Beadle's Dime Novels No. 30: Popham Frett's Ward

Catalog Note This issue of *Beadle's Dime Novels* (No. 60, October 1, 1887) contains two serials. "Jo Daviess: Courtin' in Kentucky" by Mrs. M. V. Victor is set in 1800 Kentucky and centers on the historical figure Jo Daviess and his romantic entanglements; Victor emphasizes period accuracy and historically-grounded characters. The second serial, "Putnam Pomfret's Ward; or, A Vermonter's Adventures in Mexico," follows protagonist Putnam Pomfret through Mexico City. The opening chapters depict an encounter outside a gaming house where Pomfret witnesses an American suicide by gunshot following gambling losses, discovers a locket bearing a message from New Orleans dated 1845, and accompanies the body to its residence, where he discovers the dead man's grieving enslaved servant and the appearance of a young woman at the threshold.