The little Marie came here with Sren; he could climb， as we know， and he fetched both eggs and young downy birds. The birds flew about in terror and anguish，little ones and big ones!Peewits from the field， rooks， crows， and jackdaws from the high trees， screamed andshrieked; it was a shriek exactly the same as their descendants shriek in our own day.
" What are you doing， children?" cried the gentle lady."This is ungodly work!"
Sren stood ashamed， and even the high-born littlegirl looked a little abashed， but then she said， shortly and sulkily，"My father lets me do it!"
"Afar! afar!" screamed the great blackbirds， and flew off， but they came again next day， for their home was here.
But the quiet， gentle lady did not stay long at home here;our Lord called her to Himself， with Him she was more at home than in the mansion，and the church bellstolled solemnly when her body was carried to the church.
Poor men's eyes were wet，for she had been good to them.When she was gone，no one cared for her plants， and the garden ran to waste.
Sir Grubbe was a bard man， they said， but his daugh- ter，although she was so young，could manage him;he had to laugh， and she got her way.She was now twelve yearsold， and strongly built;she looked through and throughpeople， with her big black eyes， rode her horse like a man， and shot her gun like a practised hunter.
One day there came great visitors to the neighbour- hood， the very greatest， the young king and his half-broth- er and comrade Lord Ulrik Frederick Gyldenlwe; theywanted to hunt the wild boar there， and would stay somedays at Sir Grubbe's castle.
Gyldenlwe sat next Marie at table; he took her roundthe neck and gave her a kiss， as if they had been rela- tions，but she gave him a slap on the mouth and said thatshe could not bear him. At that there was great laughter，as if it was an amusing thing .
And it mag have been amusing too， for five years af-ter，when Marie had completed her seventeenth year，a messenger came with a letter;Lord Gyldenlwe proposed for the hand of the noble lady; that was something!
"He is the grandest and most gallant gentleman in thekingdom!" said Sir Grubbe."That is not to be despised."
" I don't care much about him!" said Marie Grubbe，but she did not reject the grandest man in the country，whosat by the king's side.
Silver plate， woollen and linen went with a ship toCopenhagen ; she travelled overland in ten days. The outfithad contrary winds， or no wind at all; four months passedbefore it arrived，and when it did come Lady Gyldenlwehad departed.
"I would rather lie on coarse sacking， than in his silken bed!"said she;" I'd rather walk on my bare feetthan drive with him in a carriage!"
Late one evening in November， two women came rid- ing into the town of Aarhus;it was Lady Gyldenlwe andher maid： they came from Veile， where they had arrived from Copenhagen by ship. They rode up to Sir Grubbe's stone mansion. He was not delighted with the visit. She gothard words， but she got a bedroom as well; got nice foodfor breakfast， but not nice words， for the evil in her fatherwas roused against her，and she was not accustomed to that.She was not of a gentle temper，and as one is spoken to， so one answers. She certainly did answer， and spoke with bitterness and hate about her husband，with whom she would not live; she was too honourable for that.
So a year went past， but it did not pass pleasantly.
There were evil words between father and daughter， and that there should never be. Evil words have evil fruit.What could be the end of this?
"We two cannot remain under the same roof ，"said the father one day." Go away from here to our old manor- house，but rather bite your tongue out than set liesgoing!"
So these two separated， she went with her maid to the old manor-house，where she had been born andbrought up，and where the gentle pious lady， her mother， lay in the church vault; an old cowherd lived in the house， and that was the whole establishment.Cobwebshung in the rooms，dark and heavy with dust; in the gardween the trees and bushes; and hemlock and nettlesgrew larger and stronger.The copper beech was overgrown by the others and now stood in shade， its leaves were now as green as the other common trees，and its glory had de- parted.Rooks，crows，and daws flew in thick swarms over the high chestnut-trees， and there was a cawing and screaming， as if they had some important news to tell each other： now she is here again， the little one who had caused their eggs and their young ones to be stolen from them. The thief himself， who had fetched them， now climbed on a leafless tree， sat on the high mast，and got good blows from the rope's end if he did not behave him- self.
The clerk told all this in our own time; he had col-lected it and put it together from books and manuscripts;it lay with many more manuscripts in the table-drawer.