January 26, 1919 to Mother.

Cold weather has arrived. “Our ‘chauffage central’ …proved insufficient and we got a bunch of wood from the Quartermaster Friday and have been having a big fire in the living room in the evenings which is quite a big help…. We’re getting mail and magazines a bit faster these days…. This morning we’re having our first snow of the season but not very much of it has stuck as yet.”

The color and glow of Paris are returning. He has an opera box thanks to his friend Mr. Pellerin. “He told me beforehand that it was a box with twelve seats so I invited in some of my officer friends and several American girls I know. However, even then was a bit surprised at the grandeur of the box. It was a regular room and located just in the bend of the “horseshoe” and just above the orchestra seats where you could see and hear everything.”

However, Monty is not otherwise impressed. “The opera was “Othello” and enjoyed it mildly but can’t say I ever enthuse over Grand Opera. Thought of yourself and Kate and how you both would have enjoyed it. There was a lot of khaki in the audience as there is everywhere in Paris these days but there were also quite a few ladies in the boxes in evening dress and more or less bejeweled. Paris is slowly beginning to dress up again.”

On the work front, he seems likely to get his Wofford classmate Bert France employed to help him with his work which seems t be increasing and to expand his staff which seems to be getting picked apart by exigencies elsewhere: “Am losing one of my Lieutenants to he Peace Conference where he is slated to be sent down in the Balkans and am pretty sure to get Bert to replace him.”

[full letter in progress]