It just came in today. He says he misses Hardy Scrabble. The only thing Hardy ever did for him was to teach Billy how to smoke, ditch school, and make homebrew. A bit of drunk and crazy even then, but handsome. For one thing, she was on the rebound from Hardy.
Girls do strange things when they're on the rebound.
For another, Arnold Mugmarting was a very responsible man. It think Agatha needed that after Hardy. And of course, when he died, she got all his money. A lot more than Hardy Scrabble would have gotten her. I don't think the Navy would like that very much.