Putnam patriot., 1908-09-11
-Nhai Can Ynu Do P

incident in the life ef nr. Grenfeii, the Labrador Missionary, whose story is so widely known, under this question M hat Can You Dos''
 Not What you would like to dor not "M hal are yau willing to dos' Dat, What can you do with skill, and power and sustained strength of willg' You may have love. YOU may have be. lief. yoa may have knowesige What can you do with these gifts and ac- qmrement>s You love honor. What can yoa do Io establish honor in the worlds You foNe some one. What can you do to give the freedom of life to that person? To carry her burdens; to turn devotion into that service which makes place for growth. for rest. for beauty? You believe you are your bfo- theFas keeper; what can you do 10 pake the world, mol easier fer hsiu, but safer. more wholesome. and more human for him and fer his children
 You know hundred things. What can you do with them2 That is the question that Life puts te Us all. To what service can you dedicate yoar gifts? Love, belief, knowledge, must pass on into action before they reach their full growth. The world of beauty. Of truth, of organized society, k net made by dreamers. The poets have not only been the seers ef great things, but they have been the reyeaiers of great truths. The prophets were not only de claIers of the Word, but the incarna. tons of energy and leadership. The patriots have not only spoken for their country, they have also died for it. The great lovers have not only breathed their devotion in ardent words bull they have endured and suffered, and have been faithful unto death. Beyond feel ing, beyond thought, beyond know ledge, is action, as the harvest is beyond the seed.
 That question, "What can you do2s means, aHew much of man or wo- man are you going to be- ''Are you going to count as force in the world, or are you going 10 eft ter the innumer- able army of the neg eligible9' IL is not question of power and efficiency. It k the question which thIs age of skill puts to eNsry young man or woman who asks for a share of the world s work There should be 10 talk about luck: no hiding behind the falsehoed that you have iosi because you did net have the right 'puh. There are no more misleading words in our language than those two words; pull and lnek.
 We all know Dr. Grenfell; many of Us have seen him, and some ot us have talked with him. Ne know how he has answered these questions, What do you believe? What do you love?
 He loves men with passionate and chiealric devotion which makes it his meat and drink to help them. He be lieves in God, not as matter of formal statement. but as you believe in your father and mother; with the same sense of intimate nearness. Long ago he an. swered these questions. few months ago, suddenly, Life stepped beside him as she has done many times before, and put terrible questions to him again,
  The story has been told in our pages, but it cannot be told too often. Df. Grenfeil was called on an emergency case twelve miles from his stalio l to a little hamlet on the coast. Dusk soon overlook him, and then he discef- cred that he was being driven from the shore toward the open sea. The ice on which he was driving had broken loose and was afioat. The dogs took fright and Jumped into the sea, carrying him with them.
 Night was beginning to fall, the ther- fnometer was below zero, and 1t was blowing a gale. He was alone in the iey sea, with pack Of dogs, wild with fear, trying to climb on his back Life pressed him close with the question, Now what can you do?'' and did not give him much time to answer. But he knew. He fought off the wild dogs and climbed back on the ice, and the dogs followed; and then, if We had been there, drenehed to the skin, with the thermometer below zero, night coming on and gale blowing from the north we>t-we would have died in thirty minutes. But Dr. Grenfell stopped down. took of his great shoes. fur lined water.tight on the outside, sliced them and placed the pieces on his body to protect his heart and lungs. Then he killed two of his dogs and put his feet in them. and when the pack smell ed the blood, they fell on him, and for len minutes, armed only with knife, he fought them off. There he stood A one. covered with wounds on arms and legs, and again Life stood beside him and said, "Nt hat can you do9 How can you get through this Arctic night alive?r He pulle the dead dogs about him and crept under them; he stayed there until all the heat was gone from them. and then ne got up and ran about the small area of ice and snow 10 keep from freezing.
 When morning broke he tore up some of his clothing and made 8 signal. and in time he was rescued by men on shore who saw the signal IL was sharp battle between Life and Death that night; and every ten minutes Life put A question to him, and he kne. how to answer it.