun rose and
the brothers became swans again they took up the net in their bills
and flew high up among the clouds with their precious sister, who was
fast asleep. The sunbeams fell straight onto her face, so one of the
swans flew over her head so that its broa