Bob, our fifteenth President, hails from "the kingdom" having been born at Leven in Fife. He studied mechanical and electrical engineering at the Paisley Technical College and, on qualifying, joined the Coats organisation. He came to Brazil in 1929 having been appointed engineer at the Ipiranga mill here. Incidentally he travelled on the same ship as another Coats man en-route for Argentina who, many years later, also became a President of the Society. Bob stayed in São Paulo for ten years during which time he was a keen Society member, joining the Committee first in 1933 and serving as Secretary for the three-year period 1934/1936. The following year he became Vice-President and took over the Presidency in 1938.

He departed these shores in l939 and left behind an imposing reminder of his stay with us in the form of the Linhas’ "lum" which he built, and which stands today a monument to Bob's skill and ability. One of Bob's colleagues from these far off days recalls that a number of his less serious minded acquaintances at the Anglo American Club, on hearing that our fifteenth President was evaluating the best of the different ways to demolish the “auld lum” before beginning to build the new one, suggested to him that all that needed to be done was to remove one brick from the bottom and the whole structure would fall without further trouble or labour. Had Bob followed this advice, he would have anticipated by about forty years São Paulo's first "implosion”!

On his return to Scotland he became Chief Engineer of the United Thread Mills at Paisley and after eight years in this responsible position held other high jobs in the Group until his retiral in 1962. A bachelor, Bob continues to live in Paisley and enjoys getting news of our activities. He still recalls with regret having missed winning the Quaich one year by only one stroke!