] -- Why do the Lucases have a pianoforte? None of the Miss Lucases appear to be musical. Solely to allow other young ladies a chance to exhibit?

I think having a pianoforte was a matter of status. Also, in the days before recorded music, if they ever wanted some music, at a party or whatever, somebody would have to play. And we don't know for a fact that none of the Miss Lucases played, do we? Maybe they didn't play well, but if they had the usual girls' education, they probably took piano lessons, too. In fact, earlier in the 20th century, it used to be much more common for middle-class people to own a piano, almost as another piece of furniture, than it is now.

] -- "Elizabeth joined them again only to say that her sister was worse, and that she could not leave her." But she did leave Jane -- to inform the others! Why didn't she just give a servant the message?