A complete, restored issue of Penny Dreadfuls from 1869 — all 105 pages of cheap serialized Victorian sensation fiction — crime, horror, and lurid melodrama, free to page through at ComicBooks.com.

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A complete issue · 105 pages · 1869

Despard, the Spy: Or, The Fall of Montreal

1869 · Free to read

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About this issue

This Dime Novel No. 178 (March 16), by W. J. Hamilton, features a spy-and-intrigue narrative set during the French occupation of Montreal. The main story follows Despard, an undercover English agent living among the French, who intercepts the kidnapping of Marie D'Arigny, a prominent colonial lady. Despard rescues her from three assailants, earning her gratitude. The narrative reveals a complex backstory: Marie's brother was murdered by Mariot Dujardin, a secret crime known to several parties who cannot expose it without compromising others. Dujardin now pursues Marie while hating her beloved, an English agent named Wilton (the "Silent Slayer"). Despard, though raised French, despises France and spies for England. He communicates intelligence to Wilton via coded tokens—colored sticks representing English military commanders. The issue also advertises "The Red Coyote," featuring Juan, described as "the Flower of the Prairie," an Apache woman seeking vengeance against her husband's killer.

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