Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 144

1880 · 16 pages

Dainty Lance, the Boy Sport Joseph E. Badger Jr.'s serial "Dainty Lance, the Boy Sport; or, The Bank-Breakers' Decoy Duck" presents a frontier adventure narrative. Young traveler Lancelot Daintree encounters a woman, Myrtle Fair, being attacked by two ruffians on a moonlit road. He rescues her and escorts her to a woodland encampment where her family supposedly camps. However, Daintree suspects entrapment—the owl call that preceded the "rescue" recurs as Myrtle's signal to hidden men. Surrounded by nine armed men who claim to be emigrants protecting against horse-thieves, Daintree maintains composure, observing the group's suspicious character and noting a jealous rival among them. When introducing himself by name, his announcement produces shock among the assembled men, suggesting prior knowledge or conflict connected to his identity. The narrative establishes themes of deception, frontier danger, and youthful resourcefulness amid ambiguous circumstances.

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