Wetzel, the Scout

This dime novel issue presents "Wetzel, the Scout: The Captives of the Wilderness" by Boynton Belknap, M.D. The narrative, set on the Ohio River during colonial settlement, follows the renowned ranger Lew Wetzel as he guides a flatboat carrying settlers downstream. After meeting Captain Parks and his servant Pompey on shore—where they witness a canoe of Indians with a white man—Wetzel transports them downriver under fire. The party includes settlers Stuart, Kingman, and Parks with their families, including the young woman Irene Stuart. They reach their destination settlement safely and begin establishing homesteads. When Indian raids escalate, the settlers erect stockades for defense. Spring brings Wetzel's recruitment of twenty men, including the settlers, for a punitive expedition into Indian country, placing them under Colonel Sandford's eventual command.