Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 1099

This March 1900 issue of *Lightning Leo's Luck* features "The Rats of the River" by Redmond Blake. The story follows Porgy Jim, a reformed criminal, as he rows up the East River near New York one night. Harbor police sergeant O'Toole stops and interrogates him, suspecting involvement with river thieves. Jim escapes questioning and picks up two men at a pier—an elderly fellow and a young gentleman—who discuss their plan to contact Black Aaron, a criminal "fence" who brokers stolen goods and arranges jobs for thieves. The story reveals Aaron runs a saloon as a front for his criminal network, with a secret passage built beneath an adjacent lumber yard. The men plan to reach Aaron by boat through a concealed trap-door beneath the dock rather than using the public street entrance, protecting themselves from police detection and detective Lightning Leo.