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I actually really feel for this man, the whole thing is truly awful, he had indeed been out there and done it, originally a member of the 5th Dragoon Guards from enlistment on he 28th of July 1878, he had transferred to the 17th Lancers in the new year following, with very considerable Foreign Service, including actual Campaign Service in Natal in 1879, he had , quite literally, seen it all and is clearly shown in both WO97 and WO100/46 for his South Africa War medal and clasp.
Interestingly, after discharge from the much vaunted Death or Glory boys, he gave his intended place of residence as number 54 High Street, Ramsgate, upon attesting for the (equally much vaunted } Rough Rider's, he gave his next of kin as his brother, just a few doors away, at number 77 High Street, Ramsgate.

I wonder if he had been on duty on the 5th of June 1879 and actually witnessed the death or it's aftermath, of poor Ccckaye Frith, his Adjutant, at the wretched Upoko River, perhaps so?
He would certainly have been around in the Colony itself, to have seen the aftermath of the demise of Louis Napoleon, just four days beforehand, no doubt a talking point and certainly a great embarrassment for the War Office.

Yes well, there was no welfare state back then, I find it slightly worrying that, even today there are similarities in day to day life, for so many in this country, there appear to be certain elements within the establishment that would rather like to reprise those times, today, in the twenty first century.
It does make you think though, I see a great deal of poverty and yet the county is supposed to be an affluent one, I wonder how many of the homeless I encounter on a daily basis are former servicemen and women?
If it can happen to them, it can happen to anyone and at anytime, often through an unforeseen change of personal circumstances in life.
I suspect that I may well change the way in which I see these people in the future.

Actually having a Lee Metford was not as unusual as you might think, you could simply go out and buy one, moreover, certainly in the home counties at the turn of the century, shooting was a very popular pastime, he was, after all, at the time of his death, a member of what would become the City of London Imperial Yeomanry, extant as Imperial Yeomanry, up to the creation of the Territorial Force in 1908 and then beyond through both world wars.
Interestingly, the Rough Rider's were styled as Lancers, in Full Dress, upon creation of the Home Service Imperial Yeomanry Force after the Anglo Boer War.
Just like the famous County of London Imperial Yeomanry, the Sharpshooter's, to be able to shoot and ride was a basic necessity before joining, you could certainly expect to be "tested" on the range before actually joining their ranks in 1900.
Big back moustaches, sturdy and very dependable gentlemen for the most part.
They were certainly not the average IY, the wretched "I Yield" that were fielded elsewhere, on, sadly, more than one occasion.

BereniceUK wrote: I quite agree, Frank - all the years of service he'd given his country, and he ended up like that. So little support for ex-soldiers who needed a bit of help. I wonder if he was buried in a pauper's grave.

Interesting that he possessed a rifle while living in London. Presumably he'd brought it back from South Africa.