Brandon did not press the matter. He knew his father too well, but he complained to his mother.
"What on earth can father be thinking of to stay in such a quiet hole as Waterford?"
"It is a pleasant village, Brandon," said his mother gently.
"What is there pleasant about it?"
"The people are pleasant."
"I have no fit associates."
"There is Dean Dunham, who is about your age."
"I hate him!" said Brandon passionately.
"Why do you hate him, my son? Mrs. Dunham tells me he is a great comfort to her."
"I don't know anything about that. He is very impudent to me. He seems to think he is my equal."