The Jaguar Queen

This is a Beadle and Adams dime novel from 1878 titled "The Jaguar Queen," the featured story in this catalog issue. The narrative follows Gerald Leigh, a young adventurer lost in New Mexico's Stony Plains, as he pursues a legendary palm tree visible across the desert—known to local Indians as the "Spirit Tree" or "Tree of Death" for luring travelers to their doom. When his exhausted horse Lightfoot develops "the thumps" (heart disease), Leigh bleeds the animal and continues on foot. As darkness falls and the moon rises, Lightfoot catches the scent of water and bolts, leading Leigh to discover a mysterious valley containing a lake, cattle, and a distant fire—suggesting human habitation that may prove hostile. The text emphasizes desert survival, geological description, and mounting suspense as the protagonist faces both natural and human dangers in an isolated landscape.