---
title: Improvement Era
description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930.
authors:
  - Parry, Edwin F.
collections:
  - periodicals
tags:
  - magazine
  - improvement-era
periodical: Improvement Era
volume: 12
number: 4
published: 1909-02
publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations
publisher_place: Salt Lake City
language: en
type: magazine
reference: 'Parry, Edwin F., "Herbert Melbourne—IV," *Improvement Era* 12, no. 4 (February 1909): 270–279.'
source:
  url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1204unse
  transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers.
  identifier: improvementera1204unse
start_page: 270
end_page: 279
rights:
  status: public-domain
  basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1909-02)
  source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1204unse
  publication_year: 1909
  note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1909, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright.
---

# Herbert Melbourne—IV

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HERBERT MELBOURNE.
BY EDWIN F. PARRY.
IV.
It was a beautiful evening in June, or more properly speaking, it was late in the afternoon; for the sun was high above
the horizon when Herbert Melbourne left the railway office, having
finished his work for the day. He walked home alone and in
silence, purposely avoiding the companionship of any one of his
several friends who walked in the same direction to their places
of residence. He was engaged in serious thought, as he had been
during a greater part of the day. Usually Herbert was jovial
and always pleasant. He was serious at times, and this day he
was unusually so.
He greeted his mother on entering the door with a somewhat
forced smile, and an attempted word of cheer. But it was soon
apparent to his dear old mother that all was not well with her son.
Something troubled him; and she, with mother-like intuition, had
a suspicion of what it might be that made him so downcast. At
supper he had very little to say. To his mother's inquiries as to
whether he was ailing physically, he assured her that his health
was first class. Then to relieve her anxiety he simply remarked
that he was troubled over some problem that confronted him in
his daily labors. Still his mother felt that the problem, whatever
it might be, was of an unusual character; and she was not entirely
satisfied in her mind that the business problem was the only cause
of his seriousness. Perhaps there was a love problem troubling
him as well, she thought. She had heard whisperings from gossiping neighbors about his being in love with Alice Williams. While

<!-- page:271 -->

HERBERT MELBOURNE. 271
she placed but little confidence in these stories, she surmised that
there might be some truth in what was reported as current gossip.
Among the things she had heard was that her son had proposed
to Alice and had been rejected, or at least that the girl had
given him an evasive answer.
Another story was that Alice had a rival suitor who was very
attentive to her, and who was more of an adept at love-making
than was Herbert. She could easily believe there were more engaging lovers than was Herbert, judging by the standard as set by
thoughtless young ladies. For Herbert was not what might be
termed a popular young man among the girls. He was "too sensible" for that, as his mother expressed it. She believed, also,
that Alice was "too sensible" to be captivated by any foolish flirt
or adventurer who might come along.
Soon after eating his supper, Herbert put on his hat and
walked out without saying a word as to where he was going.
Really he did not know where he would be led. He had no
destination in mind. He was restless. He could not content
himself with remaining at home, and he had no particlar errand to
take him away. He had a feeling that he would like to be alone.
He was wrestling with conflicting thoughts within his mind; and at
present he was not prepared to open his mind to anyone, not even
to his mother, to whom he always went for comfort ad advice.
The truth was, he knew pretty well just what his mother's advice
would be if he submitted the matter to her, and he was not yet
sure he was prepared to follow her counsel. Instinctively his footsteps were directed "down-town" towards the office; but as he
had no business to draw him there at that time of the evening, he
simply hesitated a moment and then slowly walked on. He met
but few of his acquaintances, and passed them with a simple word
of recognition. On, on he went, walking not so briskly as he was
wont to do. His head was bowed, and he was in deep and troubled
thought. He continued in the same general direction until he
found himself high up on the hill-side beyond the farthest distant residence north of the city. He was entirely alone and
beyond the reach of the noise of the town. All about him was
silent. A gentle breeze was blowing from the canyon. The sun
was sinking behind the western mountains. The scene at his feet.

