Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of Pablos Nose Read Free Page B

shoulder.
    â€œA minute ago I went for a drink,” he said. “I can’t bend over with the organ on my stomach. So I set it on the floor. A boy ran off with all the money in the cup—nearly five dollars!”
    â€œGosh, business was good,” Sally said.
    â€œI get a lot of coins from people who pay me to stop playing,” Tony admitted.
    â€œWhat did the thief look like?” Encyclopedia asked.
    Tony became excited all over again. “He wore a tight wee-shirt. I mean, a white T-shirt.”
    He couldn’t get the next words out.
    â€œTake your time,” Sally said.
    She leaned forward and put her ear close to his lips.
    Tony whispered with difficulty.
    â€œThe thief might still be nearby,” Encyclopedia said hopefully.
    â€œIf I were he, I’d get as far away as I could,” Sally declared. “He probably headed straight home.”
    â€œUh-uh,” Encyclopedia disagreed. “He has Tony’s money. He’ll want to spend it.”
    â€œI’ll hire you to find him, but I can’t go with you,” Tony said. “I’ve got money to raise.”
    He strapped on the hand organ and turned the crank. Out spilled “Pop Goes the Weasel.”
    â€œNowadays a lot of hand organs use tape-recorded music, but not Grandpa’s,” Tony said proudly. “It can play six tunes.”
    A woman dropped a coin into the cup. Tony pressed a button on the organ. The toy monkey tipped its hat.
    â€œGrandpa worked with a real monkey till people complained it was cruel,” Tony said.
    He stopped cranking for a moment.
    â€œI wish I could be more help,” he apologized. “But that boy was into my cup and gone so fast!”
    â€œWe’ll find him,” Encyclopedia promised.
    â€œThe T-shirt is a really good clue,” Sally said.
    As they moved off, Encyclopedia asked Sally, “What was on the T-shirt?”
    â€œTony said the words POLAR BEARS were written across the chest,” Sally answered.
    The detectives began searching the shopping center for a boy who wore a white T-shirt with the words POLAR BEARS.
    Suddenly Sally squeezed Encyclopedia’s arm.
    â€œOver there,” she murmured.
    A boy in a white T-shirt stood in front of a toy store. He turned around, and Sally groaned with disappointment.
    Written on his T-shirt was BE DIFFERENT—ACT NORMAL .
    White T-shirts were everywhere, but not always with a boy inside and never with POLAR BEARS outside.
    In a sporting goods store the detectives came up behind a boy in a white T-shirt carrying a small brown paper bag.
    â€œThere could be five dollars’ worth of something in the bag,” Sally said.
    They cut in front of the boy, only to be disappointed again. On his T-shirt were the words KING PIN BOWLER .
    â€œHave you noticed something?” Sally said. “There are so many people wearing T-shirts with words like BOWLING or BOWLER written on them.”
    â€œThe state bowling tournament begins at the Ocean Lanes tomorrow,” Encyclopedia said. “Idaville is full of bowlers.”
    â€œEven little kids?” Sally said. She pointed to a girl with WEST SIDE BOWLING PAIRS on her T-shirt.
    â€œThe tournament has age groups,” Encyclopedia said. “The younger kids bowl in teams of two, or pairs.”
    In a hat shop they saw a boy with GUTTER BALL on his T-shirt. At a candy counter were three boys with ROOM TO SPARE, BOWLER PAIRS , and TIME TO SPLIT on their white T-shirts.
    The detectives continued searching.
    They saw short boys and tall boys, skinny boys and fat boys. None had POLAR BEARS on his T-shirt.
    â€œIf only Tony had gotten a good look at the thief’s face,” Sally grumbled.
    They reached the end of the shopping center.
    â€œLet’s give it up,” Sally said. “It’s hopeless.”
    â€œWe took the case, and we’ll finish it,” Encyclopedia insisted. “We’re not