But close upon the heels of the above petition, followed another of a very different character. The framers of the last also maintained that a change should be made, and adduced strong charges against Upton; but it appeared after all, that Barnaby was not the most reliable man.
"Such an appointment," said the new document, "would give greater dissatisfaction, if possible, than the old one has done. The said Barnaby is an infidel, who made himself very obnoxious to all right-minded citizens by his avowed disbelief in the Scriptures, and his contempt of the Sabbath, and the ordinances of religion. Your Honor's humble petitioners, therefore, submit that it would be an outrage upon the feelings of a Christian community to have such a person appointed to so important and responsible an office.
Furthermore, the undersigned take it upon themselves to affirm that it is not the wish of over four persons in our district that the said Barnaby should receive the commission. We understand the petition in his favor was drawn up by one Aminadab Fogle, whose name heads the list. Now it happens that the said Fogle is a brother-in-law of the said Barnaby, while at least three others in his (Barnaby's) favor are likewise connections of the family, and persons, like him, entirely destitute of religious principles. With regard to other persons who signed the petition, the most of them privately acknowledge that they did so, because they were urged, and could not refuse, without offending their neighbors.
Under these circumstances, the undersigned respectfully represent that they express the general feeling of the community, when they nominate Mr. Homer S. Clark as an eligible candidate for the office in question."
Then follows an eulogy on Mr. Homer S. Clark; the whole winding up with a grand rhetorical flourish, to the tail of which are attached some twenty-three names, representing the active "better class" of society in Harrowfork.
So it appeared that Clark was the right man; and undoubtedly the Department would have proceeded at once to invest him with the disputed honors; but before any action could be had in the matter, a candid representation from another party, strengthened by affidavits, served to cast "ominous conjecture" on the whole affair. This was a petition from the Upton party, wherein it was maintained, that of the two aspirants for office, Barnaby was the better man of the two, Clark having made himself very unpopular, by failing for a large amount some years before, going through chancery, and afterwards living in a style of elegance unbecoming a man who had dismissed his creditors with ten cents on a dollar.
It was also shown that the prime mover in favor of Clark was a cousin of his, and the same person who was supposed to have held a large portion of bankrupt property in trust for the said Clark at the time of his failure! Still Barnaby was no more fit for the office, than the petitioners in favor of Clark had represented. There were fifty in Harrowfork eminently qualified to fulfil the duties of post master, and who would give infinitely better satisfaction than either of the new candidates; but of them all, there was no one, who, in the opinion of the petitioners, was better calculated for the office than the present incumbent. It was only a few dissatisfied, mischief-making people, who pretended to consider a change at all desirable. Upton had now been in a year; had shown himself obliging and faithful; and although a few unimportant mistakes, unavoidable under the circumstances, had escaped his eye in the early part of his career, he was now experienced, and no such errors would be likely to occur in future.
The attention of the Department was then called to the fact that the names of John Harmon, Solomon Corwin, Amos Fink, and several others, probably would be found on both the Clark and Barnaby petitions! This inconsistency was easily accounted for. In the first place, John Harmon had always been accustomed, when Crocker was post master, to make himself quite at home in the office. Mr. Upton, however, exercising a stern impartiality, had from the first excluded every outsider from the private room, Harmon not excepted, during the business of opening and assorting the mails. Thereupon Harmon had taken offence, and was ready to sign any petition against Upton, without regard to the source whence it originated. With respect to Corwin and Fink and any others whose names might be found on both the previous petitions, they were easy, good-natured individuals, who could not say "no;" and who might generally be prevailed upon to sign any sort of a paper to which their attention was called.
It was therefore the humble prayer of the petitioners, that no needless change should be made, but that the present post master should be continued in office, at least until some good reason should be assigned for his removal.
Then followed a good show of names designed to impress the Department with the power and influence of the Upton party.