Jozef and Janik were surprised. They had had no idea that the girls were in the cellar. They had gone into Janik's storeroom for some raw sour-kraut, and Janik had related how his big brother had ventured quite a distance into one of the passage-ways the week before. "Let's go, too," had suggested Jozef. Both boys had run home for some lanterns, never dreaming that they should meet the girls. "Huh," grunted Jozef, after Ruzena's embrace, not yet comprehending. And when the boys did comprehend, well--it was rather nice to be treated like heroes! They listened to the girls, but although they glanced sideways now and then at each other, offered no explanations. Then Jozef and Janik quarreled and while waiting to make up, Jozef had an inspiration. "The girls won't try this again," he communed with himself, "and sometime I'll give Janik a scare by going through our passage to his. Perhaps I'd better store a little food in it, for I might ask some of the other boys to come in with me, and it'd be nicer to have some food and play we're those old Hussites." So, little by little, Jozef smuggled in food of all kinds; some sugar, more wheat than several boys could eat, sunflower and pumpkin seeds,--the latter considered a particular delicacy,--a small bag of raisins and nuts, a handful of dried mixed fruit in a preserve jar, and various other things. CHAPTER VIII A VISIT TO "MATTHEW'S LAND" OTHER things occurred so unexpectedly and rapidly that boylike, Jozef forgot all about his store of hidden food. Late in the Fall, most of the children under twelve were back in school. Their home chores now had to be done on Wednesdays, which, instead of Saturdays, were their holidays, or before or after school hours. Ruzena's favorite studies were embroidery, drawing and painting, for, like most of the peasants, she had inherited a decided art instinct. Even her mother, who had never had any lessons, had painted without patterns pretty borders around the guest and living rooms; while her father, also untaught, had made and carved the two pretty chairs in the latter, and also the long shelf on which stood a fine array of village pottery. Besides the work at school, Ruzena also had crocheting, knitting, and embroidery at home. It was mostly for herself, for her mother had her follow the local custom of beginning in childhood to work on her trousseau. There were other holidays from school work besides the Sundays and Wednesdays, such as Dusickovy Vecer, which comes in November, the Slovak Memorial Day.