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272 IMPROVEMENT ERA.
— the city with its thousands of trees in their full preen foliage —
and the golden sunset, were magnificent, glorious. But to him on
this occasion they had no beauty. He was not in a condition of
mind to appreciate them.
He sat upon a rock and rested his limbs, but he found no rest
for his brain. With elbows on his knees and his face buried in his
hands he sat and pondered, and tried to decide what he should do.
Then he would wonder why his peace of mind should be disturbed
by such seemingly small trifles. Generally, his life had been happy,
why could it not remain so? But now a combination of circumstancea had conspired to destroy his tranquility of spirit. For
half an hour he remained here scarcely moving. It began to get
darker, still ho did not feel that he was ready to retrace his steps
to seek his home. It seemed hard for him to yield, but at last he
concluded to pray there and then for guidance. Of himself he
was not capable of deciding upon the proper course to take. So
he knelt by the boulder upon which he. had been resting, and poured
out his soul unto his Maker. He prayed as he had never done before. He felt to resign himself to the Lord, and be led by him in
the course he should pursue. Then he arose, wiped the moisture
from his eyes, and began to descend towards the city. He felt
relieved as from a heavy burden. His heart and his footsteps
were light, still he was not certain as to what he should do, but
was fully decided that he would "go home and confide all his anxieties to his mother.
The immediate cause of all his mental distress was the receipt
of a letter from the President of the Church, asking him if he was
prepared to take a mission abroad. But to fully understand his
situation, other incidents of his past life must be understood.
Herbert Melbourne had a good position with the railway company. He made good money, and was enabled to live well, and
keep his mother comfortably, which he did. He also saved money,
but. unfortunately, he speculated in mining stocks and lost heavily.
He never mentioned this matter to his mother, but kept it to
himself.
This misfortune, if it can be so called, may have had some
effect in causing him to give some attention to his spiritual welfare. It often happens that people turn to the Lord when ad-

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HERBERT MELBOURNE. 273
versity strikes them, that is, if it strikes hard enough to turn them.
Herbert worked hard and saved continually to make up for his
financial loss, and now that he was out of debt, and was again
fairly on the road to prosperity, and had just recently received a
promotion, which meant a still larger salary, came this call to go
upon a mission.
This call from the Church presidency was what troubled him.
Which should he do, respond to the call, or accept the new position offered? His letter was in the form of an inquiry as to
whether he was in a condition to go abroad as a missionary. No
time was set for his departure. He could answer that he was not
ready to eo yet, and have the time for starting deferred for a
year, perhaps. This would give him opportunity to better his condition financially. But he was financially able to go at present,
and would it be honorable and wise to wait another year, or any
great length of time? What assurance had he that he would be
better prepared in a year to come? Temptation might come, and
he might again yield to the desire to speculate with his means. (Or
should the term "invest" be used here? People always try to
make themselves believe that they are making a safe and profitable
investment when thev use their savings to purchase stocks, but
very often such transactions turn out to be the wildest of speculations). These and many other questions he discussed in his mind;
but he could not help feeling that the call meant for him to respond at once, or as soon as possible. He had cultivated the habit
of being prompt and thorough in his business methods, and he believed in applying the same principles in all his transactions. So
he was arguing against his own principles and practices when he
tried to believe it would be all right to postpone his mission.
When he arrived home that evening he told his mother all
about the matters that were weighing upon his mind. He told of
his financial circumstances, of his prospects of promotion, and of
his call to go upon a mission.
"I am able to go and pay my own way all right," he remarked; "but I do not know just how you will get along in my
absence."
If his mother had any objections to his fulfiling the call at
once, they would of course help to strengthen his poor, weak

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274 IMPR 0 VEMENT ERA .
reasons for waiting till some other time. He felt it his first duty
to care for his dear, aged mother, and half believed he would be
justified in remaining to provide for her. Had he reflected further,
he might have allayed all fears of her being neglected: for did he
not have brothers and sisters, amply able to take care of their
mother? Perhaps he overlooked this fact, for the time being, because he had taken upon himself to provide for his mother, as he
was the only one of the children living at the parental home, unmarried.
His mother had no desire that the caring for her should stand
in the way of his performing his duty; still, she did not want to
advise him strongly as to which course he should take. She had
always given him good counsel, and now wanted him to decide for
himself, feeling that he would choose the right course. So she
answered his query by merely saying,
"My dear son, you need not trouble about me. I will be well
cared for whatever you do. But choose for yourself. "
"But I want you to help me decide," Herbert insisted.
"Think the matter over for a day or two," said his mother,
"and then you will be prepared to give your answer. You know
you are of age now, Herbert, and you can choose for yourself. I
am pleased that you have confided in me, and you may be assured
that I shall do everything I can to assist you, whatever you do, as
long as you do right.''
"Yes, mother, I am assured of that," added Herbert.
"I suppose there is no truth in the gossip of the neighborhood
about you and Alice?" inquired Mrs. Melbourne.
"Well, I do not know. You will have to tell me what it is; I
haven't heard the latest gossip," said Herbert, trying to appear
as unconcerned as possible.
His mother, however, was a little concerned, and when he
appeared so silent and glum at the supper table, she feared the
cause of it was some misunderstanding with Alice. Like good
mothers are, she was over-anxious about all her "baby" son's
affairs. She told him what she had heard — from those who
always know more about their neighbors' affairs than do the
neighbors themselves.

