The old soldier and his wife both seemed glad of somebody to talk with; but the good woman availed herself of the privilege far more copiously than the veteran himself, insomuch that he felt it expedient to give her an occasional nudge with his elbow in her well-padded ribs.  “Don’t you be so talkative!” quoth he; and, indeed, he could hardly find space for a word, and quite as little after his admonition as before.  Her nimble tongue ran over the whole system of life in the hospital.  The brethren, she said, had a yearly stipend, (the amount of which she did not mention,) and such decent lodgings as I saw, and some other advantages, free; and instead of being pestered with a great many rules, and made to dine together at a great table, they could manage their little household-matters as they liked, buying their own dinners, and having them cooked in the general kitchen, and eating them snugly in their own parlors.  “And,” added she, rightly deeming this the crowning privilege, “with the Master’s permission, they can have their wives to take care of them; and no harm comes of it; and what more can an old man desire?” It was evident enough that the good dame found herself in what she considered very rich clover, and, moreover, had plenty of small occupations to keep her from getting rusty and dull; but the veteran impressed me as deriving far less enjoyment from the monotonous ease, without fear of change or hope of improvement, that had followed upon thirty years of peril and vicissitude.  I fancied, too, that, while pleased with the novelty of a stranger’s visit, he was still a little shy of becoming a spectacle for the stranger’s curiosity; for, if he chose to be morbid about the matter, the establishment was but an almshouse, in spite of its old-fashioned magnificence, and his fine blue cloak only a pauper’s garment, with a silver badge on it that perhaps galled his shoulder.  In truth, the badge and the peculiar garb, though quite in accordance with the manners of the Earl of Leicester’s age, are repugnant to modern prejudices, and might fitly and humanely be abolished.

A year or two afterwards I paid another visit to the hospital, and found a new porter established in office, and already capable of talking like a guide-book about the history, antiquities, and present condition of the charity.  He informed me that the twelve brethren are selected from among old soldiers of good character, whose private resources must not exceed an income of five pounds; thus excluding all commissioned officers, whose half-pay would of course be more than that amount.  They receive from the hospital an annuity of eighty pounds each, besides their apartments, a garment of fine blue cloth, an annual abundance of ale, and a privilege at the kitchen-fire; so that, considering the class from which they are taken, they may well reckon themselves among the fortunate of the earth.  Furthermore, they are invested with political rights, acquiring a vote for member of Parliament in virtue