A complete, restored issue of Pulp Fiction from 1890 — all 16 pages of painted-cover fiction magazines that launched science fiction, horror, and hardboiled crime, free to page through at ComicBooks.com.

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A complete issue · 16 pages · 1890

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 683

1890 · Free to read

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 683 — page 2 of 16 — 2 / 16

Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 683 — page 3 of 16 — 3 / 16

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Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 683 — page 16 of 16 — 16 / 16

About this issue

"Saltpeter Sol, or The Unseen Enemy: The Romance of a Blind Cruise" by Jo Pierce. Two boys, Ned Brampton and Saltpeter Sol Wayne, operate a homemade raft down the Hudson River, transporting Ned's household goods to Peekskill after his guardian defrauded him. They rescue a drowning couple—Jimmy Flocton and Eliza Burch—from an overturned boat. The rescued pair claims to have lost all funds and accepts the boys' hospitality. Sol suspects their story; the reader learns Jimmy and Eliza are criminals seeking "the boodle" (stolen money) concealed on the raft. Ned constructed the ingenious craft after losing his inheritance, inspired by pioneer-era flatboat voyages. The narrative establishes the boys' resourcefulness and character while introducing the villainous couple as a concealed threat.

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