he was beginning to admire the old man . `` for lord mat and the band of the red hand ! '' no modern parent would be so cruel . listen , she started , moving closer to him , speaking barely above a whisper . i rolled my window down and pulled up alongside of him . they say , when races become too intelligent , they become extinct . `` you 're right , '' she reluctantly said . i drove to the church on time anyway . he follows an ideal , not a man . 