Drakestail

Andrew Lang (1844 – 1912) was a Scots poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. Lang was also a prolific author of fiction works; he wrote his own fairy tales such as Prince Prigio (1889) and Prince Ricardo of Pantouflia (1893), and wrote numerous historical texts. Andrew Lang was great friends with Robert Louis Stevenson and H. Rider Haggard, with whom he wrote The World's Desire (1890). Preferring romance over realism, he admired their works as well as those of Alexandre Dumas Père, Henry Fielding, William Makepeace Thackeray, fellow Scot Robert Burns and many others.

Drakestail is a famous fairy tale by Andrew Lang. The story is about a drakestail, who is very little, but he is cunning and clever.  Once Drakestail finds a coin, but is immediately requested to donate it to the King (with the promise of a future repayment). When a certain length of time passes, he goes along the palace and sings: «Quack! Quack! Quack! When shall I get my money back?» What will happen neхt? Will a drakestail return his money?