<!-- page:275 -->

HERBERT MELBOURNE. 275
Herbert only laughed at the absurdity of the stories, and
remarked, "That's all they know about our affairs!"
Herbert Melbourne and Alice Williams were engaged to be
married; but no date had been set for the consummation of that
important event of their young lives; nor was the engagement
publicly announced. Both parties were wise enough to keep their
own counsel. They considered such a matter their own affair, and
displayed their good sense by withholding the fact from the public
— not that they were ashamed of it, but that it was too premature
to make public. Their silence about the engagement naturally
aroused the curiosity of the gossip-venders, and in absence of
genuine information they manufactured news — like some newspaper
reporters, when they fail to get the facts, they publish the
rumors, and if there are no rumors, they imagine some, and build
startling stories upon their imaginations.
Herbert's attachment for Alice grew out of his attendance at
the meetings of the Mutual Improvement Association in the ward
in which they both resided. The two had been slightly acquainted
before they met in the association, but it was during the period of
Herbert's connection with the association that his love was
awakened; and it was not long after the first awakening of this
passion when he discovered that Alice was not unwilling to
reciprocate. She believed him to be a man of honor and purity
and felt that if he ever became interested in religion he would
become a staunch advocate of the truth.
It was now over a year since Herbert became a regular
member of the Y. M. M. I. A. It had heen observed that he was
becoming interested in spiritual affairs; that he had cast from him
his habit of smoking, and that he was also a tithepayer. Herbert
never did oppose the doctrine of tithing. True, he neglected to
pay tithing for some years, but this was because he did not regard
himself as a Church member. He was not converted to other
principles, and was not religiously inclined. Still he believed it was
proper for Church members to support their Church financially as
well as morally. He could never see any consistency in a man who
expected, to get the benefits derived from membership in an
organization, and'refuse to "pay his dues," as he expressed it.
He had no patience*with people who [are always striving to get

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276 IMPROVEMENT bit A.
something for nothing. His education had taught him that in
nature there was a law of recompense that man could get only
that which he earned. The farmer cannot expect to reap a
harvest unless he sow the seed and cultivate the ground; the
student cannot get information from his text books only in
proportion to his diligence in studying them; and so, too, the
Church member can only be truly benefitted by such membership
according to his faithfulness in observing the requirements of his
religion. Besides this, he saw the beauty, equality, and justice of
the law of tithing. The poor man whose tithing was small was on
an equality with the rich man whose tithing reached into the
thousands of dollars annually. Then the practice of paying tithing
is highly valuable for the discipline it gives in conducting the
financial affairs of the family, affording as it does, a valuable
training in frugality. It requires attention and care in the
handling of the family income, to pay one-tenth as a voluntary
contribution, but the benefit secured more than repays for the
outlay. Young as he was, Herbert had noted this fact in his
observations among his neighbors and acquaintances. He also
realized to some extent the power for good that might be exerted
by the Church, were every member loyal in sustaining it with his
means as well as his faith.
The second day after Herbert received his missionary call,
the fact became known among his fellow employes at the railway
office. His friends were uncertain as to whether he had accepted
the call; in truth, he had not decided in his own mind, and had
made no statement concerning the matter.
During the day several of his friends "jollied" him about it,
and asked if he were going to turn preacher. He made evasive
answers to all their questions, and heard all kinds of comments.
He chanced to overhear one man remark that he (Herbert) would
be a fool if he should respond to the call. But knowing the
character of the one from whom the expression came, Herbert
was not to be influenced by anything that man might suggest,
unless it was to act in direct opposition to what he advised. It
was, no doubt, the slurring remarks of such persons as the one
referred to that aroused his indignation and contempt for such
advisers, and hastened his decision to accept the call to fill a

