Encyclopedia Brown Saves the Day (2 page)

Bugs paused to take a dime.

Then he said, “I found the escaped moon man Tuesday night. He was hiding under an old postage stamp on my porch. He’s only an inch and a half tall and his skin looks like green cheese.”

“Yeah, and he’s got so many solid gold teeth that he sleeps with his head in a safe,” muttered Gil.

“Sssh!” warned Encyclopedia.

It was too late. Bugs had seen them. He came over and snarled at Encyclopedia. “Get lost and stay there!”

“What’s the matter, Bugs?” called a boy. “Are you afraid of letting Encyclopedia see your moon man?”

“I’m not afraid of nothing,” shouted Bugs. “Okay, Mr. Brains,” he said to Encyclopedia. “Step to the head of the line. You’ll see the greatest little wonder of the space age.”

Encyclopedia and Gil each gave Bugs a dime. Then they looked. They saw a figure no bigger than a paper clip.

“What a fake!” whispered Gil. “The glass isn’t a window. It’s my telescope turned around so that you look through the large end. What you see appears tiny.”

“Right,” said Encyclopedia. “The moon man is one of Bugs Meany’s Tigers covered with leaves and sea shells.”

“You’ve had your turn,” growled Bugs. He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Now make like a pair of headlights and hit the road.”

“We will when you give back Gil’s telescope,” said Encyclopedia. “You stole it last night.”

“But first you stretched the cord of my clock on the floor of my room so I’d trip over it chasing you,” said Gil.

“I’ll stretch your nose if you don’t scram,” threatened Bugs.

“A neighbor, 1\1r. James, saw you outside my window last night,” said Gil.

“I was taking a shortcut home,” said Bugs. “Say, when I passed your bedroom window your clock was still going. I heard it ticking. So the thief came after I had passed by.”

Bugs suddenly moved close to Encyclopedia. His voice lowered.

“Listen,” he said. “If you don’t ruin my show, I’ll cut you in for a share of the dimes. Sure, the moon man is fake. The kids are looking at Duke Kelly through the big end of a telescope, not through a window. But it’s
my
telescope. You can’t prove I’m not telling the truth about it. So why not join me?”

“I wouldn’t join you if you were a circus parade,” said Encyclopedia. “Besides, I can prove you’re not telling the truth!”

 

HOW?

Bugs Meany had one great aim in life.

It was to get even with Encyclopedia Brown.

With Encyclopedia on the job, Bugs and his Tigers couldn’t get away with stealing so much as a leaky balloon.

Bugs hated being outsmarted. He thought a great deal about Encyclopedia’s stomach. He longed to sock it till Encyclopedia hurt clear up to the roof of his mouth.

But Bugs never let fly a punch. Whenever he felt like it, he remembered Sally Kimball.

Sally was the prettiest girl in the fifth grade. And she had done what no other child under twelve had dreamed was possible. She had wiped the grass with Bugs Meany!

Bugs was bullying a cub scout when it happened. Sally told him to stop. Bugs sneered.

Sally raised her fists. Bugs laughed.

Wham!
went Sally.
Plop!
went Bugs. When he got up, she dropped him again. Then she went to work in earnest.
Biff! Bam! Pow!

After a minute Bugs reached an important decision. It was healthier to play the part of an ironing board than a prize fighter. He lay flat and stiff till Sally biked away.

Because of Sally, Bugs never roughed up Encyclopedia. Sally was the detective’s junior partner.

However, Bugs didn’t stop trying to get revenge. He only gave up the idea of using force.

“Watch out for him, Encyclopedia,” Sally warned. “He’s like a tube of toothpaste—the harder you press him, the more he tries to come out on top.”

“I think he’s in the middle of trying,” said Encyclopedia.

“What do you mean?” asked Sally.

“Yesterday I received a letter signed ‘Bill.’ The writer told me to meet him behind Mr. Dunning’s gas station at sunrise this morning,” said Encyclopedia. “He enclosed twenty-five cents.”

“Did you go?”

“Sure,” said Encyclopedia. “But nobody showed up.”

“I’ll bet Bugs wrote the letter,” said Sally. “It’s some kind of plan to get you in trouble.”

“We’ll know in a minute,” said Encyclopedia. “Here he comes.”

A police car had stopped in front of the Brown garage. Officer Rand and Bugs climbed out.

“That’s him!” shouted Bugs, pointing at Encyclopedia. “Mr. Goody-Goody himself! He let the air out of the tires of Mr. Dunning’s truck this morning. I saw him, the dirty little sneak.”

