A complete, restored issue of Pulp Fiction from 1886 — 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 · 1886

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 474

1886 · Free to read

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 474 — page 2 of 16 — 2 / 16

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Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 474 — page 16 of 16 — 16 / 16

About this issue

This Beadle and Adams weekly (Vol. XIX, No. 4074, August 9, 1886) features "Wizard Will's Vagabond Pard," a detective-mystery serial by Colonel Prentiss Ingraham. The story concerns a criminal syndicate called the Land Sharks, fugitives from justice concealed in a secret headquarters disguised as a haunted New York townhouse. After a boy previously held captive by the gang escapes and becomes a special officer under Captain Daly of the Police Force, the criminals—led by the gentleman-criminal "Elegant Ed"—relocate to Philadelphia. The narrative shifts to a railway journey where Wolf, one of the criminals, encounters the gang's leader aboard a train. A catastrophic railway accident then occurs, killing the engine and multiple cars. The tale emphasizes action, criminal intrigue, and detective work within contemporary urban settings.

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