“Why, I suppose so,” Salt agreed. “The only trouble is that this room gets pretty stuffy in the daytime. We need the fresh air.”
“At least it should be locked when no one is here.”
“I’ll see that it is,” Salt promised. “But it’s not likely the prowler will come back again—especially as you nearly caught him.”
It was growing late. Convinced that her father had left the Star building, Penny decided to take a bus home. As she turned to leave, she asked Salt carelessly:
“By the way, did you know Ben Bartell?”
“Fairly well,” he returned. “Why?”
“Oh, I met him tonight. He’s had a run of hard luck.”
“So I hear.”
“Salt, what did Ben do, that caused him to be blacklisted with all the newspapers?”
“Well, for one thing, he socked an editor on the jaw.”