The Barranca Wolf; or, The Beautiful Decoy

This issue of Beadle and Adams' *dime novel* weekly contains "The Barranca Wolf: or, The Beautiful Decoy," a romance of the Texas border by Joseph E. Badger, Jr. The narrative opens with a hunting party camped on the prairie near the Trinity River. Hunter Fred Hawksley describes encountering a mysterious, strikingly beautiful white woman on horseback three days prior—dressed in fringed fawn-skin with eagle feathers, armed with a rifle, and riding a spotted mustang. She spoke to him briefly before vanishing across the prairie. When she suddenly appears at the bivouac that evening, Hawksley pursues her on his yellow horse. The other hunters quickly saddle up to follow, witnessing both riders disappear over distant swells as the full moon rises. The narrative emphasizes the woman's mysterious nature, her exceptional horsemanship, and the hunters' determination to discover her identity and motives.