---
title: Improvement Era
description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930.
authors:
  - Young Men's Mutual Improvement Associations
collections:
  - periodicals
tags:
  - magazine
  - improvement-era
periodical: Improvement Era
volume: 21
number: 3
published: 1918-01
publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations
publisher_place: Salt Lake City
language: en
type: magazine
reference: "Young Men's Mutual Improvement Associations, “First at Last,” *Improvement Era* 21, no. 3 (January 1918): 207."
source:
  url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2103unse
  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: improvementera2103unse
start_page: 207
end_page: 207
rights:
  status: public-domain
  basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1918-01)
  source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2103unse
  publication_year: 1918
  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 1918, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright.
---

# First at Last

<!-- page:207 -->

First at Last

"A detective asked an office boy," says the Ladies' Home

Journal, "if it was Mr. Jones or his partner who reached the

office first as a rule. 'Well,' said the boy, turning very red, 'Mr.

Jones at first was always last, but later he began to get earlier,

till at last he was first, though before he had always been behind.

He soon got later again, though of late he has been sooner, and

at last he got behind as before. But I expect he'll be getting

earlier sooner or later.' "

That reminds the Improvement Era of Dr. Karl G. Maeser's

commendation to a persistently tardy student who had repented :

"I perceive you are early of late; you used to be behind before,

but now I see you are first at last."