Another satisfactory feature is the excellent record of the "old
boys " of the Poor Law Schools, many of whom have done well at the front, some earning distinctions, including a V.C. Indeed, " the ' Children of the State' form perhaps the most helpful section of Poor Law work, because there is an opportunity of equipping them for independent careers, and the records show that very few of them return to pauperism in after life." The writer suggests, however, that more of the elder toys could be profitably put on the land. He also deals with the establishment of the College of Nursing, and other developments and contemplated changes in the Poor Law system. He is careful to admit that though we owe much to the discipline of the war, the altered conditions are not entirely due to that cause—they have been reached by a gradual process over a number of years. But the influence of the war, and the possibilities of human effort which it has revealed, form the most striking feature of the survey. As he puts it, " it has come as a revelation to most people that those sections of the community who have not hitherto contributed much to the well- being of the nation are rendering useful service in the present emergency." After noting that over five thousand members of the Union staffs have joined the forces, he adds that it is not an unusual thing to find a Poor Law official and an ex-vagrant fighting side by side in the trenches.
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