EAR the shores of the great Belt, which is one of the straits that connect the Cattegat with the Baltic, stands an oldmansion with thick red walls. I know every stone of it," says the Wind. "I saw it when it was part of the castle of MarckStig on the promontory. But the castle was obliged to be pulled down, and the stone was used again for the walls of a newmansion on another spot—the baronial residence of Borreby, which still stands near the coast. I knew them well, those noblelords and ladies, the successive generations that dwelt there; and now I'm going to tell you of Waldemar Daa and hisdaughters. How proud was his bearing, for he was of royal blood, and could boast of more noble deeds than merely hunting thestag and emptying the wine-cup. His rule was despotic: 'It shall be,' he was accustomed to say. His wife, in garmentsembroidered with gold, stepped proudly over the polished marble floors. The tapestries were gorgeous, and the furniture ofcostly and artistic taste. She had brought gold and plate with her into the house. The cellars were full of wine. Black,fiery horses, neighed in the stables. There was a look of wealth about the house of Borreby at that time. They had threechildren, daughters, fair and delicate maidens-Ida, Joanna, and Anna Dorothea; I have never forgotten their names. They werea rich, noble family, born in affluence and nurtured in luxury.　　"Whir-r-r, whir-r-r!" roared the Wind, and went on, "I did not see in this house, as in other great houses, the high-born lady sitting among her women, turning the spinning-wheel. She could sweep the sounding chords of the guitar, and sing tothe music, not always Danish melodies, but the songs of a strange land. It was 'Live and let live,' here. Stranger guestscame from far and near, music sounded, goblets clashed, and I," said the Wind, "was not able to drown the noise.Ostentation, pride, splendor, and display ruled, but not the fear of the Lord.　　"It was on the evening of the first day of May," the Wind continued, "I came from the west, and had seen the shipsoverpowered with the waves, when all on board persisted or were cast shipwrecked on the coast of Jutland. I had hurriedacross the heath and over Jutland's wood-girt eastern coast, and over the island of Funen, and then I drove across the greatbelt, sighing and moaning. At length I lay down to rest on the shores of Zeeland, near to the great house of Borreby, wherethe splendid forest of oaks still flourished. The young men of the neighborhood were collecting branches and brushwood underthe oak-trees. The largest and dryest they could find they carried into the village, and piled them up in a heap and set themon fire. Then the men and maidens danced, and sung in a circle round the blazing pile. I lay quite quiet," said the Wind, "but I silently touched a branch which had been brought by one of the handsomest of the young men, and the wood blazed upbrightly, blazed brighter than all the rest. Then he was chosen as the chief, and received the name of the Shepherd; andmight choose his lamb from among the maidens. There was greater mirth and rejoicing than I had ever heard in the halls of therich baronial house. Then the noble lady drove by towards the baron's mansion with her three daughters, in a gilded carriagedrawn by six horses. The daughters were young and beautiful-three charming blossoms-a rose, a lily, and a white hyacinth.The mother was a proud tulip, and never acknowledged the salutations of any of the men or maidens who paused in their sportto do her honor. The gracious lady seemed like a flower that was rather stiff in the stalk. Rose, lily, and hyacinth-yes, Isaw them all three. Whose little lambs will they one day become? thought I; their shepherd will be a gallant knight, perhapsa prince. The carriage rolled on, and the peasants resumed their dancing. They drove about the summer through all thevillages near. But one night, when I rose again, the high-born lady lay down to rise again no more; that thing came to herwhich comes to us all, in which there is nothing new. Waldemar Daa remained for a time silent and thoughtful. 'The loftiesttree may be bowed without being broken,' said a voice within him. His daughters wept; all the people in the mansion wipedtheir eyes, but Lady Daa had driven away, and I drove away too," said the Wind. "Whir-r-r, whir-r-r-!　　"I returned again; I often returned and passed over the island of Funen and the shores of the Belt. Then I rested byBorreby, near the glorious wood, where the heron made his nest, the haunt of the wood-pigeons, the blue-birds, and the blackstork. It was yet spring, some were sitting on their eggs, others had already hatched their young broods; but how theyfluttered about and cried out when the axe sounded through the forest, blow upon blow! The trees of the forest were doomed.Waldemar Daa wanted to build a noble ship, a man-of-war, a three-decker, which the king would be sure to buy; and these, thetrees of the wood, the landmark of the seamen, the refuge of the birds, must be felled. The hawk started up and flew away,for its nest was destroyed; the heron and all the birds of the forest became homeless, and flew about in fear and anger. Icould well understand how they felt. Crows and ravens croaked, as if in scorn, while the trees were cracking and fallingaround them. Far in the interior of the wood, where a noisy swarm of laborers were working, stood Waldemar Daa and his threedaughters, and all were laughing at the wild cries of the birds, excepting one, the youngest, Anna Dorothea, who felt grievedto the heart; and when they made preparations to fell a tree that was almost dead, and on whose naked branches the blackstork had built her nest, she saw the poor little things stretching out their necks, and she begged for mercy for them, withthe tears in her eyes. So the tree with the black stork's nest was left standing; the tree itself, however, was not worthmuch to speak of. Then there was a great deal of hewing and sawing, and at last the three-decker was built.
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