Grand Hotel O'Connor,
Rue Cotta, 35-37,
Nice, Pl. Grimaldi,

January 4, 1918

Dear Friend Helen,
As you will notice by the above address I am down at Nice, or what is known as Sunny France. It is an agreeable change from the anything but Sunny part of France, that I left two weeks ago.

The worst part of leave is the going back part. I am starting back tomorrow the 5th, but will spend another day in Paris on the way back.

If I could only have been a civilian, I might have made my fortune in Monte Carlo, but they refuse to let a soldier gamble so I had to be content to look on. However they will let the women play, if I would have only thought, I might have brought you along and you might have staked my bit, but you know what poor thinkers we men are.

I must thank you for that fine box of candy that you sent me. I received it just a couple of days before coming on leave, and Laura Secord old-fashioned candies are sure good.

I have forgotten that big address of yours in Toronto, so am going to send this to Smithville, for I can always remember that address.

Will close with best wishes for a happy and successful year at school, or should I say College.

Sincerely,
Bill Grassie.
P .S. I wrote this on two different sheets of paper by mistake. W.E.G.