The clerk returned his guests to the grass lawns of the Grand Court, the Royal Naval Hospital’s open quadrangle, and the spot where their official tour had begun. Sighing loudly, he turned to observe the incoming river traffic. A flotilla of trade vessels crowded their way upstream. ‘Greenwich Hospital,’ Dilkes Loveless said, ‘is much endeared to an Englishman’s heart.’ He twinkled meaningfully at Sarah. His transparent looks lingered; she turned aside. Raised on a plinth beside them was a statue of King George II, face worn away by the action of the elements. King Cole regarded it suspiciously. Met with awkward silence, the clerk returned to looking out across the waters, his attention drawn by the sailor-Pensioners still huddled or hobbled at the riverside. ‘Little accustomed to kindness of any sort,’ said Dilkes, ‘wanting everything that tends to enliven or endear a home.
