Beadle's Pocket Novels No. 217: Witch of the Wallowish

About this issue

"The Witch of the Wallowish: A Legend of the Susquehanna" by Edwin E. Ewing is a Gothic domestic narrative centered on John James Tomlin's decline. The story opens with Tomlin mortally wounded—a dagger through his left lung—lying attended by three men, Niel Riley, Miles O'Ferguson, and Davy, who discuss his orphaned daughter Rose and her inheritance prospects with suspicious interest. Flashbacks reveal Tomlin's transformation from lonely New York merchant to country gentleman after marrying Mary Nevre, whose death after one year leaves him with infant Rose. While returning from the city with gold three years later, Tomlin is violently attacked; the narrative implies deliberate conspiracy among those managing his estate. The story explores themes of greed, mortality, and a vulnerable heiress, establishing Rose's precarious position within a web of relatives and guardians.