Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 162

This Beadle and Adams dime novel, Will Wildfire in the Woods, serialized in 1880, concerns camp life in the Alleghanies. The opening chapters depict an archery competition on the East Meadows where young contestants, including the graceful Clara Moreland, compete for honors. The mysterious protagonist Will Wildfire arrives late and is about to take his shot when a rifle bullet from a hidden thicket tears his hat away. He immediately pursues the unknown assassin across a creek into the woods. A parallel sequence reveals a man imprisoned in the Eastern Penitentiary of Pennsylvania—Mark Preston, who appears to be Will's enemy, plotting revenge after losing his fortune, bride, and liberty to Will. Preston, recently pardoned, evidently has been released and fired the shot, setting the stage for conflict between the rivals.