At dinner, Mr. Murray and his wife are sitting at opposite ends of the table. In proper etiquette of the time, he and his wife, as hosts, should be sitting in the center of the table, with the other guests gathered around them.
Vanessa is shown being lobotomized in a flashback scene- a psychosurgical procedure that wasn't invented until 1937 (much later than the 1800s time period of the show).