"Perhaps he
can throw some light on the subject."
"He told you, when you inquired, that he had heard nothing except what
was in the papers."
"But he may be able to help us to clear away this mystery."
When summoned, the landlord came down into the little office looking
very sleepy, very stupid, and somewhat angry. Merriwell told what he had
seen and heard, and repeated the newspaper story about the murder of
Barney.
"Well, that was at Sea Cove," was the answer. "Ghosts always come back
to the place where the person was killed. Why should it come here? I
don't like this. If you tell it, it will give my house a bad name. No
one wants to board in a haunted house, and it will ruin my summer's
business."
"But I thought you might help us to an explanation," Frank insisted.
The sleepy and stupid look had passed away. The landlord had once been a
seafaring man, and he was a bit superstitious. Still, he was not willing
to acknowledge that Frank had beheld something supernatural. He would
not deny its possibility, but repeated over and over his belief that
ghosts always return to the place of the murder and to no other place,
and that the repetition of the story would drive away his summer
boarders.
"I tell him he was just dreaming," said Bart.
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