The Adventures of Roderick Random

Mr. Lavement’s Apothecary Practices and Dietary Proposal

Describes Mr. Lavement’s work as an apothecary and his failed household proposal. The narrator’s diligence and skill win Mr. Lavement’s approval, with the master often praising him in French as a good young man. Mr. Lavement’s clientele is mostly fellow French refugees, so his profits are modest, but he saves significantly on medicine costs because he is a master of creating cheap substitutes for expensive apothecary preparations: he can turn oyster shells into crab’s eyes, common oil into sweet almond oil, Thames water into cinnamon water, and disguise ordinary medicines with cochineal and clove oil to hide their true nature from patients. He has repeatedly tried to convince his family to adopt a vegetarian diet, arguing for the benefits of vegetables and against meat consumption as both a physician and philosopher, but no one in the household supports the idea, including his wife.

Mrs. Lavement’s Outing and Mr. Lavement’s Jealous Reaction

Recounts an outing by Mrs. Lavement that sparks Mr. Lavement’s jealous outburst. One afternoon, while Mr. Lavement is out and his daughter is visiting friends, Mrs. Lavement orders the narrator to hire a hackney coach for her and Captain O’Donnell to go to Covent Garden. She returns late in the evening, and when Mr. Lavement arrives home at 11 PM and learns she has not yet returned, he panics. When a patient’s servant arrives with a prescription, he prepares the medicine himself, and flies into a jealous rage upon learning his wife is out with the captain, smashing a glass mortar to pieces and muttering insults about her treachery. Mrs. Lavement returns shortly after, claiming the captain treated her to a play, and Mr. Lavement quickly switches to polite, formal French to greet the captain to avoid further conflict.