A complete, restored issue of Pulp Fiction from 1882 — all 16 pages of painted-cover fiction magazines that launched science fiction, horror, and hardboiled crime, free to page through at ComicBooks.com.

Home › Exhibition › Pulp Fiction › Read

A complete issue · 16 pages · 1882

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280

1882 · Free to read

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 2 of 16 — 2 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 3 of 16 — 3 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 4 of 16 — 4 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 5 of 16 — 5 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 6 of 16 — 6 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 7 of 16 — 7 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 8 of 16 — 8 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 9 of 16 — 9 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 10 of 16 — 10 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 11 of 16 — 11 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 12 of 16 — 12 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 13 of 16 — 13 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 14 of 16 — 14 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 15 of 16 — 15 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 280 — page 16 of 16 — 16 / 16

About this issue

This issue of Beadle and Adams' weekly contains the serial adventure "Merle Monte's Fate; or, Pearl, the Pirate's Pride" by Colonel Prentiss Ingraham, a companion to earlier Merle Monte stories. The narrative follows the young, condemned midshipman Merle Monte commanding the flagless Gold Ship. After capturing pirate chief Brandt the Buccaneer and his vessel, Monte delivers his prisoner to Captain Mayo Meredith of the U.S. Navy. The plot reveals Monte's complicated past: born at sea to parents killed in battle, raised by the faithful slave Mezrak on a remote island, he now guards his inherited treasure. Monte remains a fugitive despite his captures, pledging to continue cruising until he rescues Mrs. Branch and her daughter from the pirate Sea Marauder. The narrative blends naval adventure, piracy, disguise, and maritime heroics typical of the period's serialized action fiction.

Browse this issue page by page

Each page has its own page — the cartoon, who’s in it, and what the satire means.