Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 999

This pulp serial, "Jack Lang, the Privateer Rover; or, The Man of Many Names" by T.J. Flanagan, is set in 1812 and concerns a young third lieutenant commanding a privateer lugger crewed by mutineers. When the frigate United States under Captain Decatur intercepts the lugger, tension escalates over a dog serving as quartermaster that carries the flag. The youth officer defies orders and reveals the ship is rigged as a floating mine to prevent capture by pirates or the English. He negotiates to take the vessel into port himself, leaving Lieutenant Allen as hostage aboard the lugger while he explains his situation to Decatur. The narrative combines maritime adventure with themes of loyalty and defiant patriotism.