Zebra Zack

# Zebra Zack; Or, The Wild Texan's Mission

This dime novel by W. J. Hamilton features the western revenge narrative "Zebra Zack." Set on the Texas prairie in spring 1846, before the Battle of Palo Alto, the story opens with a pale, long-bearded ranger riding a striking zebra-striped mustang. Known as Zebra Zack (identified as Crockett), he is hunting six men responsible for deaths at the Alamo, seeking vengeance. He encounters two Mexican officers, Carlos Mendoza and Raphael Gozo, who participated in the Alamo massacre. Zack challenges them to single combat with his bowie knife against their swords. During the fight, Gozo is mortally wounded and killed; Mendoza flees on horseback. Zack pursues him across the moonlit prairie, shooting Mendoza's foot, then creasing his horse's neck to stop him. As Mendoza falls, a mysterious horseman on the scene lassoes Zack, rendering him helpless. The narrative emphasizes frontier combat, horsemanship, and Zack's relentless pursuit of vengeance.