Beadle's Dime Novels No. 186: The Red Scalper

# The Red Scalper; or, The Maid of Oneida

This dime novel by W. J. Hamilton features frontier action set during the French and Indian Wars. The narrative opens with a Huron war party led by the cunning chief "the Weasel" pursuing smoke rising from a hill, suspecting an enemy encampment. Upon reaching the summit, they discover an elaborate trap: the smoke emanates from hidden rocks, and a mysterious voice—later revealed as an Onondaga warrior—taunts them from concealment. The confrontation escalates when the Weasel attempts to smoke out his opponent from a hollow basswood tree, only to encounter a bear driven from its den by the flames. After a tense waiting game, the Weasel finally confronts "Eagle Eye," a commanding Onondaga chief of noble bearing, who holds him at gunpoint. The story establishes the conflict between Huron and Onondaga scouts during the colonial period.