 Within a year Francis had eleven followers.The brothers lived a simple life in the deserted lazar house of Rivo Torto near Assisi; but they spent much of their time wandering through the mountainous districts of Umbria, making a deep impression upon their hearers by their earnest exhortations.In 1209 he composed a simple rule for his followers ("friars"), the "Regula primitiva" or "Primitive Rule", which came from verses in the Bible.