Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1915-07-23
Stories of the War
CARING For Prisoners in Germany.

horde of over a million prisoners or
war in Germany. so that rank, service
division and place of confinement or
each man can be instantly determined,
has been perfected to an astonishing
degree by Count Schwerin, a 60-year
old captain of cavalry. Today the
relatives OF any French, Russian, Eng
lish. Canadian, Italian, Serbian. Mon
tenegrin, Belgian or Japanese prisoner
in Germany can ascertain within "A
hours where that soldier is and what
his condition is
This is made possible through a card
catalogue that all but beggars descrip-
ton, it is probably the most perfect
thing of its size and kind In existence.
In its creation two other systems have
had to be discarded as inadequate. and
the work and pains lavished on them
duplicated. In its maintenance 50 per
sons are engaged, while its inventor,
Count Schwerin, works twelve hours
day overseeing things.
Each day dozens and scores of lists
of names pour into Count Schwerin's
department of the war ministry In the
Dorotheenstrasse, here in Berlin These
lists give the necessary information
for filing out the cards, so that each
shall contain the name and forename
Of the prisoner, his service branch,
regiment and company, the place and
date of his capture and the place
where he is held. II he is wounded.
the nature OF his wounds and the hos
pital where he Is are added
Scores of young women NIL out the
cards, which then go to sorters. under
the inspection OF a man who in peace
times is a head instructor in one Of
Berlin's higher schools. Before the
sorters stand wooden cases built after
the fashion of type cases. but deeper.
1t was the sight of competitors
Throwing in" type that led Count
Schwerin to adopt these cases
THE first set of sorters take the cards
just as they come, in alphabetical con-
fusion, from the writing room, and di-
vide them according to the initial let
take the AS and subdivide them sys-
tematically-into IA, Aaa. Alb. Aba
Abb-and so on. Thousands of cards
are sorted and filed daily-for the list
of prisoners never stops growing.
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 SO, 1000 Belgian names, from 10000
to Is, 900 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 interned here
Approximately 500 letters come to
Count Schwerin's 'fkartothek" daily
requests for information about rela-
tives or friends 1t is the boast and
pride. of this officer that no request
remains unanswered longer than "a
hours-4S at the very outside when
the letter or inquiry is in difficult
Russian.
To facilitate relatives in getting in
formation about the foreign soldiers,
however, Count Schwerin has forward
ed the complete data about prisoners,
&c @1 or xxyor r1NfYfzfrxr
and filed in the card catalogue, to the
governments at London. Paris and St
Petersburg, and to the Red Cross head
quarters at Geneva, Brussels, Copen-
hagen 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-
ing in captivity and do not want any
one in their native land to know that
they have been taken prisoner.
An interesting example Of this came
to light recently In q case concerning
I9-year-old Prince Chimay Of Belgium
He had enlisted under an assumed
name and was captured He was put
in prison camp as private soldier.
In due time inquiries about the young
man came in His name did not ap-
year in the card catalogue, and before
the young man was found 1t had been
necessary to hunt out every soldier OF
his regiment, scattered in half dozsn
camps all over Germany, to take them
before military court, and demand OF
them under oath what they knew about
his case.
Count Schwerin's fKartothek' con-
tains between 800, 900 and 100000
names. Two or three hundred thou
sand of the latest captives thus are
missing. In a months time, however.
these two will be duly catalosued and
slowed away for future reference.
So much for the catalogue about the
living soldiers Of the eight countries
now at war with Germany. A smaller
catalogue contains as far as available
the names of the dead-supplied in a
variety OF ways but chiefly by means
of the metal tags worn by the soldiers
around their necks.
This list is incomplete for q variety
of obvious reasons, but partly because
many of the soldiers, especially the
French, take the tags Off, through SUI
perstition, and throw them away. Even
at that there are. in the war ministry
building. boxes on boxes full OF the
little tin disks.
The French tags are clearly stamped
with the soldiers name, regiment and
homS| station The English tags are
far less clear, and sometimes cannot
be made out at all. The Belgian disks
are fairly plain, and those Of the
Canadians, made of leather. are good.
The Russians rarely wear any, and te
Is an almost hopeless task to try to
keep track of their dead
In thousands of cases of course the
men. fall in such places that the Ger
mans can search their, garment before
burying the bodies. All valuables,
keepsakes and possessions are then
tied. up and forwarded. to Berlin, where
the, treasury OF the war ministry takes
tcharge OF them.
Aviators disguised NJ Peasant Women
How two Russian aviators made
their way through the German lines
disguised as peasant women. is told
in q dispatch from the Nieman front