Beadle's Dime Novels No. 249: The Squaw Sachem

About this issue

This issue of Beadle's Dime Novels (No. 249, Semi-Monthly Novels Series) features Weetamora, the Squaw Sachem by Frederick Whittaker, set in 1675. The narrative follows Weetamora, chief of the Pocasset Indians, as she navigates pressure from King Philip's (Pometacom's) messenger, "the Panther," who urges her tribe to join an inter-tribal war against English colonists. The envoy invokes her late husband Wamsutta's mysterious death, which the Indians suspect was poisoning. Weetamora receives two white visitors: Master Church, a Puritan, and Charles Hazelton, a Cavalier from England. Upon seeing Hazelton, Weetamora experiences a profound recognition, mysteriously addressing him as if he were someone she knew, calling him "Arthur" before questioning his identity. The story interweaves colonial frontier politics with personal mystery.