A professor and his beautiful assistant investigate a murder which occurs in a supposedly haunted house.

Posing as a wealthy Parisian, Mercadet fleeces friends and casual acquaintances alike. He is forced into this life of crime to keep up appearances, so that his daughter Julie can land herself a rich husband.

Bostonites George and Catherine Apley live a proper life in a social circle. However, their daughter Eleanor's love for Howard Boulton and their son John's union with Myrtle threatens their home.