Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 195

The Lone Star Gambler; or, The Maid of the Magnolias, by "Buckskin Sam" (Major Sam S. Hall), is a romantic serial set in pre-Civil War Texas. The narrative establishes Colonel Lafayette Carbury's grand plantation near the Rio Brazos, describing its mansion, grounds, and wealthy holdings. His son James, twenty, is a dissolute gambler and carouser; his daughter Cora, just fourteen, is beautiful and spirited. Nearby resides widow Mrs. Adelaide Adler with her eighteen-year-old son Charles, a scholarly, reserved youth. Though their families were enemies—having fought a duel over a boundary dispute years prior—Cora and Charles fell in love as children and remain devoted despite parental opposition. The story opens with their innocent affection established, foreshadowing conflict between youthful love and family enmity.