Alger had lost some of his steam as the 1870s approached. He had made his literary name in exposing the horrors of life for street children in books such as "Ragged Dick" (1866). As the years passed, the government had taken on these horrors, studies were being conducted, and the plight of street children was being relieved. As a result, Alger was left without a literary subject. Boys' tastes were changing. They knew everything they needed to know about street boys from Alger's many novels about the poor. They wanted cowboys and Indians. Alger's publisher and his editor urged him ramp up the excitement in his books. Alger agreed, but let it be known that his moralizing would remain at its usual high level.