"By his magic power he was able to follow their trail, which their
parents had not been able to find.

"At length he saw them. They were playing about on the muddy shore of
a small lake. Out of the mud they were making many different kinds of
objects, especially little wigwams.

"He walked down to where they were. 'You naughty children,' said he,
'are you not ashamed of yourselves, to disobey your parents and make
them so much sorrow and trouble?'

"'No, we are not,' spoke up one bold, saucy little fellow. 'We don't
care for what they say. We've been having a good time all by ourselves.'

"'Very well,' said Gloos-cap, 'since you are not willing to obey your
parents, you shall never trouble them any more. You shall become birds.
Since you love to play in the mud, you shall always build your nests of
mud; and since you love to gad about so much, you shall wander about the
earth forever.'

"And so it has been with the swallow folk since that time.

"But," went on the old swallow, "our foreparents learned their lesson,
and since that time we always bring up our children to be very obedient.
No doubt you have noticed how very well they mind."