It is the home of a great many swans, and the owner of the old castle
nearby has prohibited all shooting on the bay, so that they might be
unmolested.
As soon as Akka received word that the swans needed her help, she
hastened down to Hjaelsta Bay. She arrived with her flock one evening and
saw at a glance that there had been a great disaster. The big swans'
nests had been torn away, and the strong wind was driving them down the
bay. Some had already fallen apart, two or three had capsized, and the
eggs lay at the bottom of the lake.
When Akka alighted on the bay, all the swans living there were gathered
near the eastern shore, where they were protected from the wind.
Although they had suffered much by the flood, they were too proud to let
any one see it.
"It is useless to cry," they said. "There are plenty of root-fibres and
stems here; we can soon build new nests."
None had thought of asking a stranger to help them, and the swans had no
idea that Smirre Fox had sent for the wild geese!
There were several hundred swans resting on the water. They had placed
themselves according to rank and station. The young and inexperienced
were farthest out, the old and wise nearer the middle of the group, and
right in the centre sat Daylight, the swan-king, and Snow-White, the
swan-queen, who were older than any of the others and regarded the rest
of the swans as their children.
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