Slip and Sach are in the sidewalk star-gazing business when they see a murder committed in a room at the El Royale Hotel, blocks away. In spite of the fussy-and-fidget objections of the hotel manager, Andre Schmidtlapp, the Bowery Boys and their friend Police Officer Gabe Moreno search the murder room and find nothing beyond learning that the room is occupied by "Silky" Thomas. Police Captain Madison reprimands Gabe for leaving his beat on a false alarm, but later tips from Slip and Sach help Gabe lead raids on Silky's gambling operations. The latter sends Gabe's former friend "Feathers" to Gabe with a bribe offer but Gabe refuses. The boys read about the killing of a Professor Prescott and identify him as the man they saw murdered. Slip and Sach tell the professor's daughter, Ann Prescott, they will find her father's killers, and they get jobs as bellhops at the hotel. "Hatchet", one of the gangsters, thinks Sach is a former cell-mate and this causes a complication or two along the way.—Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>

While checking out a new telescope, the boys inadvertently witness a murder committed in a room of a nearby hotel. They tell their friend, a police officer, about the crime, but when he investigates he can find no evidence of any murder having been committed in the room, which belongs to a local gangster. The boys eventually find out who the victim was, and join forces with his daughter to expose the murderers.—frankfob2@yahoo.com