the black bread with cheese. Then the boys took him as far as the "Old
Hag's Rock." On the way Ondrejko asked about his father. He learned
that he now lived in Paris and did not purpose to come that year for
the summer. The boy breathed more freely because he felt that if his
father came he would have to go to him, away from Bacha Filina and
away from Petrik. That would not please him; he did not want to go at
all. When the doctor took leave of the boys they followed him with
their eyes as long as they could see his straw hat, then they climbed
the rock to see him better, but in the meantime he had disappeared
altogether. Instead of that they saw on the other side of the "Old
Hag's Rock" a beautiful little valley, and in it a solitary house
with small windows which was made of wood and covered with shingles,
standing there by the brook. It looked like a fairy-story house set
among the springs coming out from the rocks. The herder Steve had told
the boys several times about witches who lived in solitary huts, and
it seemed to them that one of them might be living there. A large
white dog sunned himself in front of the hut. If Fido had been with
them, he surely would have started a fight with him. As the boys were
looking at the cottage the door opened, but no old woman came out,
only a boy who was a little larger than themselves, in a cape and
belt, sandals, and with a hat on his head. The dog jumped up, wagged
his broad tail, and stretched himself, yawned and barked happily. The
boy stroked him on the head and smiled at him, then both began to walk
up toward the great rock.

The dog spied our comrades first and stopped. They could see he was
not as young as Fido, but that he was wise and did not bark uselessly
at anybody, so they knew that he must be friendly to people. Soon the
boys stood face to face, and the strange boy, whose dress indicated
that he was not from that section, greeted them in a friendly manner.