Beadle's Pocket Library No. 334

About this issue

This serialized adventure tale by George Henry Morse depicts "Frisco Tom on Deck; or, The Golden Gate Smugglers." The narrative opens in a San Francisco gambling den at midnight, where Ambergris Ben—a fortune-made former whaler who harvests valuable ambergris from dead whales—participates in a faro game rigged by the dealer Horace Ellis and his accomplice. A mysterious bearded stranger intervenes, exposing the cheating, and reveals himself as "Frisco Tom," a legendary Pacific Slope figure known for mining, stage-driving, and scouting. Tom forces Ellis to return Ben's five thousand dollars, then helps the old man escape gunfire. Later, Tom intercepts two assassins pursuing him through the streets. Ben's hotel room is subsequently burglarized by Ellis and an accomplice, who wound Ben and steal his money while attempting to open his trunk. Tom pursues the attackers through the window but finds no trace. The narrative establishes Tom's mysterious connection to Ben and hints at smuggling operations along California's coast.