Eagle Plume: The White Avenger

This issue of *Beadle's Dime Novels* (No. 196) contains *Eagle Plume: The White Avenger* by Albert W. Aiken, a frontier adventure serialized across multiple issues. The narrative opens among the Dacotah (Dakota) nation on the Green River, where chiefs Hole-in-the-Sky and Black-Pan await Yellow Wolf, a renowned young brave returning from a diplomatic mission to Mormon settlements near the Great Salt Lake. Yellow Wolf reports the Mormons—led by their "Destroying Angels," a militant faction called the Danites under their chief Dan—refuse to pay tribute but seek peaceful passage through Dacotah territory. The chiefs debate whether to attack the impoverished Mormons or wealthier eastern miners. A mysterious white stranger then arrives at the village, unarmed and alone, deliberately surrendering his weapons (rifle, revolver, knife) to demonstrate peaceful intent, though his purpose remains unstated. The narrative combines Indian council politics with tensions between indigenous nations and white settlement, establishing mystery around the stranger's identity and mission.