Beadle's Dime Novels No. 22: The Maid of Esopus

About this issue

This collection includes two serialized historical romances set during the American Revolution. "The Fugitives: A Tale of the Wyoming Massacre" by Edward S. Ellis, advertised for issue 85 (September 1865), promises excitement and pathos centered on the Wyoming Valley tragedy. Issue 22 contains "The Maid of Esopus: The Trials and Triumphs of the Revolution" by N.C. Iron (1861). The excerpt depicts a September 1777 council in New York where British Commander Sir Henry Clinton discusses General Burgoyne's campaign with Commodore Hotham and Major Campbell, debating whether to launch a diversionary Hudson River offensive to support Burgoyne's advance from Canada. The narrative then introduces Lieutenant Marcus Goodheart, who encounters a mysterious young musician playing guitar near British outposts. Initially suspecting a spy, Goodheart takes the boy into custody but treats him courteously, intending a favorable report by morning.