Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 786

# Museum Catalog Note

This 1892 Beadle and Adams weekly serialized western romance, authored by Lieutenant A. K. Sims, follows "Old Lone Hand Joe" Connerty, a weathered frontier nomad investigating the abandoned cattle stronghold of Prairie Gibraltar. The narrative establishes a supernatural mystery when Joe witnesses a spectral horse near the rock fortress—a horse that glows with phosphorescent light and bears an invisible rider. Despite his superstitious terror, Joe pursues it, discovering hoofprints leading to a stone corral where other horses shelter. The luminous horse remains inexplicable: it shows no chemical coating, yet Joe's bullet passes directly through it without effect. Horse and rider ascend a vertical cliff face before vanishing into shadow, sending the frightened detective fleeing toward safety. Chapter II hints at further revelations regarding the mysterious stronghold's occupation by outlaws. The story combines frontier adventure with gothic horror elements, emphasizing sensory detail and psychological suspense.