Woolwich Arsenal is one of our great centres of women’s work and the Chief Welfare Supervisor there, Miss Lilian Barker, is the most capable woman Supervisor in Britain, a statesman among Supervisors.  Any visitor to the Arsenal cannot help being struck by the general impression of contentment, happiness and health of the woman worker there in her thousands.  It is rare to see a sickly face among them, even among the girls in the Danger Zone.  Miss Barker is constantly adding to her own staff of supervisors and training others for provincial centres.  She and her Assistants interview new hands and arrange changes and transfers of women.  She enquires into all complaints, advises as to clothing, keeps an eye on the vast canteen organization of Woolwich, and initiates schemes for recreation—­notices of whist drives, dances and concerts are constantly up on the boards.  The housing of the immigrant workers—­no small problem, she and her assistants deal with.  They suggest improvements in conditions and are awake to signs of illness or overfatigue.  They follow the worker home and look after the young mother and the sick girl and women.

Hostels have been built there and all over the country by the Government and by factory owners, and the Hostel Supervisors have a big and useful work to do.

They are very well arranged with a room for each girl and nice rest rooms, dining rooms and good sickroom accommodations.  Rules are cut down to a minimum.  Most Supervisors find out ways of working without them.

“Smoking is allowed at this end of the restroom,” said one Superintendent, “but since we have permitted this recreation, it seems to have fallen out of favour,” which seems to show munition girls are very human.

Hutments have also been built for married couples.  Lodgings are inspected and when suitable, scheduled for workers coming to the area.  In some cases the management in private factories do not adopt formal welfare workers but get a woman of the right type and put her in charge of the female operatives, with generally excellent results.  The value of the influence of this work on our girls cannot be over-estimated—­it is an influence of the very best kind, and our experiences in munition and welfare work, every class of women working together, is going to be of great and permanent good.

[Illustration:  An official booklet for munition workers]

The professional woman and the girls who flock to London in large numbers for work in Government Departments, must be housed also, and there are many extremely good Hostels.  Bedford House, the old Bedford College for Women, is now a delightful Hostel run by the Y.W.C.A., whose work for munition girls deserves very special mention.  They had Hostels over the country before the war and have added to these.  They have set up Clubs all over the country for the girls in munitions and industry in 150 centres, and these are very much appreciated and used by thousands of girls.