# IX: Sir Roger Scatcherd explained — Doctor Thorne > Chapter companion for Doctor Thorne by Anthony Trollope. ## What happens Dr. Thorne visits the ailing Sir Roger Scatcherd, a former stonemason who rose to wealth and a baronetcy through railway contracting but remains a heavy drinker. Despite Lady Scatcherd's pleas, Sir Roger resists the doctor's advice, threatens to call in other physicians like Dr. Fillgrave, and insists on continuing his brandy consumption, revealing his stubborn pride and self-destructive habits. ## Themes in this chapter ### Addiction and Moral Decline Sir Roger Scatcherd's brandy consumption is central to the chapter, showing his physical deterioration and stubborn refusal to change, despite his wife's and doctor's pleas. ### Professional Dignity vs. Practicality Dr. Thorne's medical advice is dismissed by Sir Roger, who threatens to call Dr. Fillgrave, reflecting tensions between professional authority and patient autonomy. ### Inheritance and Wealth Sir Roger's rise from stonemason to baronet and wealthy contractor underscores themes of social mobility and the burdens of newly acquired status. ## Character check-ins ### Dr. Thomas Thorne Visits Sir Roger Scatcherd to assess his health, advises against brandy and Winterbones' presence, and recommends sending for a London physician, but is rebuffed. ### Sir Roger Scatcherd The wealthy baronet and former stonemason is ill from heavy drinking, defiantly refuses to change his habits, and threatens to call Dr. Fillgrave instead of trusting Dr. Thorne. ### Lady Scatcherd Anxious about her husband's health, she tries to persuade Dr. Thorne to intervene and offers him brandy, but is dismissed by Sir Roger. ### Winterbones Sir Roger's clerk, who drinks gin in the bedroom and is blamed by Lady Scatcherd for the room's stench; Dr. Thorne suggests sending him back to London. ## Key lines > Well, I have had a sharpish bout of it, as her ladyship there no doubt has told you. Let her alone to make the worst of it. But, you see, you’re too late, man. I’ve bilked the old gentleman again without troubling you. Sir Roger boasts to Dr. Thorne that he has survived a severe illness without the doctor's help, implying his wife exaggerates his condition. _Sir Roger's defiant and boastful tone reveals his pride and resistance to medical authority._ > The best woman in the world, doctor; the very best. ... Yes, till you find a better one. Ha! ha! ha! but good or bad, there are some things which a woman can’t understand, and some things which she ought not to be let to understand. Sir Roger acknowledges his wife's goodness but insists that women should be kept ignorant of certain matters, reflecting his patriarchal views. _This comment shows Sir Roger's condescending attitude toward his wife and his belief in male dominance._ > I’ll have Fillgrave, and I’ll have that other fellow from Silverbridge to meet him. What’s his name?—Century. ... I will; and Rerechild too. What’s the expense? I suppose five or six pound apiece will do it; eh, Thorne? Sir Roger threatens to summon multiple doctors, including Dr. Fillgrave, Dr. Century, and Dr. Rerechild, to spite Dr. Thorne, showing his vindictiveness and disregard for cost. _This threat underscores Sir Roger's desire for control and his willingness to use wealth to assert dominance._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/doctor_thorne_se/chapters/ix-sir-roger-scatcherd - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/doctor_thorne_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/doctor_thorne_se/chapters