The Best English Fairy Tales / Лучшие английские сказки

The cat called Sonny could purr, and even make sparks, for that you had to stroke his fur the wrong way. The hen had short little legs, so she was called Chickey Shortleg. She laid good eggs, and the old woman loved her.

In the morning they saw the duckling.

“Oh, it’s a duck!” The old woman had bad eyes, and she thought the duckling was a fat duck. “It’s good,” she said. “Now I shall have duck eggs.”

So the duckling was there for three weeks, but he didn’t lay any eggs.

In this house the cat was master and the hen was mistress.

They always said, “We and the world,” they thought they were half of the world. The duckling thought that they were wrong, but the hen didn’t want to hear about it.

“Can you lay eggs?” she asked.

“No.”

“Then be nice and do what we say.”

The cat asked, “Can you purr or make sparks?”

“No.”

“Then keep your opinion to yourself.”

The duckling sat in a corner, feeling sad. Then he remembered the fresh air and the sunlight.

He wanted to go outside and swim in the pond. He told the hen about it.

“What a silly thing to say!” the hen cried. “Lay an egg or learn to purr.”

“But I’d like to swim… It’s so nice in the water,” said the duckling.

“You’re crazy!” said the hen.

So the duckling went away. He swam on the water and dived down in it. But he still was very ugly for all the other animals.

Autumn came on. The leaves in the forest were yellow and brown.

It was getting very cold. Pity the poor little duckling!

One evening, the duckling saw very beautiful birds in the sky. They were white, with long thin necks. They were swans, flying away from this cold land, away to warmer countries. The ugly little duckling watched them. He went around and round in the water. Oh! He could not forget those happy birds. He did not know what birds they were but he loved them.

The winter grew colder. The duckling had to swim in the water to keep the pond from freezing over.

But the hole in which he swam was getting smaller and smaller. One day he was so cold and tired that he got frozen fast in the ice.

Early that morning a farmer came by, and he saw the duckling in the pond. He broke the ice with his wooden shoe and carried the duckling home to his wife. After some time the duckling felt better. When the children wished to play with him, he fell down into the milk bowl then he flew into the butter bowl.