Herbert was appointed on 19 April 1853 as a clerk first class ordinary division in the Surveyor-General's Department of New South Wales. At the
separation of Queensland in December 1859, he was selected by the Surveyor-General to bring to newly established Colony of Queensland the records and papers relating to the pastoral occupation and leasing and sale of Crown lands. On arrival in Brisbane, he was appointed chief clerk in the Surveyor-General's Office in February 1860. He was appointed secretary to the Lands Board in August 1860. In April 1862 he became Under Secretary for Lands and Works, to which was added on 28 October 1864 the position of Commissioner of Railways. After the separation of the Lands Department from the Works Department, he became the Under Secretary for Lands in addition to his railway duties. On 29 April 1869, the Secretary for Public Works and Mines
Arthur Macalister was briefly appointed Commissioner for Railways, before Herbert was restored to the position on 15 July 1870 by the new Secretary for Public Works William Henry Walsh. In January 1877, the responsibilities connected with Queensland's rapidly growing railway system made it imperative to relieve him of the duties connected with the general works of the colony in order to focus on the railways. He continued as Commissioner for Railways until 12 March 1885, when he was appointed Under Secretary for Railways, with the Commissionership transferring to
Francis Curnow. He was well regarded as an honest and painstaking public servant. ==Later life==