Beadle's New Dime Novels: Tippy, the Texan

This Beadle and Adams dime novel, Tippy, the Texan by George Gleason (1846), concerns the Mexican-American War siege of Monterey. The narrative opens with the American army's victory at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, followed by General Taylor's advance into Mexico's interior. On September 17, 1846, troops camp at Walnut Springs near Monterey, where Lieutenant Fuller and Major Pefferton discuss the impending assault. Pefferton reveals he has received General Taylor's permission to infiltrate the city disguised as a Mexican, seeking intelligence on enemy defenses and troop strength. He proposes Fuller accompany him. Pefferton's secondary motivation emerges: he hopes to locate Magdalena de Salamanca, a Spanish woman he glimpsed during his previous five-year residence in Monterey but has never met, carrying her portrait as proof of his infatuation.