When Charles was about nine years of age, his mother became the permanent housekeeper for Sir Baring Gould of Lew Trenchard in Lew Downs, Devon, and his wife and 16 children! They lived on a beautiful large country estate with acres of woodlands. Charles remembered well Sir Baring Gould's charming and amusing stories. He attended the little school house on the grounds at the Manor Chapel along with the young Gould children. Sir Baring Gould was a fine Christian minister, poet, novelist, and hymn writer. Of the many songs he wrote for the Church, "Now the Day ls Over" is still sung. During Charles' stay at Lew Downs, all the other children who lived there in addition to the Gould children marched from the "big" house to the school house on the family estate singing "Onward Christian Soldiers" written for the children by their father, Baring Gould. Charles remembered these experiences well and enjoyed being included in a large, loving and amusing family. Baring Gould loved life, was full of great good humor, and the young lad enjoyed a warm and happy family life for the next few years. Baring Gould went on frequent trips to Europe and wrote many postcards to the children. He was a good writer of novels and mysteries, earning good money from those endeavors. Charles saved the postcards that Baring Gould sent him over the three years he lived at Lew Trenchard. He also remembered with pleasure riding in the horse and carriage when he and some of the family were picked up from the train station after returning from Exeter to Lew Downs. Charles was baptized at the Manor Chapel which enabled his mother to enroll him later at St. Sidwell Cathedral School, where he completed his secondary education. Now crossing the Pacific Ocean in 1915. Charles himself was a minister having been ordained in the Missionary Church in Fort Wayne. Indiana. Arriving in Toronto in 1910, the opportunities in Canada had seemed unlimited. Very quickly he found a position as a messenger boy in the large department store, EATONS. He enjoyed his work but had to be careful with the $5 a week he received for his board and room and transportation, leaving very little for other activities. His mother also had a position at the EATONS Store. Shortly after Charles became seriously ill with scarlet fever. With help from friends in the Salvation Anny ,?f and a special relative in England (his father's sister, Mrs. Rodgers), his mother received financial assistance to cover the costs of his illness. It was a slow recovery in those days and many died from this serious disease. During an outing on a lake Charles. who had not learned
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