A complete, restored issue of Penny Dreadfuls from 1888 — all 16 pages of cheap serialized Victorian sensation fiction — crime, horror, and lurid melodrama, free to page through at ComicBooks.com.

← Back to Penny Dreadfuls All exhibitions

Home › Exhibition › Penny Dreadfuls › Read

A complete issue · 16 pages · 1888

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake'

1888 · Free to read

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 2 of 16 — 2 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 3 of 16 — 3 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 4 of 16 — 4 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 5 of 16 — 5 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 6 of 16 — 6 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 7 of 16 — 7 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 8 of 16 — 8 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 9 of 16 — 9 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 10 of 16 — 10 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 11 of 16 — 11 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 12 of 16 — 12 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 13 of 16 — 13 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 14 of 16 — 14 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 15 of 16 — 15 / 16

Ching Ching's Novelettes No. 1: Snapson of the 'Snake' — page 16 of 16 — 16 / 16

About this issue

This penny dreadful serial, "Snapson of the 'Snake,'" depicts a maritime murder plot. Orphaned Will Fearon, heir to a substantial fortune, is delivered to Job Snapson, master of the decrepit trading brig Snake. Snapson has been hired by Will's grandfather, Mr. Warrington, to kill the boy at sea so the inheritance reverts to the grandfather. The narrative follows Will's arrival aboard ship and Snapson's initial attempts at intimidation—forcing the inexperienced boy aloft during rough seas and verbally abusing him. Will's defiant responses puzzle and frustrate Snapson. Two crew members, Dopper and Grip, recognize the plot and scheme to exploit it for their own gain. The text breaks off as Dopper is assigned to oversee Will's shipboard duties.

In this issue

“Snapson of the 'Snake'” by Author of "For Honour" · serial · p.1

Browse this issue page by page

Each page has its own page — the cartoon, who’s in it, and what the satire means.