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Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 717

· April 21, 1891

Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 717
Beadle and Adams Dime Novel Catalog Entry "Move-On, the Grand Catch" by Jo Pierce appears in this 1891 weekly issue (Vol. XXVIII, No. 7). The serial depicts Randolph Fenton, disowned by his wealthy father Colonel Andrew Fenton over missing business secrets and financial losses, wandering into a tenement district where he meets Mosquito Jack, a street gamin who secures him a room from his aunt Mrs. Sarah Brown. The plot introduces complications when a young woman, Lena Dalton, appears claiming Randolph is her missing husband Bertram. She relates her backstory: formerly a shop-girl, she met an aristocratic, well-dressed man who courted and married her, promising to support her. The narrative establishes mistaken identity as a central device while juxtaposing Randolph's fall into poverty with his encounter with working-class characters. Mosquito Jack provides comic relief through his elaborate, digressive speech patterns and practical wit as he attempts to unravel the confusion.

Public domain (pre-1929), restored and presented by comicbooks.com public-domain