Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-07-19
GERMANY HAS FULL LIST
OF ITS WAR PRISONERS
Exact Registration Of Huge Horde
Wonderfully Perfected by
Count Schwerin.
FACTS AVAILABLE AT ONCE;
Card Catalogue System Beggars De-
Scriptfon and Probably Is Most
Perfect Thing of Its Size and Kind
in Existence.

correspondence Of Associated Press.
BERLIN. July 1o.--The exact regis
tration of the huge horde of over
100000 prisoners OF war In GERMANY.
so that rank. service division and
place of confinement of each man can
be instantly determined. has been per-
fected to an astonishing degree by
Count Schwerin. a sixty-year-old can
tain Of cavalry. TO-DAY the relatives
of any French. Russian. English. Cana
dian. Italian, Serbian. Montcnerrin.
Belgian or Japanese prisoner in Ger
many can ascertain within twenty four
hours where that soldier is and what
his condition is.
This is made possible through a card
catalogue that all but beggars descrip-
ton. 1t is probably the most perfect
thing OF its size and kind in existence.
III It's creation two other systems have
had to be discarded as inadequate. and
the work and pains lavished on them
duplicated. In its maintenance eighty
persons are engaged. while its inventor.
Count Schwerin, works twelve hours
a day. overseeing things
Each day dozens and scores OF lists
of names pour into Count Schwerin's
department of the War Ministry in the
Dorotheenstrassc. here in Berlin.
These lists give the necessary informa-
ton for filling out the cards. SO that
each shall contain tho name and fore
name Of the prisoner, his service
branch. regiment and company. the
place and date of his capture. and the
n1n tk-ba
wounded the nature of his wounds and
the hospital where he is are added
Scores of young women fill out the
cards. which then go TO sorters, under
the inspection of man who in peace
times is head instructor in one Of
Berlin's higher schools. Before the
sorters stand wooden cases built after
the fashion of type cases. but deeper
II was the sight OF compositors throw
ing in" type that led Count Schcrwin to
adopt these cases.
The first set of sortcrs take the cards
Just as they come, in alphabetical CON
fusion. from the writinE-room, and di-
vide them according to the initial letter
from y to H. Other sortcrs then take
tho AS and subdivide them systcmati-
cally-into IA, Aaa. Alb, Aba. Abb, and
SO on. Thousands OF cards are sorted
and filed daily-for tho list of prisoners
never stops growing.
NAMES ALSO DIVIDED.
ACCORDING TO NATIONALITY
The names also are divided, accord
ing TO nationality. and put away in the
cases that flank all four walls of three
rooms. There are between $4,000 and
10000 Belgian names. from $1,000 10
$4,000 English names. and hundreds OF
thousands of French and Russian
With but one exception, the Serbians.
Montenegrins and Japanese who are
prisoners in Germany are civilians of
military age. informed here
Approximately 500 letters come 70
Count Schwcrin's "kartothcf" daily
requests for information about rela-
tivcs or friends. Ii is the boast and
pride of this officer that no request
remains unanswered longer than TWEEN
ty-four hours-forty-cight at the very
outside. when the letter or inquiry is
in difficult Russian
To facilitate relatives in getting in
formation about tho foreign soldiers.
however. Count Schwerin has for
warded the complete data about prison
ers. as fast as received at the War
Ministry and filed in the card catalogue,
TO the governments at London, Paris
and st. Petersburg. and to the Red
Cross headquarters at Geneva, Brussels,
CopenhaE gen and Berlin.
One of the most interesting features
of the card catalogue work is the fact
that many men give false names and
data. because they are ashamed of be