John Wayne Adventure Comics #5

When John Wayne's old friend Saddle Sore Smith is found murdered at his hacienda near the Mexican border town of La Tamale, suspicion falls on the carnival that's rolled into town for the Simon Jose Barrister Festival. Armed with a torn piece of fabric from the killer's pocket and a carnival ticket stub, John must navigate the midway's maze of strongmen, knife throwers, and sideshow attractions to unmask a murderer before he strikes again.

When a young woman named Jane Withersteen's mother falls ill, she sets out to find her father on the treacherous Moving Mountain—but not before discovering a gold mine hidden in its slopes. Soon after meeting John Wayne, she's kidnapped by those seeking the mine's location, and Wayne must navigate the mountain's deadly volcanic dangers and a web of deception to save her. With Moving Mountain itself becoming an active threat, the race is on to escape with their lives before the eruption claims them all.

This illustrated educational feature traces the evolution of travel and transportation across the American frontier, from the Spanish settlers' ox-drawn carts through the Indians' ingenious travois system, the trappers' reliance on horses, and finally the covered wagons and stagecoaches that connected the growing frontier settlements. It's a fascinating look at how different groups adapted to the challenges of moving people, supplies, and goods across the vast western landscape during the pioneer era.

Prejudice threatens the peaceful settlement of Blush Pine when a Native American family buys local land, prompting a bigoted townsman named Calgar to orchestrate a campaign of intimidation and violence to drive them out before the new U.S. Marshal arrives. John Wayne and his sidekick Bonanza stand with the family against Calgar's mob, leading to a tense midnight confrontation that will test everyone's true character.

John Wayne answers an urgent call from the State Department to investigate gun smuggling into Brazil, heading undercover to Rio de Janeiro during the Festival of the Roses. When Wayne attracts suspicion aboard ship and then joins local athletic competitions to identify the big-money backers behind the illegal operation, he must balance keeping his cover while proving American mettle against some formidable rivals. As the stakes and bets grow higher, Wayne closes in on his target—but danger follows closer still.