Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 544

# Tom Templeton's Tourney

This serialized romance by Philip S. Warne, from Beadle & Adams (March 29, 1889), follows Tom Templeton, a large, gentle man accompanying the flirtatious Miss Maude Granville in a stage-coach through Southern California. When the coach overturns, leaving the axle broken, Tom must escort Maude on horseback to San Hernandez.

En route, he rescues a Spanish senorita whose burro has been stung by hornets and bolts wildly; Tom catches her mid-fall with romantic gallantry. The senorita's escort, a Mexican cavalier, arrives with evident jealousy. When Maude's horse then runs off, Tom abandons the Spanish lady to pursue his charge, leaving the senorita waving gratefully from a distance.

Tom settles Maude in a local fonda where she reclines as an invalid, demanding his constant attention and company. He resents the delay caused by the broken coach, yet finds himself captivated by the memory of the Spanish woman he rescued.