THE GOLD-BUG (1843)

This story involves two white guys and a black former slave hunting for treasure on an island off the coast of South Carolina. There are a few macabre touches, as with the titular bug, which seems to have a "death's head" on its back. Still, the story handles its mystery-solving elements in a thoroughly naturalistic manner, much like the latter two Dupin stories. Poe handles the flow of dialogue in this story better than any previous tale, though most readers, including myself, will find precious little humor in the language-mangling of the mush-mouthed ex-slave.