Sol Scott, the Masked Miner; or, Dan Brown's Double

This issue of the M. J. Ivers & Co. pulp magazine (July 1878) contains "Sol Scott, the Masked Miner; or, Dan Brown's Double," a Western adventure by Joseph E. Badger, Jr. The serial opens in the mining town of Golconda during its raucous nightlife. A mysterious figure in masculine disguise and silk mask visits the Dew Drop Inn gambling hall seeking someone, where they encounter Sol Scott, a bearded miner. When the drunk bully Vernon Shadutz assaults the masked stranger, Scott intervenes in a brutal fight, disarming Shadutz with a knife and defeating him with a powerful punch. The masked woman reveals herself as armed and dangerous, refusing Scott's help. As Shadutz's gang prepares retaliation, the barkeeper Isaac Tampkin threatens violence with a shotgun to stop a gunfight in his establishment. A grizzled veteran character also draws a weapon, escalating the standoff.