Short Summary

Frank Merriwell and friends arrive to Rodney’s Ranch for a sporting tournament. While at Rodney’s Ranch, Frank Merriwell encounters many other cowboys from different types of ranches nearby. Merriwell and his crew question the attire and appearance of the cowboys they meet. Frank first meets Indian Charlie, the foreman of the Lonestar Ranch, who is known to have the best shot and roper in all of Texas. Indian Charlie and Frank begin the morning with a scuffle in which Frank gets the upperhand to the dismay and embarrassment of Charlie. After a quarrel between the two, Frank sent Charlie over the end rail of the veranda with only two punches and knocked him out. After delivering such a blow to the foreman, Frank and his friends earned a new admiration on the ranch as Indian Charlie’s status slowly began to fall.

After lunch, the cowboys put on a display of trick and fancy shooting. The cowboys riding full speed on horseback would show their expertise as they would hit targets that seemed nearly impossible. Indian Charlie clearly was supreme in these exercises. Frank chose not to take part in the trick shooting since he claims to be more of a straight shooter. Again, Frank and Charlie squared off in a contest of shooting. A glass ball was released into the air and the shooter had to hit the ball. The winner made the most shots out of a hundred. Charlie shot an impressive 96/100; however, Frank again won the competition shooting 97/100. Moreover, after Frank shattered the 97 th ball, Frank fell to the ground after being mysteriously shot in the head. Fortunately, the shot merely grazed Frank and he was going to be fine. In the search of who fired at Frank, the men came across what appeared to be a drunk “half-blood” by the name of Billy Cornmeal. In conclusion, Frank captured Indian Charlie who had told Billy Cornmeal to shoot Frank. Charlie attempted to escape Rodney’s Ranch while kidnapping Rodney’s daughter, however, Frank put a halt to Charlie’s plan and rescued the young girl.

Themes Relating to the Frontier

Cowboy Attire

“There is no reason why they should look so extremely tough beyond their own personal desire to appear like bad men” (page 5). In this Dime Novel, one can see the appearance and attitude of a true cowboy. Frank Merriwell and friends are shocked by the cowboys breaking into a mad gallop tearing across the prairie toward Rodney’s Ranch. The riders wore broad-brimmed hats, some made of stiff rawhide and others known as the distinct Stetson Sombrero which at the time cost between 18-80$. Every cowboy had a handkerchief knotted around his neck and a cartridge belt bearing heavy revolvers in open holsters around his waist. The hair of a cowboy was long and unkempt. Most cowboys wore long legged high heeled boots with heavy murderous spurs at the heel of every boot.

Masculinity

The idea of being a rough and tough male, never backing down from a challenge is very prevalent in Dime Novel’s representation of the Western Frontier. Multiple times throughout this novel Frank Merriwell and company were challenged by the cowboys. Each time Frank accepted the challenge and impressed onlookers. This is significant because the cowboy common perception of those from New England are soft, not rough and tough, and in general just weaker than cowboys. Often one might see a cowboy refer to a New Englander as a “tenderfoot.” Moreover, the role of females in this novel is miniscule. The females in the story seem to have no say in much and are simply at the disposal of the men in this story. For example, the females do not participate in any of the sporting competition and are easily appeased by the dexterity of the males of the ranch.

Racism

Billy Cornmeal serves a vital role in this novel. Often when referring to Billy, the author calls him a “half – blood” in a negative tone of voice. When Billy first approaches Indian Charlie about the plan to assassinate Frank, Indian Charlie does not give Billy the time of day and talks down to him. Next, after Frank is shot, the crew at Rodney’s Ranch find Billy intoxicated to the point where he cannot even respond. However, most of the men on the Ranch find this to be expected of a “half – blood.”