It was a valuable part of former times.

There is something in a chapel and chaplain so much in character with a great house, with one's ideas of what such a household should be! A whole family assembling regularly for the purpose of prayer is fine!" "Very fine indeed," said Miss Crawford, laughing.

"It must do the heads of the family a great deal of good to force all the poor housemaids and footmen to leave business and pleasure, and say their prayers here twice a day, while they are inventing excuses themselves for staying away." "_That_ is hardly Fanny's idea of a family assembling," said Edmund.

"If the master and mistress do _not_ attend themselves, there must be more harm than good in the custom." "At any rate, it is safer to leave people to their own devices on such subjects.

Everybody likes to go their own way--to chuse their own time and manner of devotion.