A complete, restored issue of Pulp Fiction from 1888 — 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 · 1888

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556

1888 · Free to read

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 2 of 16 — 2 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 3 of 16 — 3 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 4 of 16 — 4 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 5 of 16 — 5 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 6 of 16 — 6 / 16

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Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 8 of 16 — 8 / 16

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Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 10 of 16 — 10 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 11 of 16 — 11 / 16

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Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 15 of 16 — 15 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 556 — page 16 of 16 — 16 / 16

About this issue

This serial by Philip S. Warne follows Bert Brainard, an educated Eastern tenderfoot arriving in the rough Colorado town of Metropolisville. His refined manners—carrying handkerchiefs, requesting cigars, taking sugar in coffee—bewilder the locals at the tavern and general store, earning him the nickname "tidy tenderfoot." Despite his civilized affectations, Brainard proves intelligent and composed, winning gradual acceptance through quiet courtesy. The narrative introduces Jim Rankin, a dominant, physically imposing borderman with apparent Indian ancestry and untamed temperament, who reacts jealously when the cowboys joke about introducing Brainard to "Lariat Lil," suggesting a woman of interest to Rankin. The story establishes tension between Brainard's Eastern refinement and the rough frontier world, with an impending rodeo and the mysterious Lariat Lil creating plot complications.

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