I showed him a photo of the boat and an article about the refitting coming to a halt .

"Can I read that?"

"Yes of course."

He read it thoroughly and after a minute or so, " Don't know why Arthur bought 'er.”

"You know him ? "

"Knew. A bit. He's been dead some time. And his sons, they're dead too, drowned at sea, I think about eight years ago. Don't know much more but I can tell you someone who may,' e built a boat for 'im. Do you know Looe?”

"A bit.”

" Well, go over the bridge into the town, towards the quay. Look for the library. It's by there . Clifford Adams built a boat for him. Cliff lives at the boathouse above the workshop. You can see it on a corner. There are two black doors. Funny but when I think of Arthur I think of black; the black grease he always put on his cars . They lasted for ever. I got a feeling he used to be a wrestler, I think, him and his brother.”

 

A colleague joined him.

"We're talking of Arthur Clayton.”

"The publican? Owned theDouble-Decker?”

"That's 'im, he was the first person to run that pub. No one argued in Arthur's pub.”