The Case of the Fifth Word

Recap: “The Case of the Fifth Word” introduces Encyclopedia Brown, a young boy from Idaville, USA, whose father is the Chief of Police. Despite his youth, Encyclopedia frequently assists his father in solving complex mysteries that baffle the police. Their crime-solving discussions often occur at the dinner table. This particular story focuses on Tim Nolan’s death, who was suspected of a past jewelry robbery with Daniel Davenport. Although Nolan was not arrested for the robbery, Chief Brown suspected he and Davenport had hidden the stolen loot. On his deathbed, Nolan left a will leaving everything to Davenport, along with a cryptic note on a calendar sheet: “Nom Utes Sweden Hurts”. Encyclopedia deciphers this code, realizing the words represent days of the week with the “day” dropped: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The missing fifth word, “Fir” (Friday), indicated the location of the hidden jewelry: inside a jug of earth from which a young fir tree grew in Nolan’s nursery.

Detailed Notes with Subtopics:

• Introduction to Encyclopedia Brown
  • Encyclopedia Brown is a young boy living in Idaville, USA.
  • His father is the Chief of Police.
  • Despite his age, he often helps his father solve mysteries that are difficult for the police.
  • Their discussions about cases usually happen at the dining table.
  • Chief Brown is smart and quick, and when he faces an unsolved case, he goes home to dinner, where Encyclopedia solves it for him before dinner ends.
  • Chief Brown doesn’t tell people about his son’s detective skills because no one would believe that an eighth grader is the best detective alive.
  • Encyclopedia never talks about helping his father because he doesn’t want to seem different from other boys.
  • His real name is Leroy, but everyone calls him “Encyclopedia” because he is like a book filled with facts and never forgets anything he reads.
• The Case of Tim Nolan and the Diamond Mart Robbery
  • Chief Brown had a mystery he couldn’t solve, indicated by his staring at his cream-of-mushroom soup at dinner.
  • He announced that Tim Nolan died yesterday.
  • Mrs. Brown recalled Nolan being involved in a jewelry robbery five years ago at the Diamond Mart on Sixth Avenue, where two masked men stole a million dollars worth of jewelry.
  • Chief Brown clarified that Nolan was questioned, not arrested, but he believed Nolan and Daniel Davenport pulled the hold-ups, though there was no proof.
  • Nolan and Davenport met in prison in South Carolina and became friends due to shared interests.
  • After Nolan was released first, he settled in Idaville and started a palm-tree nursery that barely yielded a living.
  • Davenport came to live with Nolan a week before the jewelry store hold-up.
  • During the hold-up, a clerk thought she recognized Nolan when his mask slipped, but she wasn’t absolutely sure and refused to testify against him.
  • No trace of the stolen jewelry ever turned up.
  • Davenport hasn’t been seen since the hold-up.
  • Chief Brown’s hunch was that Nolan and Davenport hid the loot until things cooled down.
  • Despite a court order, officers searched Nolan’s house and found no stolen jewelry.
• Nolan’s Death and the Cryptic Message
  • Nolan died from a stroke, having suffered from a bad heart for many years.
  • Before dying, he managed to put his will on the kitchen table, leaving everything he owned, including his palm-tree nursery, to Davenport.
  • What was suspicious was a sheet from his desk calendar clipped to the will, on which Nolan had written something.
  • Chief Brown copied what Nolan wrote: “Sweden Hurwitt Nom Libe”.
  • Mrs. Brown noted it had Davenport’s name and address, plus a few words she didn’t understand.
  • Encyclopedia read the four words as: “Nom Utes Sweden Hurts”.
• Encyclopedia Solves the Code
  • Mrs. Brown hoped Encyclopedia would solve it quickly, as he usually only needed one question before dessert.
  • Encyclopedia closed his eyes for a few seconds, which was his habit when thinking hard.
  • He then asked if there was a young fir tree in Mr. Nolan’s palm-tree nursery.
  • Chief Brown confirmed there was one on the south side of the house.
  • Encyclopedia stated the four words said so.
  • Mrs. Brown, a former English teacher, identified “Nom” as a shortening of nominative, “Utes” as an American Indian tribe, “Sweden” as a country, and “Hurts” as the word itself, but couldn’t figure out the meaning of the combination.
  • Encyclopedia reminded them that Davenport disappeared after the hold-up and that Nolan likely changed the hiding place recently.
  • Chief Brown nodded, understanding that the message would tell Davenport where the jewelry was hidden.
  • Encyclopedia explained the code was simple, especially written on a calendar sheet, and Davenport would easily understand it, but it wouldn’t make sense to someone not looking for a hiding place.
  • The “fifth word” was the key to the solution.
  • The four words were a code written on a calendar sheet, representing days of the week with the letters ‘d-a-y’ dropped.
  • Nom = Monday, Utes = Tuesday, Sweden = Wednesday, and Hurts = Thursday.
  • The unwritten fifth word was “Fir,” or Friday.
  • The jewelry was found inside a twenty-gallon jug of earth from which the young fir tree grew in Nolan’s nursery, as Encyclopedia had predicted.

Important Vocabulary:

• nickname: pet name
• in a matter-of-fact manner: without showing much emotion
• hold-ups: robberies conducted with the use of threat or violence
• nursery: a place where young plants and trees are grown for sale
• testify: make a statement in court to prove that something is true
• hunch: a strong feeling about something
• loot: stolen goods
• stroke: a sudden serious illness causing inability to move
• will: (here) a legal document that says what is to happen to somebody’s money and property after their death
• leafed through: quickly turned (the pages)
• confessed: admitted
• code: hidden message
• foreseen: predicted

Grammar Focus:

• Anagrams: Anagrams are words or phrases made by rearranging letters to form a new word or phrase (e.g., ‘Neat’ is an anagram of ‘a net’). An exercise involves solving a crossword puzzle using anagrams as clues.
• Multiple Meanings of a Word: The word “case” has different meanings depending on context (e.g., situation, container, writing format, matter). An activity involves matching meanings to sentences.
• Fact vs. Opinion: A fact is something provable and not based on belief, while an opinion is a belief or judgment that varies and cannot be proven. An exercise requires identifying statements from the story as facts or opinions.
• Reported Speech: An exercise requires rewriting sentences in reported speech, transforming direct questions into indirect statements. Another activity involves transforming a dialogue into indirect speech to complete a paragraph.
• Gerunds: Gerunds are verb forms ending in ‘-ing’ that function as nouns. They can serve as the subject, complement, or object in a sentence, or as the object of a preposition (e.g., “Swimming is my favourite hobby,” “Her passion is painting,” “I enjoy reading books,” “interested in learning new languages”).

Phrases/Idioms:

• stuck with it: unable to get rid of something or someone.
• in a matter-of-fact manner: without showing much emotion.
• pulled the hold-ups: conducted robberies.
• cooled down: (things) became less intense or dangerous.
• took Nolan’s house apart: searched Nolan’s house very thoroughly.
• make sense of: to understand something.
• ready to explode with impatience: very angry or frustrated and about to express it.