Might and Main Library, No. 56: Winning His Rights

Museum Catalog Note *Winning His Spurs; or, The Fortunes of Vernon Craig*, attributed to "One of the Boys," is a mystery-adventure serial appearing in this 1907 issue of *The Winner Library*. The narrative concerns the murder of wealthy Vernon Craig, stabbed through the heart on his son's sixteenth birthday. His cousin Joshua Vernon, recently released from a twenty-year penitentiary sentence, is the obvious suspect after quarreling with Craig over inheritance and questioning the legitimacy of young Vernon Craig. A lawyer, Mr. Derstgate, takes the boy as ward while a private detective shadows the cousin. The detective, however, falls asleep while watching Joshua meet with four disreputable former college graduates in the woods. They prank him with reward posters announcing "$500 Reward" for the murderer's capture. The serial interweaves mystery, family melodrama, and comic relief, examining questions of inheritance, legitimacy, and justice.