The parish clock

An original account written in a nineteenth-century voice; a period simulation, not an archival document.

For many months our parish clock lost several minutes each week. The watchmaker asked the churchwarden to keep a record before any repair was attempted. Each Sunday he compared the clock with his pocket watch and wrote down the difference. The figures showed that the error grew steadily, rather than appearing after storms as some villagers believed. When the watchmaker returned, he could distinguish a regular fault from an occasional disturbance without relying on anyone’s memory.

Explain why the watchmaker wanted a written record before attempting the repair.