Deadwood Dick Library, Vol. III, No. 32

This issue of the Half-Dime Library (No. 32, 1880s) is almost entirely occupied by a serialized novel by Edward L. Wheeler, author of the popular "Deadwood Dick" series. The featured story is "Solid Sam, the Boy Road-Agent; or, The Branded Brows: A Tale of Wild Wyoming."

The narrative opens with a prologue depicting a dastardly crime: two hired ruffians, Black Eph and Bosting Bill, abduct a young mother and her twin children (ages six) from a settlement on the Yellowstone River and set them adrift on a raft in a raging flood. They've been paid by the woman's husband, Guy Hathaway, who wishes to abandon her for another woman. The raft capsizes at a rapids. The following day, a young hunter discovers the survivors on a sandbar; the girl shows signs of life while the mother and boy appear dead. The hunter resolves to rescue and care for the girl.

The issue predominantly consists of the opening chapters of this adventure narrative, with continued installments of various Deadwood Dick stories listed in the table of contents.