In January, 1915, Mrs. Furse was recalled from France, where the rest-station work was now established, to form a department for the co-ordination of V.A.D. work, and to organise a continual supply of probationers for the military and other hospitals. A selection board was formed at Devonshire House to deal with all applications of V.A.Ds. for service at home or abroad. Mrs. Furse’s duties also involve periodical inspections in France, where the work has been splendidly carried on by Miss Rachel Crowdy, the Principal Commandant in France. After one of her recent tours of inspection, Mrs. Furse reported: “The work of the V.A.D. members in France is a credit to the women of the Empire. Wherever I went I found the same anxiety to keep up the very high standard of work and behaviour set by the organisation.... No job is too small for the V.A.D. members, and they good-humouredly fill any gap which appears. The rules and regulations are very strict, and there is but little entertainment. The work is under war conditions, and the members try to show that they can wait till the end of the war for their play-time. Undoubtedly the V.A.D. organisation is proving that women can be trusted in the zone of the armies, and that they have realised the meaning of discipline and appreciate the necessity of discretion.” Many girls who went to France early in the war as practically untrained workers now hold splendid records of service in hospital, and have risen to positions of considerable responsibility. In measuring the scope of what they have accomplished, it must not be forgotten that V.A.D. members are drawn from very varied social positions, a large proportion being women accustomed to lives of luxury and ease, to whom the hard and often unattractive work has been a new and difficult experience. Mrs. Furse’s great foresight into future needs during the earlier stages of the war, the untiring energy and patience with which she prepared for the time when these needs should be recognised, and, above all, her immense personal influence, have proved her to be one of the real leaders whom the war has brought to light. It is largely through her fine personal example of the spirit in which all work should be done that the V.A.Ds. have won for themselves such a good name for keenness and discipline.