A Dream of Elisha Milton Chalk

(As told by his son James A. Chalk on7 February 1970 at Jamison, Oregon,
by request of James's daughter, Dorothy James of Farmington, New Mexico)

His folks told him of a family of Latter-day Saints about six miles away. "Well," says he, I'll go see them tomorrow." That night upon retiring, being very lonesome of heart, he prayed as usual, asking God if it were possible to enable him to visit some Saints while here, if any were to be found. After a while, sleep seemed to come. This night he dreamed. He saw a melon patch, many melons all over it. He entered, many nice ones he saw, but there was one very prominent. He went over to it. "My, what a nice looking melon," he said to himself. "I'll just take this one." He pulled the stem off, took hold and lifted. Taking it off the ground, he noticed it soft on the bottom side, and while holding it a portion of the bottom side and all the inside fell out. It was a surprise and a disappointment to him.

He awoke and thought of it some, but went back to sleep and had the rest of the night in peaceful slumber. In the morning, he decided to walk over to this Latter-day Saint's place and visit with him. So he did, not thinking any more of the dream. On arriving, he found the man at home, a fine-looking fellow. He introduced himself telling the man he had been informed that he was a Latter-day Saint. "Yes, oh, yes, I am one too", says, Father. "Come on in the house." He introduced his wife and children, a nice large family. I was happy to meet a Mormon again. In the course of their conversation, he told the brother he had just come from Utah. "Oh, then you are a Brighamite." "Yes, if you term the Mormons in Utah that." "Well, you see we are better known as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or Josephites." Then Father thought of the melon patch, the nice melon he saw and plucked, how nice it looked, but the inside fell out. So did his highest hopes of meeting a Mormon, a Brighamite, a real Latter-day Saint. He looked like other LDS, talked a good deal like them, but there was just the shell, no foundation, no inside, and a great disappointment to Father. The man said that he never had much use for the Utah Mormons or Brighamites. "Well," said Father, "That includes me, so I'll be going."