Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of Pablos Nose (7 page)

Bugs could not have used the toaster if the electricity had failed.

The quick-thinking Professor Irvin wrote down the names of men whose pictures appear on United States paper money in order of value.

That is:
Washington
($1),
Jefferson
($2),
Lincoln
($5),
Jackson
($20), and
Grant
($50).

The kidnapper grabbed the list before the professor had time to complete it by writing
Franklin.
Benjamin Franklin's picture is on the $100 bill.

Nonetheless, the professor named his kidnapper—Hamilton—by leaving him off the list. Hamilton is on the $10 bill.

Police found Professor Irvin unharmed in Ed Hamilton's basement. Hamilton needed the ransom money to pay his business losses, but he picked the wrong man to kidnap.

When Tony was excited, he spoke too quickly and exchanged the first sounds of words.

He was excited when he told Sally the words the thief had on his T-shirt. He said, “Polar Bears.”

Later, when Sally said “fired teet” for “tired feet,” Encyclopedia realized what Tony had done. He had said “Polar Bears” when he had meant to say “Bowler Pairs.”

The detectives had seen a boy with
BOWLER PAIRS
on his T-shirt scouting a candy counter.

They caught up with him at Mundy's Bakery.

He knew about Sally's punch, and after a few strong words from her, he returned Tony's money.

Desmoana denied being the girl whom Pablo had seen riding away on a purple bicycle.

To give herself an alibi, she claimed that her purple bicycle hadn't been ridden for nearly a year.

Encyclopedia had his doubts. So he got her to show off how well she rode a two-wheeler.

That was her mistake!

She couldn't have done tricks if the bicycle had really been unused for nearly a year. The tires would have lost air and been flat!

Pablo got his nose back. Since it was the only nose entered in the New Nose Now contest, it won.

Despite claiming he wasn't interested in making money, Mr. Jones hoped to sell Emperor as the work of R. A. Bently.

He carved Emperor himself. Since no photographs of Bently's horses existed, he thought he was safe.

He goofed, however. Because he was English, he put the picture of President Roosevelt and Bently's name above Emperor's left front leg.

That would have passed in England, where carousels turn clockwise. But in America carousels turn counterclockwise.

The
right
side of a figure turning counterclockwise faces the onlookers, not the left side!

After Encyclopedia pointed out the error, Pablo decided not to go to work for Mr. Jones.

The blond boy was Wilford's partner in the phony Whammy business. Encyclopedia knew it when Wilford made Fifi sit down with her chin up and head back.

In that position, her weight was mostly on the chair's seat, which became the center of gravity. For her to rise, the center of gravity had to shift to her feet.

That required her head to move forward. It couldn't, because Wilford was pushing the Whammy against her forehead.

The pushing—not some phony power—was holding her down. Wilford's finger would have worked as well!

When Encyclopedia explained this to the children, they took off for home.

Kid Tiger might have slipped through the bars of the cage and eaten Erasmus and Erastus. With both lizards inside him, however, he could not have squeezed back out.

When Encyclopedia pointed out his mistake, Barry confessed.

He didn't want Spike's Kid Tiger to win at the races. So he stole the snake and hid him.

He also hid Erasmus and Erastus to make it look as if Kid Tiger had eaten them. He planned to “find” the lizards before the races—and return Kid Tiger after the races.

It was all for nothing. On Saturday, Kid Tiger and Erasmus and Erastus failed to win a single race.

While standing at the counter, the thief overheard Mr. Rubin mention the value of Mr. Bower's watch.

Then the lights went out. The temptation was too much.

The thief swiftly found Mr. Bower's watch on the counter. In his eagerness to get away, he left his wallet and his wife's watch behind.

Encyclopedia told Mr. Bower to look for a
blind man
. The money in his wallet was the clue.

As Encyclopedia explained, folding bills according to value is a popular touch method used by blind people.

The blind thief was caught the next day.

Donald J. Sobol is the award-winning author of more than sixty books for young readers. He lives in Florida with his wife, Rose, who is also an author. They have three grown children. The Encyclopedia Brown books have been translated into fourteen languages.

Eric Velasquez received his B.F.A. from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. He has exhibited his paintings and drawings at a number of galleries, including the Society of Illustrators, the Mussavi Art Center, the Ac-Baw Gallery, and the Greenberg Library. His illustrations have appeared in the Dojo Rats series by James Raven, and in Beverly Naidoo's books
Chain of Fire
and
Journey to Jo'Burg
, which was a Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies and won the Child Study Children's Book Committee Award. Mr. Velasquez lives in New York City.