Young Wild West's Duel with Death, or, Arietta to the Rescue

YOUNG WILD WEST'S DUEL WITH DEATH Issue #731, dated October 20, 1916, contains the opening installment of "Arietta to the Rescue" by An Old Scout. The featured story follows Rattlesnake Rip, a grizzled frontier hunter, and Joshua Jump, a tenderfoot from Skunktown, New Jersey, who meet at a stream between Colorado and Wyoming. After a comical confrontation over crossing rights, both men fall into the water, then become friendly companions. They prepare a meal together by a campfire. Their respite is interrupted by the sudden arrival of a masked horseman in dark green velvet, riding a coal-black horse. The stranger displays a theatrical manner and casually threatens them with a leveled revolver, making mysterious demands and boasting of his power to compel obedience. The narrative suggests a confrontation is developing, though the OCR deteriorates at the conclusion, preventing complete confirmation of subsequent plot details.