being’s sphere is and ought to be—­the place and work in which our capacity, ability or genius finds its fullest vent—­and there is no need to worry about restricting women or anyone else to particular spheres—­if they cannot do it, they cannot fill the sphere, and that test decides.  The dear old Victorian dugouts grow fewer and fewer in number, but we never must forget that the great powers of women have not come in a night, miraculously, in the war.  They are the result of long years of patient work before, and we women, who have had these great opportunities, must see to it that we nobly carry on the traditions of teaching and training and qualifying ourselves for service, bequeathed to us from older generations.

One thing, too, despite the war tasks and strain, we have not lost sight of the fact that the great fundamental tasks of keeping the house, guarding and seeing to the children must be well done.  Just for a little, some of our tasks of child welfare had fewer workers, but many of the women realized the value of all these tasks as supreme, and took up the work freely.  Child welfare work in particular the Suffrage woman organized and worked, Glasgow Suffragists taking on the visiting of babies, always done there, in a whole ward of the city, and in other towns they started Day Nurseries.

Lord Rhondda at the Local Government Board instituted Baby week and we hope to found a Ministry of Health very soon.  So in the War we have realized even more vividly how great and valuable and important these tasks of women are.  A very great amount of work for child welfare has been done by our women in the war, and our infant death rate is going still lower.

The war has done a great service in drawing women of all the Allied Nations together—­a service whose greatness and magnitude it is not easy to fully realize.  French and English men and women know so much more of each other now.  Our hospitals in France, our Canteens for French Soldiers, as well as our own, our women and the French women working side by side in our army clerical departments and ordnance depots in France, the Belgians and French who are among us in such large numbers, make us known to each other.  In Serbia we have made many friends and in Italy and Russia and Romania, all links for the future, and helps to wider knowledge and understanding.  It is on understanding the hopes of the world rest, and we women have a great part to play in that.

With America our link has always been very great and all the help, and gifts, and service America gave us before it entered the war, have been very precious to us.  American women have given Hospitals and ambulances and everything possible in the way of succour and of service, and have died with our women in nursing service, as the men have in our ranks.