of which parish his father was then incumbent. The village of
Daresbury is about seven miles from Warrington; its name is supposed
to be derived from a word meaning oak, and certainly oaks are very
plentiful in the neighbourhood. A canal passes through an outlying
part of the parish. The bargemen who frequented this canal were a
special object of Mr. Dodgson's pastoral care. Once, when walking with
Lord Francis Egerton, who was a large landowner in the district, he
spoke of his desire to provide some sort of religious privileges for
them. "If I only had £100," he said, "I would turn one of those barges
into a chapel," and, at his companion's request, he described exactly
how he would have the chapel constructed and furnished. A few weeks
later he received a letter from Lord Francis to tell him that his wish
was fulfilled, and that the chapel was ready. In this strange church,
which is believed to have been the first of its kind, Mr. Dodgson
conducted service and preached every Sunday evening!


[Illustration: Daresbury Parsonage]


The parsonage is situated a mile and a half from the village, on the
glebe-farm, having been erected by a former incumbent, who, it was
said, cared more for the glebe than the parish. Here it was that
Charles spent the first eleven years of his life--years of complete
seclusion from the world, for even the passing of a cart was a matter
of great interest to the children.

[Illustration: Lewis Carroll, aged 8.]

In this quiet home the boy invented the strangest diversions for