In which the parson Mark Robarts receives a timely letter from his friend Sowerby offering him a prebendal stall in Barchester Cathedral, prompting a journey to London to seek the favour of the new Lord Petty Bag, Harold Smith. Amidst reflections on ambition, friendship, and the weight of ecclesiastical preferment, Mark navigates the delicate social currents of cathedral life and political influence with a mixture of hope and prudence.