Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 697

The Sharp from Texas by Colonel Prentiss Ingraham is a western romance and outlaw tale serialized across multiple chapters. The narrative follows Roy Redfern, a mysterious eighteen-year-old scout known as "the Scarlet Sombrero" and "the Gold Revolver Sharp." Redfern arrives at a frontier hanging to identify the accused as Blue Jacket Bill, an outlaw chief, based on a prior encounter in New Mexico. Though the prisoner protests his innocence, Redfern's testimony seals his execution. The story then shifts to Fort Blanco (Pioneer Post), where the new commandant, Colonel Rockwood, learns of Redfern's mysterious background and secret detective work. Redfern subsequently arrives with urgent news, while a separate horseman discovers military or hostile movement in the New Mexico darkness, introducing an impending conflict.