Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 930

1895 · 16 pages

Museum Catalog Note *Rustler Ralph, the Boy Newsboy; or, Nikey's Grand Pig*, by J. C. Cowdrick, serialized in this 1895 weekly (Beadle and Adams, Vol. VI, No. 98). Ralph Gowger, a fourteen-year-old New York newsboy living with Susan Gowger, revolts against harsh treatment and declares his independence. The narrative reveals a conspiracy: Gowger receives payments from a gentleman caller, Mr. Titherton, suggesting Ralph is not her biological son and that Titherton has designs on the boy's fate. Ralph, having secretly accumulated savings in a bank account under an assumed name through double-paper sales, withdraws funds and seeks partnership with another newsboy named Jigger. The story combines street life adventure with mystery elements, featuring dialogue in period vernacular and exploring themes of youth autonomy against exploitation.

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