Chelsea is certainly much the most pleasant part of London to live in if one is an ordinary mortal--not a title, I mean. The houses have lots of personality, and make me think of Beacon Hill all the time. It is fun to compare them with the Boston houses and see just what the Americans have copied and what they ignored. I love the plumbing here; it is so very informal--the way it is all on the outside and usually down the front of the houses. One bath to seven rooms is the average, I gather. And that one bath is usually in the end of a hallway, or in a closet. The weather is behaving in a true London fashion--was at first foggy, as I told you, and now is absurdly warm. I have not suffered from the cold, therefore, so far, and am waiting for my trials to begin in Paris along that line. I have been so lucky this far on my trip that I suppose something awful will soon happen to me, but I can look back to these weeks of comfort and good food when I starve on the Channel ship! You will be disappointed to know that they have not done away with the dogs here, and that there are quantities of them everywhere! There is a dear little puppy in this household, which makes me think of how you would enjoy her, if only you were here. I have so far had no difficulty in arranging affairs, and now with Dr. Page behind me, I think I shall be in Paris soon. I have found my various letters and papers valuable, and have been impressed with the courteous efficient officers I have met. I can very well see, though, that it would be impossible to get anywhere unless one knew exactly what one wanted to do, and where one was going, and had good evidence to back up one's statement. Your loving daughter, MARJE. VII FROM ESTHER Paris, January 24, 1917. DEAREST FATHER:-- I dashed off a few words to you almost in my sleep the other night to be sure of having something on the Espagne. Sometimes I don't feel like getting out a bolt of wrapping-paper and beginning at the extreme end, and that was one of the times. I did manage to jot down a few theme sentences, however, and now I will proceed to talk. To say that we are overjoyed with the Ford is to put it mildly! It is the ideal car and body for our purposes and we all feel much indebted to you, Father dear, and to Mr. Migel. Two perfectly lovely letters are on their way to him from Mrs. Shurtleff and me respectively. Mrs. Shurtleff would like to know the name of the dealer who gave the thirty-three dollars discount, to write him a note also. As for lettering, we shall have time to think of the flourishes when the car arrives. I am glad you didn't bother about it as Mrs. Shurtleff wants to have an American flag underneath the name to let the French people see that it is an American work.