AMONG THE AGED

Auckland Star, Volume LIV, Issue 95, 21 April 1923, Page 5

AMONG THE AGED

• ' "MnaAT THE COSTLEY HOME. '$ :V ft. THB RETREAT FOR AGE. ?' "It's well to he you. Ah." to he young again! We old "tins are out of it now." I But the old fellow did not by any means ! look "out of it." He was a line big | man, though much stooped, and he had 1 the frosh colour of a young girl from the i .South. But there 'was with him. as with most of those who have passed the line of vigorous manhood, that dissatisfaction with age, that regret for lost j youth that is as constant as it is unavailing. He was sitting on a seat I under a verandah of the Costley Home. '"Now, if I were as young as yon again ." Ho wandered on in the fancies of age, reconstructing the castles I demolished in youth. Along the Oreen many of these old me.li were slowly parading, within easy reach of tlie home that is their last retreat, and others sauntered about tho green grounds of the institution, sat on the forms along the porches and in the rest rooms, or lay reading on their beds in the lovely clean wards. It was a showery morning, and the atmosphere I was depressing, which, perhaps ac- I counted for the quietness which prevailed among the old fellows. There was | little conversation among them. They sat, smoking and musing, as if just enduring, with that philosophy thev'had aciiuired with many years, to'pass'a.vav dull tune. Most of the male inmates are over 00 years of age, but all tiio company at Costley Home does not consist' of the aged. Destitution i s the key for admission to the home, but some of the inmates are men of middle years who have been permanently disabled by disease or accident. These suffer more'from fell circumstance than do the old men who are hale, for they cannot get about with the comparative alacrity of '-the old mis." But these inmates hav e no lomplamt. for they are well cared for and grateful for the shelter of the home. Some of tbe aged inmates who can work are very independent persons indeed. tor help in the laundry or the warden ■■•hey receive several sticks of tobacco per month over and above the regulation two sticks: they also are allowed meat for breakfast and tea. and a few shillings a, month pocket money. Tt is wonderful what a sense of importance j the old chaps feel when they are able to jingle a few shillings and take a trip to the city for the purpose of purchasing comforts. There are "growlers" anion? some of them, of course. Tt is Coo privilege of age to have a grievance., but the attendant*, are experienced and' tactful, and'if the old folks are occasionally querulous—well, it's all in the game, and they are soothed where they may be and left to "Mow off steam" where this is the only resource. We watched the old men eating at the long tables of the huge dining-room, and all there seemed hale enough to empty liberally piled plates' of stew $1 steak, potatoes, and cabbage, with slices of bread and a mug of tea. None complain «»f any insiijciency of food, though some do of the monotony of the menu. There is porridge and bread and butter always for breakfast, and bread and butter aiid tea for the evening meal. For dinner Uiere is stew on Mondays; corn beef. Tuesdays; stew. Wednesdays; steamed l«*ef. Thursdays; fish (always boiled). Fridays: stew. Saturdays; beef again on Sundays. Like soldiers, the old "uns complain principally of the stew- not Mint il i. not good stew, but that there is too much of ii. This was so •tl the Army! And by this we arc ■-oniinded that there are several old boldiers at the Costley Homo. win.so well-won medals are proudly displayed in a glass-case within the main porch of tho institution. There have been men who refused to <tay in tlie Costley Home, and came out with '-terrible tales" about the institution. But these men (we have seen some of them in the Folice Court) are the irrcconcilables. They were born restless and will die so—nomads who will not stay in the one place, who would .scorn to stay at Buckingham Palace if there were restrictions on their comings and goings or rules anil regulations to abide'" by. Haters of discipline, they refuse to obey orders, and are ever ready for rebellion against authority. Poor old chaps! They are tbe sufferers. for their lives end in storm and want, while the more tranquil-minded go down tlie long hill in comparative comfort. The women inmates are most carefully tended by skilled nurses both in M,e ordinary wards and in the infirmary. They seldom make complaint, for they are'more tranquil than men in old age and sratefullv accept all that comes their'wav. secure in the home from the want which would beset them in tbe hard world outside. They are more o.isilv pleased and have a deeper sense of appreciation than the men. But perhaps this is the way of the sexes all through life, in rosy youth and declining a <r e There are now some -.00 inmates in i.he homo, of whom 72 are women, and ..he institution has now accommodation for forty more. . , There are few restrictions on the Hbertv of the old people. The men are permitted to wander sbo.it at will within,, easy roach of the institution, between meal hours, if their health- permits, and they may go to the city on a duv's leave once a week if they desire, anil their behaviour outdoors is good. Indoors they may amuse themselves wilh games, and a splendid library is at their service. Somewhat incongruous, it seems, ir such surroundings, are the consumptive shelters at the rear of the main build i„„ s _ diseased youth adjacent tc mostly heart v old ago. The Cost lev Home" lias now aeeommodatioi' for thirty-two male consumptive.and a new shelter is being erected whir will house about IS women. Also con t-eetcd with the home is tho inlirmar*. which takes incurable cases from th Auckland Hospital. A new infirm iry i being erected nt a cost of £17.000. Tiii will accommodate about 72 patient-, an. relieve the congestion at the hospita nnd it will also be possible to plao herein 4*l bed oases now in the ma; building of the home and miko root! for that many more active inmates. ; Some of the inmates of tho Cowrie; ! Home have been there for close oi j twenty years. Regular hours, food, res ; and quiet recreation, with the knowl?dgi | that their living is provided for. ar< : factors favouring extended old «ge.