A complete, restored issue of Pulp Fiction from 1882 — all 16 pages of painted-cover fiction magazines that launched science fiction, horror, and hardboiled crime, free to page through at ComicBooks.com.

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A complete issue · 16 pages · 1882

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 237

1882 · Free to read

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 237 — page 2 of 16 — 2 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 237 — page 3 of 16 — 3 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 237 — page 4 of 16 — 4 / 16

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Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 237 — page 15 of 16 — 15 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 237 — page 16 of 16 — 16 / 16

About this issue

This Beadle and Adams dime novel serial, "Lone Star, the Cowboy Captain; or, The Mysterious Ranchero" by Colonel Prentiss Ingraham, depicts a band of thirty Texas cowboys gathered at a bivouac near the Rio Pecos to plan cattle recovery from Mexican marauders. The narrative introduces the weathered scout "Old Bitters," a buckskin-clad hunter and Indian-fighter, and follows tensions as the group debates leadership. When cowboy Ranger Ralph and the gambling troublemaker Lucky Luke vie for captain, the gruff Bitters rejects both. A mysterious youth suddenly appears—a sixteen-year-old wearing ornate Mexican dress adorned with a golden star set with rubies and diamonds, armed with silver-mounted revolvers and rifle. The youth boldly offers himself as captain, impressing even Bitters with sharp wit, particularly when mocking Lucky Luke's failed leadership aspirations and bantering about Bitters's mule.

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