European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 03, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Fools get their Day in Black Forest festivities is Joseph Owen Winfried Hecht the tallest attraction of the Parade towers Over the rest. By Joseph Owen staff writer Here s a prescription for late Winter Cabin fever two Days off Don a silly wooden mask and run around shouting huh he to everyone you meet. Only a fool would do that you say have you forgotten about that lampshade you wore on your head on new year s eve a few years ago in Rothweil Germany fools turn up in such great quantities at this time of year that local officials have to License them. They be been doing it for centuries. It s All part of what local people Call Fasnet. Known elsewhere in Germany As Fasching fasnacht or Kame Al it s the period of Celebration that precedes the Onset of Lent / the Rothweil Celebration like most others in the Black Forest is More reserved than the robust freewheeling pre lenten festivals in Cologne and Mainz. Even so. Every year Rothweil attracts visitors from across the continent for its three Days of Street theater. They come for three reasons according to Winfried Hecht a records keeper in the City archives. First Rothweil s Fasnet Celebration has occurred continually since at least the Middle of the 16th Century except during the two world wars. Second the spectacle of parades among Rothweil s ornate pastel std Lue studded buildings is unique among Fasnet towns. And the third reason is that Rothweil Fasnet has preserved its traditional form especially strictly Hecht said. That Means our fools clothing the masks and the costumes Are produced today just As they were 200 years ago during the time of the Imperial City when Rothweil was still  the prelude to Fasnet occurs on Schmotz Igen Donnerstag the thursday before Ash wednesday and consists of a children s Parade a specialized Fasnet Market and a Fasnet Ball. More dances and balls occur throughout the weekend but the real opening event occurs at 11 . Sunday feb. 13 this Yea when a band of fools seizes control of the City government and issues a proclamation in front of City a i. Monday and tuesday Are holidays for rottweilers the people that is not the dogs named after the town. On monday the first Parade of fools occurs at 8 . About 3,000 costumed participants weave up and Down Rothweil s inclined streets in a three hour procession known As a a resp ring fool s leap because of a distinctive springy step the fools use when they March. Some play musical instruments. Some crack whips. Some throw Candy to spectators. And everybody seems to be Yelling  i think this is better than halloween because everyone wears Bright colors said Adrian Harris an / american fifth grader from Patch elementary school pm Stuttgart who attended the 1993 Fasnet Parade. At halloween people just walk around and say trick or treat Here they really get into  i like it because you get to see All kinds of different masks and you get to guess How old the masks Are said his classmate Bob belched each lacquered wooden mask is unique carved by one of about 10 mask makers who live in the Rothweil area. The fool s Guild authorizes Only a certain number of new masks each year. The same is True of the distinctive fools costumes. Many of the accoutrements Are passed Down from Parent to child. Fritz armleder an elderly Rothweil native stood on the sidewalk last year and watched As his son taking part in the Parade bounced by wearing a mask that armleder s Grandfather had bought in 1927. Why was t armleder in the Parade himself i Mejiad a heart attack so my wife does t allow it hesat3, smiling. The  again at 8 . Tuesday and is repeated at 2 . The event ends when the town s Young people hold a traditional Fasnet burial tuesday evening. Then supposedly the Drudgery of Lent sets in on Ash wednesday. Authorities tolerate a lot of silliness during Fasnet such As the whip cracking that begins when the fools Start practising on Jan. 6 each year. But they have to draw a line somewhere. Last year when one costumed bar customer raised his mask to get at his drink an employee recognized him As a wanted criminal who had evaded a 72 stripes Magazine february 3, 1994