Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 853

Dick Doom's Kidnapper Knock-Out This November 1898 Beadle and Adams story by Col. Prentiss Ingraham follows detective Dick Doom as he investigates crimes in Chicago. The issue opens with kidnapping outbreaks during Chicago's expansion, culminating in the abduction of the wealthy Mrs. Granger from her Lake View Hall estate. The mansion itself has a troubled history of sudden deaths among its owners—a retired smuggling captain, his son, and subsequent occupants—previously investigated by Doom, who imprisoned those responsible. When Mrs. Granger vanishes, Lawyer Beall discovers his office entered and attempts to open his safe to verify whether the Granger estate papers remain secure. A skilled locksmith fails, but the locksmith's young assistant succeeds using a homemade double-key device. The safe opens to reveal the Granger drawer emptied—the estate documents stolen. Beall confronts a coordinated conspiracy: Mrs. Granger's kidnapping and the simultaneous theft of her legal papers suggest deliberate conspiracy against both client and counsel.