Evening star., 1927-03-20
y my last story on the man-huni
inc ,,oIice machine of Berlin

with not WlSp or cue WHERE
with to work. Working in the air.
fguratively and literally, the machine
actually found grist In the fact that
It had not a clue to work with.
A companion piece TO that story
must be this one, of a case wherein
the same machine had trouble be-
cause II had too many clues, an en-
barrassment of riches that threatened
to clog its wheels.
It began quite simply-too simply
with a burglary in the Charlottenburg
section OF Berlin. The home OF a
Boerse broker was broken into ana
robbed of a considerable amount OF
silver and jewelry. The burglar or
burglars left no trace OF themselves
none, that is. that was discovered by
the squad of mechanical men sent
there, the rank and file of the detec-
tive service. mere cogs out of whom
every bit of individuality and initia'
tive has been drilled
The squad leader reported this over
the telephone whereupon commits
sion on larcenies in fats and tene-
ments"--a group Of headquarters ex-
perts specializing narrowly in such
burglarieS as the one in question
came to make its own examination.
They found that entry had been
made by jimmying the cellar door to
builtin stairway used as fire es-
cape, then by expert lock picking of
the door to the apartment. The job
was done between o'clock in the
morning and dawn. 1t was profes-
sional affair, as proved by the fact
that no f1ngerprints We're found.
Then the burglar or burglars re-
paired to the kitchen and leisurely
made a lunch and ate it. The COM
mission studied their menu more than
anything else that had to do with the
robbery, it seemed to the astonished
host
But the commission. investigating
the case with a procedure so COM
pletely predetermined that 1t amount
ed to machine work, knew what II was
doing. The victim of the robbery
stared in wonder while the experts
triumphantly set down such mo-
mentous discoveries as that six eggs,
seven slices of bacon and a whole Jar
OF rnarmalade had been consumed by
the midnight visitor or visitors.
1t was question, from the amount
OF food consumed, whether there We're
two men eating with moderate appe-
tites or one man with a ravenous hun.
ger. From the disposition of the
crumbs Of the feast. however, the
commission decided that but one man
had eaten, one man with a remark
able appetite. Which In turn pointed
to one-man Job.
Back to police headquarters came
the commission and fed its findings
into the machine that hunts Grim.
inals in Berlin. The chief part of
that machine. as pointed out be.
fore. Is that huge catalogue Of about
2o,OO0,0O0 cards called the Meldwesen,
an alphabetical record which It takes
160 rooms to house, the most ex.
nf t,sfA
human beings ever assembled. Most
OF II is information on respectable
citizens. foreigners and transients in
Berlin.
But part of it is the krininal ar
chiv, where, in addition to the regu-
lar Meldwesen card, there is rich
addition Of data on every criminal
who ever operated In Berlin, even If
convicted elsewhere.
The commission had entered its
findings Of the burglary in question
on a card. Then 1t put that card
into the Meldwesen machine to make
II produce a solution. somewhat as
one drops a penny into slot ma
chine.
What really happened was the card
was given to spectacled mechanical
man, one Of the $50 who operate the
Meldwesen machine, and he hunted
Tor Information that would corre
spond to that on the card. But the
man and his search were SO me-
chanical in their nature that 1t was
really the working Of machine.
II Il
TT will help understanding the pres
ent case IL I give a sketch of the
kind of card Continental police keep
in their criminal records. Here, for
instance. 10 one formula of 10 head |
ings under which a crime Is recorded
by the police:
]. Classword-Kind of property at. |
tackled, whether dwelling house, lodg |
ing house, hotel, etc.
2. Entry-The actual point of entry, |
whether front window. back window, |
etc.
g. Means-Whether with imple |
ments or tools. such as ladder, Jimmy, |
etc.
4. Object-Kind of property taken. |
5. Time--Not only time of day or
night, but whether church time mar |
ket day. during meal hours, etc.
8. Style--Whether the criminal to |
obtain entrance described himself as
mechanic, canvasser, agent. ETC.
z. Tale-Any disclosure or story as
TO his alleged business or errand which |
the criminal may make.
s. Pals-Whether crime was COM
mitted with confederates.
Q. Transport--Whether bicycle or
other vehicle was used in connection |
with the crime.
10. Trade mark-Whether criminal
committed any unusual act In connecf |
ton with the crime. such as poisoning
a dog, changing his clothes, eating
meal in the house robbed, leaving
note for the owner. etc.
yxAA rfn M
the mechanical man, so 70 say.
dropped the card with the finding OF
the commission into the Meldwesen IL
produced a name, man whose preVi'
ous burglary, az described in the Meld' |
wesen and Kriminal Archiv. resembled
so closely the burglary In question
that O. SQUAD Of mechanical men was
sent out to bring the man In, for tne
Krinainai Archiv even Keeps c!ose
trscit ar the movements and hanging.
out places of criminals VINO are out oi
prison.
This mans card showed that in a
rrevious burglary he also had Jlm'
rnied the cellar door OF a buiit-in nre
escape stairway in an apartment
house: picked the lock leading 10 the
apartment; had taken silverware ah1
tewelry: had made an enormous inea; nd
in the kitchen Of the apartment. aho
betrayed an inordinate appetite Tor
bacon and eggs and marmalade Tor
dessert.
There were other cards that showed
elements OF similarity with the pres.
ent burglary-but none that sho"eo
such exact correspondence
The man was brought in and close.
Iy questioned as to his movements on
the night OF the burglary - for, OF
course, he strenuously denied that 1t
was he who had done this particular
Job. But when II came to furnishing
the alibi his protestations OF innocence
hairaad the story he