by Lillian Csernica on April 26, 2018
William Henry Harrington was born in London to a well-to-do family living in Grosvenor Square. His father is a banker and his mother the type of woman who rules the social scene with an iron if genteel hand.
A solid education led him to Cambridge, and from there he became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians. His mild, cheerful manner and sincere interest in his patients’ health quickly gained him a reputation as a reliable, reassuring, and competent physician.
Given a choice between law and medicine, Dr. Harrington chose medicine for two important reasons. First, he finds the human body a fascinating subject. Second, studying vast tomes of legal precedent and going through the complex ritual of the courtroom hold no appeal for him. Relieving the suffering of the sick is a more rewarding pursuit than dealing with abstract legal squabbles.
Dr. Harrington is not totally altruistic in his motivations. He accepted the position in Kyoto because he knew the Far East to have a long tradition of effective if peculiar remedies based largely on herbal preparations. In London during the 1800s cholera epidemics and the prevalence of tuberculosis make a trip abroad, even as far as Japan, highly attractive. Dr. Harrington will do anything to preserve the health and well-being of his wife and daughter, Constance and Madelaine.
Plus, he was guaranteed better weather! 🙂
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After reading this post, I am intrigued and plan to go back and read them all. Dr. Harrington reminds me of my son, a cardiologist. Wonderful job on your AtoZ theme.
http://www.meinthemiddlewrites.com
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Hi, Mary Lou! Thank you so much. A cardiologist? Wow! That’s impressive!
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Yes, “reliable, reassuring, and competent physician” like Dr. Harrington. He’s very interested in plant-based diet and microbiomes. 🙂
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You must be so proud of him. Where does he practice?
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Here in Virginia. Now that I’ve read about the three main characters, I’m hooked! Looking forward to reading the rest of AtoZ. 🙂
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Thank you!
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I can comprehend his choice, I would make the same one.
While I do think the law has its interesting aspects, as a lawyer you typically get into the game once people are fighting and there’s no peaceful way back.
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That’s a good point. Somebody is going to end up unhappy, and no matter which side you’re on they’ll blame you.
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Gorgeous view of Kyomizudera! Wondering, too, if Dr. Harrington will ever encounter acupuncture. Apparently, acupuncture and massage were originally professions of the blind! Surely a major surprise for the good doctor. Here’s a site about it, if you’re interested: https://www.pacificcollege.edu/news/blog/2015/03/28/chinese…japanese…is-acupuncture-all-same
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I already knew he is an awesome character 🙂
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