A very interesting letter written by Knox County resident Merritt M. Clark during the last days of the Civil War can be found on Ebay at http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1134529755. According to the seller, "This letter is four solid pages of text. This letter provides an outstanding glimpse into Mobile Alabama following the Siege of Spanish Fort and Battle of Blakely. It took quite some time to transcribe this, so read it in its entirety! :) At one point the writer (Merrit M. Clark, commander of Co. C 77th Illinois Infantry Volunteers) commends the Negro troops for their Gallantry in the battle and says they had to be stopped from butchering Rebels. Clark was likely an Abolitionist, being from Galesburg Illinois, a hotbed of Abolitionist activity and a graduate of Knox College, whose faculty were outspoken abolitionists. Read on, this has been my favorite letter out of this group of Clark's correspondence. This letter allows a glimpse into the last moments of the Civil war and affords us a very personal and very well put together assessment of Mobile Alabama following both of these battles." I hope it is of interest to someone. Bob Miller