Beadle's Dime Novels No. 6: Chip, the Cave-Child

This issue of Beadle & Company's dime novel series contains The Cave-Child by Mrs. Mary A. Dennison. The narrative opens in the Pennsylvania mountains, where a haggard Indian woman carves a tombstone over a small grave while summoning a ghostly pale child named Chip from a nearby cave. The woman, consumed by mysterious rage and grief, buries what appears to be bones in the grave. That evening, the scene shifts to a tavern kitchen where travelers—farmers and teamsters—gather by a roaring fire during a violent rainstorm. A spirited serving girl named Mastina exchanges witty banter with the men while a boy named Nick tends to their needs. As the travelers settle for supper, a strange, beautiful musical sound is heard outside—identified by Mastina as "the cave-child," suggesting a mysterious connection to the opening scene.