European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 04, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Germ an y \ is Joseooh Owens a Joseph Owen a path in Worms provides a Shady walk along the Rhine left. Worms offers a lot to shoppers and those just out for a stroll above. Said col. Ret James a. Sonny Smith a former Deputy Community commander in both Worms and Mannheim. Smith who works for the army s information systems _ engr come Europe at Takkunen Barracks held several Active duty assignments in the area. He stayed on As a civilian because his wife is a Worms native he said adding that he often acts As an intermediary Between local officials and the army. I think the germans see me As a pretty decent ambassador he said. The City tries  make other americans feel at Home. Groups of americans sometimes visit the municipal archives where they see documents that reveal much about Germany s Distant past. Even president Clinton paid a Call. Clinton As governor of Arkansas toured Worms and roamed the archives five years ago while in Germany on a business trip archives director Fritz Reuter said. Tor one recent american tour group supervising archivist Martin Geyer displayed the oldest Parchment in the collection a document proclaiming faithfulness to the King in 1074. The Wax Seal looked modest compared to the Pancake sized ones used on the later parchments. As the real Power of the emperors diminished the seals became larger Geyer said. The visitors also saw religious proclamations sent from the Vatican sealed with Lead. It was common for the Popes to use seals of Lead because the Wax would have melted in the hot Mediterranean climate Geyer explained. The Parchment collection is similar to those in the archives of  Speyer two nearby German cities that also were medieval seats of Power. The documents longevity seems remarkable in Light of the enormous destruction Worms suffered during the thirty years War the palatinate wars of succession and world War ii. Worms was nicknamed Little Jerusalem because so Many jews lived there according to Joszef Wetzl a 5th signal come political adviser and unofficial tour guide. Jews once constituted 30 percent of Worms population and the City was a Center of jewish scholarship. Although the nazis eventually obliterated the jews or drove them out their heritage lingers in the form of the Rashi synagogue the oldest synagogue in Germany which stands a Block from the City archives. Inside the meticulously restored building Wetzl showed american visitors a Tablet bearing the names of local jews who fell victim to the nazi regime. The Tablet includes a few Blank spots where names have been Lorn Tler  a Saleswoman displays two types of the local Candy specialities. Is Dav Casey removed a few people assumed to have been killed before or during world War it later turned up alive. The atmosphere changed abruptly outdoors in Jude Gasse news Alley. Music wafted into the Street from an open window. It was turkish music. Latter Day Worms a City of 80,000 inhabitants is Home to thousands of turks italians and yugoslavian Reuter said. Americans often laugh at the City s name which when pronounced correctly sounds like the English word  at least it flows across the Tongue More readily than the old celtic name Borbet magus which Means an area where water is plentiful. The romans built a fortress Here then a town Civitts Vang Monum. The local vineyards had their origins in that period. Worms grew to prominence under Charlemagne who was married in the City and visited it More than 20 times. In the centuries that followed some of Worms Bishops served simultaneously As chancellors in the ineptly named German controlled holy roman Empire. Salian Kings of the Middle Ages Are buried in the sepulchre of the 10th-Century romanesque Kaiser Dom emperor s Cathedra where tourists can see their sealed Stone coffins. During this period an unknown German composed a famous epic poem set in Worms the Nibelungenlied. Historian will Durant described the poem s narrative about a Young fifth Century girl turned into a murderess because of a War Between huns and burgundian As a terrible tale As red with Gore As any in literature or  after it lost political influence Worms flourished economically until the 17th Century. Then the swedish army overran the town during the thirty years War 1618-48knocking Down much of the City Wall. French troops burned the town so completely in 1689 continued on Page 1 november 4, 1993 stripes Magazine 13