Jack and His Seven Foes

# Catalog Note

Jack and His Seven Foes, serial fiction (Chapter 1–2), author unnamed. A maritime adventure narrative aboard the merchant vessel Albatross, commanded by Captain Dan Boldheart. The captain's two sons, Jack (strong and capable) and the delicate twelve-year-old Willie, sail with the crew. First mate Bob Stubbles suspects mutiny among seven recently hired, suspiciously coordinated hands: the Swaggerer (Hiram Crayton, ringleader), the Settler (Jim Mark), the Lifter (Magson), the Bruiser (Dick Dunmore, ex-prizefighter), the Panther (Sam Silky), the Pantaloon (Pharaoh Pipstone), and Sneezer (Walker Dribbles). When the Swaggerer insults Jack, the boy strikes him down. The captain discovers the seven possess concealed weapons and conspire mutiny; he also finds the Swaggerer's face disturbingly familiar from his past. The narrative establishes rising tension between the crew's loyalists and the seven conspirators as the ship lies becalmed.