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but the sale by the sheriff was not offered until the first Monday of February 1870. Almost a decade had passed.
It is also notable that even before the commencement of the war, letters within the	Jackson family in late 1860 reveal
anxieties about the changing economics and	politics	of	the	time. Sarah wrote to Andrew her son on September 3rd, “There are
a good many places for sale, at this time, land, negroes, stock, &c.. .abolitionism	is I think alarming the negro holders, and many of
them are anxious to realize a	large sum of cash for them now, while prices are high.”
Similarly, Samuel in a letter to his mother on November 13th expressed growing	panic. He wrote from Clifton: “Pa and I
went over to the city on last Friday	expecting	to	start	up	to	the	Ark.	River	&	other places but on arriving in the city	and
hearing of the election news & finding so much excitement found it necessary	one of us to return. We met several members of the
court of Hancock County and	they told us they intended putting in force the law requiring every owner of slaves	to	have
some one to oversee or be on the place themselves or they would be	subject	to a heavy fine or other penalties.”
Both of these statements reflect panic and disruption of normal business in the	community.	In the second, it is evident that the
“court of Hancock County” has	taken an unusual step.
Details of vigilante activity in the Koch letters.
The Koch letters contain accounts of the Citizens Council formed essentially as a vigilante group. Because there was no one to guide them and direct their activity, they resorted to conferring with the Union commander at Fort Pike. He gave guidelines about having a fair trial and punishing those found guilty.
These letters reflect a severe disruption in the social structure of the community. In addition, there is hard evidence that the official administration of the county had fallen to such a lack of authority that advice from a union officer was sought.
Most activity was between September 1864 and February 1865. A report of September 18, 1864 says that seven or eight people had already executed. Some of the description is indeed gripping: “She reported that Jourdan Stuart <sic> and Jess Young were shot ... over the Bioue.. .on Stewart <sic> they found letter from Charles Moody that he would steal cattle and deliver them to him at a certain place for 5 dollars a head.. .Lizzy McArthur is wife.. .she came down to see about having his body taken up and buried at home but she was persuaded to let it stay for some months first. They are buried just where they fell, on that road that we go by Whites just on the side of that hole we go around in the branch.”
In another poignant passage, Annette wrote: “I had a scene described to me by an eye witness, of a father and son who was shot close to Mr. Kimballs, how the son told standing by his father that he led in wickedness by his own father and that he had always been bad and he told his poor mother not to grieve for him but now that she would have the whole control of the other children to try and bring them up right and she was hardly out of hearing when they were both shot dead.”
Annette’s letter also told of how the Citizen’s Committee got its authority from the Union officer: “...the citizens, in each beat had to choose a Capt., and be ready...and Father Elers has joined them after they had got the Coll. at the Forts approval, they must give the criminal a trial, and must have positive [proof] that he is guilty then if the crime is sufficent <sic> for death he is to be shot....”