complete failure she was promoted to Grade II in about six weeks and most girls got further promotion to T.A. in six to eighteen months. The best girls who became shift head or deputy shift heads became T.J.A.O's and this normally represented the highest they could get. We did not attempt to engage people with academic qualifications (e.g. girls with University degrees) for any of the clerical work. I believed that this is the right policy and that it was justified by the results; to take on higher grade staff than the job really needs is not only wasteful but also leads to discontent. Hut 6 held the opposite view - they thought that the difference in efficiency between a University girl (or someone of equivalent qualifications) and the average Grade III justified engaging the former; as this question will arise in any similar large scale organization and is of considerable importance I should like to record our contrary opinion. If a section has to be formed suddenly from scratch it may be necessary to engage one or two higher grade people as leaders; but if, as was the case with us, there is in existence an experienced nucleus which has been working on the job for some time while it was in the research stages, and the need suddenly comes for expansion I think everyone can be engaged on the same footing and enough able people will come up from the general body to supply adequate shift heads and deputies.
14. As regards cryptographers there is little to say except that men in the early twenties are best at operational work and that a bent for mathematics is very desirable, but a high degree of mathematical skill not essential. Older people tended to lack the necessary flexibility of mind and quickness needed for operational work done at high pressure. Another point worth making perhaps is the desirability of good health; in a research job it probably does not matter very much if a man is C 3 physically but it matters a good deal if operational work has to be done - it is a complete fallacy to suppose that physical condition does not matter in work like this which makes such a heavy call on one's nervous energy.
Morale.
15. Undoubtedly the best way of keeping up morale is by giving everyone
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