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HERBERT MELBOURNE. ' 277
mission. He cared not for gratutious advise from those who had
no sympathy with him, and he was anxious to ignore it if
possible.
That evening he mailed his answer to the presidency's inquiry,
stating that he was prepared to take a mission at once. He
would be ready to start at any time that might be named.
Afterwards he called upon Miss Williams, to tell her what he had
done. The thought occurred to him, while on the way, that he
would first tell her only of his call, that he might get her opinion
as to what he should do under the circumstances. Then he
questioned in his mind if he had done right in giving his answer
without informing her about it; but he was at once satisfied that
he had taken the right step, and was morally certain that she
would have encouraged him to do as he had done. To satisfy his
curiosity be would make a test. After being comfortably seated
in the parlor of the Williams home, and being alone with the
young lady he said,
"Alice, have you heard the news?"
"What news?" inquired Alice.
"The news concerning myself — and yourself, perhaps."
"I have heard that you are about to receive a promotion
from the company for which you work; is that the news you
refer to?"
"Not exactly that. I am called to go away.''
"Then your new position takes you to another town, does it?
Where to — Denver?"
"No; you do not understand. I have been called upon a
mission. What do you think of that? How would you suggest
that I answer such a call?"
Instead of answering directly, Alice upon the momentary
impulse, concluded also to make a trial of his feelings respecting
the matter, so she replied by saying, "Surely you are not going
now, are you?"
"Well, why not?"
"I understand you are to receive a better position with the
railway company. You would not go and refuse such an offer,
would you?"
"Then what do you think I should do?"

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278 IMPROVEMENT ERA.
"And would you leave your aged mother, whom you may not
see again in this life — and your young sweetheart, too, whom
you may never meet again only as some one else's wife? Cannot
the mission be postponed for a few years?
"I would like your opinion about the matter. What would
you suggest?''
"Why, can't you decide for yourself? Is it not plain to you
what you ought to do?"
"No; I would like your advice."
"And will you do as I advise?"
"I will not promise. I will take it under consideration."
"Then you mean to go, even if I advise you to the
contrary?"
"I have not so stated."
"But you would not take a woman's advice, anyway!"
"That depends on whether — "
"Whether it suits you, of course!"
"No; whether it is the right thing to do."
Having thought of no more possible objections to his taking a
mission, Alice at last said:
"Herbert Melbourne, if you desire any suggestion from me, I
will say, by all means tell the presidency that you will accept the
call, and will go upon the mission at once. I was arguing in favor
of your staying at home just to see if you had the courage of your
convictions.''
"Then you want to get rid of me, do you?" asked Herbert in
an attempt to tease.
"Not that — do not misunderstand me. I consider it a
privilege as well as a duty for a young man to respond to such
a call."
"You mean it, do you?"
"Yes; I am in earnest."
"Noble girl, you are! I have already answered that I am
prepared to go. I resolved that it was my duty — and perhaps the
opportunity of my life; and I knew if you were the sensible girl I
believed you to be, you would not try to dissuade me from obeying
the call."

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HERBERT MELBOURNE. 279
"You did right. Besides, it would not be my right, even if I
had the desire, to influence you to do otherwise."
"You are a courageous girl. And now that I expect to be
gone for several years, I think it but fair that I should release you
from the engagement to marry me. I would be selfish to insist
that you wait for my return, for you may, in the meantime,
receive better offers than I can hope to make."
"I am perfectly willing to wait, Herbert; or I am willing to
release you. You are going into the world, and may meet many
other women you would prefer above me, and you should be free to
make your choice."
"Not so, my dear. Alice, if you are willing to remain
constant through the years of my absence, I shall be true to
you, and your constancy and love will be an inspiration to me to
put forth my greatest efforts to fulfil my duty, as Heaven gives
me light to see it. With assurance of your continued love I shall
not fear to face even death itself!" and rising to his feet, and
also to the climax of his protest, he added, "I herewith renew my
solemn promise to be true to you, until we shall meet again!"
Then he stooped and sealed the promise with a kiss.
That was a remarkably dramatic speech for Herbert, who was
never very demonstrative in his actions. He was usually inclined
to be reticent, in tjje presence of ladies, though exceedingly
considerate and polite.
[to be continued. ]
Salt Lake City, Utah.