Dr. Sprague was superfluously tall

Grayscale illustration of two men standing in a barren room. One man tall and portly, the other shorter man wears spectacles.

This illustration introduces two distinct medical figures: Dr. Sprague, the “superfluously tall”, and the stout Dr. Minchin on the right. Their contrasting physical descriptions subtly reflect the varied professional types within the provincial medical community that Lydgate seeks to reform. "Dr. Minchin was soft-handed, pale-complexioned, and of rounded outline, not to be distinguished from a mild clergyman in appearance: whereas Dr Sprague was superfluously tall; his trousers got creased at the knees, and showed an excess of bootat a time when straps seemed necessary to any dignity of bearing.." (Book 2, Chapter 18).

Brock, Charles E. (1870-1938)

George Eliot Archive, edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org

1908

CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Brock, Charles E. (1870-1938), Dr. Sprague was superfluously tall, George Eliot Illustrations Gallery, George Eliot Archive, edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org, Accessed September 7, 2026. https://www.georgeeliotarchive.org/items/show/83530