As a nine-year-old, I helped weigh charcoal and iron ore. We arrived at the iron works in the evening; we spent the night there. The fire protected us and the horses from the bears, and in the morning we loaded ore or charcoal into the wagons. At this age, I had to load about ten tons of coal. In addition, we had to work in the fields ...

When she dressed me in the clothes, she cried. It was as if she subconsciously felt like I was saying goodbye to her.

The professors at the Roznava grammar school never allowed a national or religious dispute to develop between the students. They saw in us only students and not Slovaks, Hungarians, Germans, Serbs, or Jews. At that time, several Serbs were studying in Roznava and they all felt very happy there.

At first I lived with the widow of the professor, in good conditions and with good food. However, it was too expensive for me, so I found a sublet in a cheap apartment in the suburbs and without food. I prepared the food myself from what my brothers from Gocov sent. The mathematics professors were great! Algebraic equations and analytical geometry were taught by Gyula Vályi. Everything he presented was scientifically correct and possessed great depth. I am grateful to him for teaching me the basics of mathematics. Differential and integral calculus were presented by Ludwig Schlesinger. I became a great admirer of him. He also had great knowledge of other subjects, he had met mathematicians from all over the world. I gained the affection of both professors when I received excellent grades in their subjects, which had not happened in courses before. This gave me an excellent reputation and for my outstanding performance I received free lunches and dinners in the canteen. Here, too, I made money by tutoring.

It was well known that, as a high school professor, Hronec never used notebooks in his teaching work, because he knew each student so perfectly that he could always approach each one specifically with regard not only to his knowledge, but also his character and behaviour. During his pedagogical work, he did not like intimidating students and during the entire 16 years working in high school, he did not allow any student to fail in mathematics, since he was always able to encourage them and motivate them to study his subject. Perhaps it was also because he was an example to them in his behaviour, because as a teacher he consistently took care that he showed by example that not only good teaching, but above all ordinary everyday honest work, is a guarantee of the success of the teacher in school.

Economic and social conditions deteriorated greatly during the war. I ate at the inn, but I had a weak stomach and got sick. The wife of my colleague and good friend took me to lunch. I overcame the disease and suddenly realised how lonely I was. There were no more brothers, my friends were married, only I was left alone. I thought it would be necessary to find a wife, but those who I knew had already entered marriage; I was late. At the beginning of August 1917, my former German professor from the Schuster grammar school in Roznava and his eighteen-year-old daughter appeared in Kezmarok. At the end of the summer of 1917, I asked for her hand. We got engaged and I visited her regularly in Budapest, where she lived. However, during frequent visits, I found out that she was mentally ill. I thought I would cancel the engagement, but after her pleas, I gave up that idea and I promised to keep my word. At Christmas 1917 we got married in Kezmarok, where we continued to live.

And as a university professor, he also had to cope with the scientific and pedagogical tasks that were a direct part of his pedagogical mission; in his capacity as head of the department, he had to take care not only of his own personal professional development, but also that of his the other professors in his department and of the organisational management and running of the department. In this area, too, he was known for requiring a continuous study of the latest professional literature by others, because his enduring belief was that theoretical knowledge is the main and most important basis of every teacher's personality.

Believe me, dear friends, there is nothing more beautiful, more noble than work. Work will fill your life, without it life is empty, the content of life will not be filled with any fun.

If I had to choose my profession again, I would just like to be a professor of mathematics. It is a science whose principles applied yesterday, apply today and will apply tomorrow.

I have been convinced many times that only solid work and acquired knowledge that cannot be taken away can feed a person until death. Only honesty, diligence, solidity and knowledge can make a person happy and contented.