Encyclopedia Brown Solves Them All Read Online Free Page A

your wife,” said Officer Wilson. “Couldn’t someone else have overheard you tell her?”
    “They could have seen me, but they couldn’t have overheard me.” said Mr. Jorgens.
    “What do you mean?”
    “There were three customers here,” said Mr. Jorgens. “They were sitting under those hair driers. The hair driers make so much noise that the three women couldn’t have heard a word, even if I had shouted.”
    “Perhaps you were overheard by someone else—someone who works for you?” suggested Officer Wilson.
    “I have only one assistant,” said Mr. Jorgens. “Today is her day off.”
    “How long after you told Mrs. Jorgens that you were going to the bank today did you leave?”
    “I told my wife about two o’clock,” answered Mr. Jorgens. “It was shortly after the fire engines arrived at the theater. I left for the bank about two-thirty.”
    “And how much money was stolen?”
    “Seven hundred and twenty dollars,” said Mr. Jorgens.
    Officer Wilson had carefully written everything down. He put his notebook away and thanked Mr. Jorgens. He went outside shaking his head, as though he believed the thief would never be caught.
    Encyclopedia said nothing. He did not offer to solve the crime till the Browns sat down to dinner that evening.
    Chief Brown brought up the case as he was finishing his mushroom soup.
    “The only person who knew that Mr. Jorgens was going to the bank was his wife,” he said. “She couldn’t be guilty. The Jorgenses have been happily married for thirty years.”
    “It wasn’t Mrs. Jorgens,” said Encyclopedia.
    “I know that,” said Chief Brown. “But who was it?”
    “It was one of the three women sitting under the hair driers,” said Encyclopedia.
    “Impossible!” objected Chief Brown. “The hair driers make too much noise. None of the women could have overheard Mr. Jorgens tell his wife about going to the bank.”
    “The guilty woman didn’t overhear him, Dad,” said Encyclopedia.
    “Well, who did?” said Chief Brown.
    “No one,” said Encyclopedia. “That’s what makes the case so simple.”
    “Leroy!” said his mother sharply. “Are you making a joke?”
    “I’m not joking, Mom,” said Encyclopedia. “All Dad has to do is find out which one of the three women is—”
     
    IS WHAT?
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    (Turn to page 92 for the solution to the Case of the Hair Driers.)

The Case of Cupid’s Arrow
    Tyrone Taylor was the youngest ladies’ man in Idaville. He was always holding some girl’s hand.
    But on the morning he entered the Brown Detective Agency, he was holding an arrow.
    “Look what Cupid shot at me,” he said. “Am I lucky he missed. Feel the point!”
    Encyclopedia felt the point. It was sharp as a needle. “You could have been killed,” he agreed.
    “I want to hire you right away,” said Tyrone, banging twenty-five cents on the gasoline can.
    Encyclopedia did not touch the money. “You ought to write to Miss Lonely Hearts at the newspaper,” he said. “She gives advice on love. Cupid is out of my line.”
    “Maybe Cupid shot the arrow,” said Tyrone, “or maybe a jealous rival is out to get me!”
    “You stole someone’s girl friend?” asked Encyclopedia.
    “Certainly not,” said Tyrone. “At the moment, I’m crazy over Ruth Goldstein. So is half the class. Some kid might be out to win her for himself by shooting all her other admirers. In a week, Idaville may look like the Indians raided it.”
    Encyclopedia pictured arrows flying and half the fifth grade wiped out. This was an emergency!
    “I’ll take the case,” he said quickly. “Tell me what happened.”
    “Less than an hour ago I was sitting under a tree thinking about Ruth,” said Tyrone. “I figured if I bought her a present, she’d think about me, too. But I’m broke. Then, all of a sudden— pfff-lunk! The arrow hit the tree right above my head.”
    Tyrone reached up. He pretended to pull the arrow from a tree.
    “If I were