Cosmo Jones, a correspondence-school detective from a small town, comes to the big city to offer his services to the police. He happens by where a gangster is killed by an opposing gang. Socialite Phyllis Blake is running around with gang member Tom and the opposing gang plan on kidnapping her. Cosmo is with Sergeant Flanagan when the attempt is made in front of a night club, where a bystander is seriously wounded in the gun-battle. Police Chief Murphy blames Flanagan for the shooting and demotes him. Cosmo, with the aid of a porter, Eustace and Flanagan's fiancée, Susan, tries to find the killer. Phyllis is finally kidnapped and Cosmo decides the act was committed by one of the two gangs. He has her father place an ad in the newspaper that contact has been made with the kidnappers. Each gang thinks the other is pulling a double cross, and one gang wipes out the other.

Albert, an auto mechanic is listening to a radio broadcast about a society based on the "coordinated cooperation of ants". He becomes excited about the idea, and becomes a little careless. The hood of the car, crashes down on his head, knocking him out cold. While unconcious, he dreams about being a worker among ants in the state-controlled nation of Antrolia. At first he is enthusiastic, but soon becomes disenchanted. When he threatens to strike, the soldier ants drag him before a firing squad. Just as he is being executed, he wakes up. He jumps into the car, races to the radio station and assaults the speaker, who is still extolling the virtures of state-planning boards and a controlled, planned economy. The speech, on red paper, flies into the air, as the mechanic grabs the microphone to give the audience "the real low-down on them ants".