#!/usr/bin/perl -w use strict; open IN, "filename" or die "$!"; while () { chomp; my ($first, $info) = (split />/); my $number = (split /'/, $first)[9]; print "$number => $info\n"; } close IN or warn "$!"; #### 113 => San Francisco (Manager) 680 => Los Angeles (Worker) 456 => San Jose (People)