Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 900

1894 · 16 pages

This issue of Beadle and Adams' dime novel (October 28, 1894) features the opening of "Jumping-Jack's Jubilee; or, The Circus Queen's Shadower," a romance of circus life by J. C. Cowdrick. The protagonist is fourteen-year-old Jack Reed, nicknamed "Jumping-Jack" for his acrobatic abilities, who eagerly seeks work with the circus arriving in the town of Warrenton. After impressing superintendent Harry Murray with his backflips and jumping skills, Jack gains employment carrying water. He clashes with Tom Hunter, a brutal foreman, defending himself with a water pail and a perfectly-aimed kick. The narrative introduces a dark conspiracy: Hunter harbors revenge against circus performer Mlle. Lucie and her child "Baby Bess," seeking to harm them over a romantic rivalry from seven years prior. A drunk named "Old Wit" becomes Hunter's unwitting accomplice, agreeing to assist in an unspecified scheme for five dollars. Jumping-Jack, overhearing their plotting, becomes positioned as the protector of the endangered child.

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