The Forest Princess

About this issue

This Beadle dime novel issue from 1871 contains The Forest Princess by Jos. E. Badger, Jr., the main serial feature. The story is set during the War of 1812, following two frontier scouts, Uriah Barham and Pete Shafer, who are scouting for General Samuel Hopkins to monitor Indian movements along the Wabash River and Illinois border following the Battle of Tippecanoe. While pursuing a mysterious party through a forest defile, they discover a stunning young white woman—approximately seventeen or eighteen years old, with dark-brown hair and blue eyes—riding among a group of Native Americans led by a gray-haired warrior chief. The woman appears not to be a captive but rather traveling willingly with the Indians, prompting intense curiosity from Barham. The issue also advertises companion Beadle publications: Dime Exhibition Speaker, No. 12, containing speeches and recitations for schools and public performances, and Dime Dialogues, No. 10, featuring theatrical pieces for various numbers of performers.