Actually I don't think there was a mistranslation issue. It's stated flat out in the manual that the villagers (And the various books) LIE. They give you nonsense advice on purpose and did so in the Japanese text. They wanted Simon to fail so Dracula wouldn't return. The Japanese version really did refer to a waterfowl in the graveyard.
Maybe. Either way, we end up with a Graveyard Duck.