The Hudson River Mystery

of the mucous membranes and the scent of his breath. Cyanide leaves the distinct odor of bitter almonds. The doctors administered something called amyl nitrite as an antidote, and he recovered within a few hours.”
    ”And the symptoms,” prompted Trixie. ”They included his dullness and uneasiness lately?”
    Her father nodded. ”The poison affects people differently. It can cause stomach cramps, a dazed mental condition, difficulty in breathing, dizziness, convulsions, and eventually death. The doctor said that it was lucky that Brian was so healthy otherwise, since he could very easily have died. His fainting last night was a sort of signal to us that something was very, very wrong. Apparently the poison had him so confused that he couldn’t tell us any other way.”
    ”That explains a lot,” murmured Trixie, thinking of his unusual secretiveness lately.
    ”It seems that the poison’s been building up in Brian’s body for some time,” Mrs. Belden said slowly.
    ”What do you mean?” gasped Trixie.
    ”The doctors couldn’t really tell us very much,” Mrs. Belden said. ”They say he couldn’t have had the poison in its pure form or he’d have been killed instantly. So they think he’s been getting it gradually, in small doses. It was just starting to reach the toxic level.” She reached into her apron pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. ”Dr. Ferris scribbled down a number of plants with cyanogenetic potential. He—he thinks that Brian must have been getting one of these things here at home. Most of them are things that wouldn’t harm a person if he ate them once—it’s when they build up in the system—”
    ”May I see the list?” Trixie asked eagerly.
    Mart finished his last blueberry muffin and snatched a book off the counter. ”Later, Trix. We’re going to miss the bus.”
    ”I’m coming, I’m coming,” mumbled Trixie, who was making no motion other than scanning the list her mother had handed her. She didn’t recognize anything on it as something Brian would have eaten:

Hydrangea; Christmas berry; Johnson grass, sudan grass, velvet grass, arrow grass; lima beans from tropical countries; the pits of fruits such as cherries, peaches, apricots, prunes; apple seeds; almond shells; wild cherries.

    ”What a terrible diet!” Trixie exclaimed.
    ”Not as terrible as you’re going to feel if we miss that bus,” called Mart. ”Now, come on, before I give you a sesquipedalian lecture.”
    Trixie hastily kissed her parents good-bye and ran for the door. ”Sounds like that would hurt you more than it would hurt me,” she told her brother.
    ”In words of one syllable,” said Mart, grabbing her arm to hurry her along, ”sesquipedalian means ’words of more than one syllable.’ ”
    Trixie’s retort was lost in the roar of the bus pulling up to their stop.
    The other Bob-Whites were shocked to hear of Brian’s collapse and its cause.
    ”What a rough blow,” whistled Jim.
    ”Let’s all go see him after school,” Di said.
    ”If he’s coming home tomorrow,” said Honey, ”maybe we should let him rest and see him tomorrow.” Waiting until they were walking into the school building, she pulled Trixie aside and asked, ”Do you think Brian’s sickness was responsible for his decision not to become a doctor?”
    ”I didn’t dare ask my parents,” Trixie confessed. ”We’ll have to wait and ask him when we see him, I guess.”
    ”Trixie, how do you feel?” Honey asked suddenly, her expression alarmed.
    ”Honey Wheeler, why are you asking me that? It’s my brother who’s in the hospital!”
    Honey’s lip quivered. ”But m-maybe you 11 be next, if what the doctor says is true, and something in your house made Brian sick. Don’t you all eat the same food?”
    Trixie thought for a moment, then sang out, ”Jeepers, you’re a genius!”
    ”I beg your pardon?”
    ”Don’t you see? Brian’s the only one in our family who got sick, so it can’t be something in our kitchen! Oh, woe, and Moms sounded so worried about that, too. Wait till I tell her!”
    ”But Trixie—if Brian didn’t get poisoned at your house, then where could he possibly have been poisoned?”
    ”I don’t know, but we’ll find out,” Trixie said confidently. ”With all the mysteries we’ve been able to solve, we’ll surely be able to crack this one!”
    ”Must you treat everything as though it were a mystery?” complained Honey. ”This is your very own brother we’re talking