“Where were you at sunrise this morning?” Officer Rand asked Encyclopedia.

“Why ... I was at Mr. Dunning’s gas station,” replied Encyclopedia. “I saw his tow truck parked in back, but I didn’t touch it.”

“Man, oh man!” cried Bugs. “If lies were peanuts, this kid could choke a hippo with a flip of the lip.”

“Cool off, Bugs,” said Officer Rand. “We’ll get to the truth.” He turned to Encyclopedia. “What were you doing at the gas station so early in the morning?”

Encyclopedia explained about the letter asking him to be there. All the while, Bugs groaned and rubbed his ears as if he couldn’t bear to hear such a terrible lie.

“That’s a mighty strange story,” said Officer Rand when Encyclopedia had finished.

“Golly,” said Sally. “Encyclopedia wouldn’t let the air out of anything—except maybe Bugs!”

“Somebody let the air out of the truck’s tires and gave Mr. Dunning a lot of extra work this morning,” said Officer Rand.

“What were
you
doing near the station at sunrise, Bugs?” demanded Sally.

“I was walking toward the ocean watching the birds along Dade River,” said Bugs. “I’d reached the station when I noticed Encyclopedia letting the air out of the tires.”

Encyclopedia thought quickly. Dade River ran due east to the ocean. Walking along the shore, Bugs could see Mr. Dunning’s truck parked in back of the station as he claimed.

“How long have you been a bird watcher?” asked Encyclopedia.

“All my life,” answered Bugs. “I love to walk along the river to the ocean and watch the birds.”

Bugs closed his eyes. He folded his hands over his heart. Turning up his nose, he sniffed the air dreamily.

“The birds are so beautiful in the peaceful early morning air,” he said with a deep sigh.

“Oh, bring down the curtain, Bugs,” said. Sally. “You couldn’t tell a hoot owl from a tree squeaking. I’ll bet you can’t name four birds that come to the river in the morning.”

Bugs grinned as if he’d been expecting the question. “Morning dove, cardinal, mocking-bird, and egret.”

“He’s right,” Encyclopedia said.

“He could have learned all those names from a book,” said Sally. “He’s the one who let the air out of the tires. I just know it! He’s trying to frame you, Encyclopedia!”

“Did you hear that?” Bugs said to Officer Rand. “I told you they’d try to pin this on me. Nobody understands the real Bugs Meany. I’m just a simple nature boy under all this muscle.”

Officer Rand shook his head. “I don’t know which one of you to believe,” he said.

“Bugs is lying,” insisted Sally. “Encyclopedia can prove it.”

Then, realizing that she had spoken too quickly, she turned to the boy detective. “You can prove Bugs is lying about seeing you let the air out of the tires, can’t you?”

“Certainly,” said Encyclopedia. “Bugs wasn’t bird-watching this morning.”

 

HOW DID ENCYCLOPEDIA KNOW?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The day before the Idaville pet show, Lucy Fibbs and Carl Benton came into the Brown Detective Agency.

“Gwendoline has been kidnapped!” wailed Lucy.

“So has Alfred,” said Carl.

Everybody in Idaville knew Gwendoline and Alfred. They were pigs. Gwendoline belonged to Lucy. Alfred belonged to Carl.

Few people had realized how smart pigs are till last year’s pet show. Gwendoline had won the obedience test, which was the most important contest. She had defeated seventy-one dogs, cats, horses, parakeets, and hamsters. Alfred, the only other pig in the contest, had taken second place.

Carl put twenty-five cents on the gasoline can beside Encyclopedia.

“We want to hire you,” he said. “Find Gwendoline and Alfred.”

“They were kidnapped to keep them from winning at the pet show tomorrow,” said Lucy. “The Hurricanes took them!”

“The Hurricanes are four teenage boys who train German shepherds as watchdogs,” explained Carl. “Were they sore last year when pigs beat their dogs!”

“Are you sure the Hurricanes did the kidnapping?” said Encyclopedia.

“I found this cap near Alfred’s pen,” said Carl.

He gave Encyclopedia the cap. The word Hurricanes was inked across the peak.

“One of the kidnappers must have dropped it last night,” said Lucy.

“This morning I received a telephone call,” said Carl. “The caller told me the pigs would be returned after the pet show. I wanted to be certain they were unharmed. So I asked to speak to Alfred.”

“The kidnapper agreed?” said Encyclopedia.

“Yes, but first I had to call him back,” said Carl. “His time was up. He didn’t have another dime for more time on the telephone.”

“A grown-up would have had plenty of money for the telephone,” said Lucy. “The caller had to be a boy—a Hurricane!”