Downstairs, Molesley is talking poor Mrs. Patmore's ear off about cricket, saying it's in his blood and he goes on and on about doing right by the house and whatever to the point where the entire kitchen staff is kind of making fun of him to his face and he doesn't even know it. And can I just point out again that this is CRICKET we're talking about? (I lived in the UK for two years, so I'm allowed to find cricket soporific without creating an international incident.)

Mary and Matthew find Edith with paper in her hand and she explains that she's got to have this week's column off to the editor by the next day, and that it's about World War I soldiers who have been reduced to begging on the street. Neither Mary nor Matthew takes her entirely seriously, which I take to illustrate the difficulties a woman faces when writing about a subject that's perceived to be the domain of men, but before that discussion can break out, Cora, Isobel and the Dowager Countess enter, and we learn that the Dowager Countess will soon be hosting the 18-year-old "Rose," whose mother is the Dowager Countess's niece. Apparently, the mother asked the favor of the Dowager Countess, as Rose has said she hates London and they won't be able to get on to Scotland until July. "Poor Shrimpy. His work keeps him nailed to his desk." As you know, I try to limit my references to future events, but if Rose should, say, act out a bit, the fact that her father's name is apparently "Shrimpy" would go a long way to explaining it. Isobel is like, let me get this straight: she's coming to a great-aunt in Yorkshire for a good time? The Dowager Countess sees nothing odd in that, so Isobel can only add, "How original." Heh.