St. Paul daily globe., 1889-10-14
DOLLS
REPAIRED AND DRESSED,
Room ).

But the people who climbed the
creaking single flight of stairs and in
yaded the mysterious precincts of
"ROOm s." were not few. Some went
out of curiosity, and great many more
went on business. The toy dealers fire.
Quently called upon little Miss Daniel
with arms full of puppets from their
stock in trade, some to be mended,
others to be dressed, and still others to
be remOdeled to the prevailing fashion
in the doll kingdom. She had another
class of customers many times as large,
who regarded her as the mysterious
pOSSeSSOr of panacea for all the all
mentS and miShaps to which
the most unfortunate puppet is
subject. 1t was the children. Many
fine carriage drove up before the en-
trance and discharged a curly-headed
little patron, whose swollen eyes told
but too plainly of a great misfortune
as childhOOd's miSfOrtuneS go. A badly
shattered doll, hifgged close to the little
bosom, explained the trouble. One leg
gone. the wig awry, the dress torn, an
eye rafting around in the waXen skull,
and a dozen other proofs that some ter
ribIe accident had happened. The lit
tl9 ''dOl DOCTOR was the only one in the
wide, wide world who could relieve sLch
troubles. The doctors patron climbed
up the stairs with nurse or gOyerness,
and soon had the satisfaction of seeing
the waXen patient restored to "perfect
health" by the little wizard. And the
way she worked! The slight misshapen-
figure would remain for hours bent over
a low bench, surrounded by baskets OF
strings of beads, tinsel scraps, remnants
of fine fabrics,
DIMINUTIvE WIGS, wi
and miscellaneous pieces of dolls anat-
omy, all of which she brought into use
in making gorgeous costumes. And as
she cut out and SeWed 1t was no trOu-
bic to talk. She easily amused the lit
tie child or adult, for while she was a
child in years, she was woman III SELF
reliance, tact and conversational
powers. Then she occasionally went
out and did work for dolls at the resi-
denceS. She was frequently called
into the service Of tho little ones OF Gov.
Merriam's home, and had many regular
patrons ION the HILL" Two Of the
LARGEST department stores of the city
constantly kept work in her hands, for
mend and dress dolls as she
did. Last winter leading Sew
enth street house even fixed
a booth for her in their big store room,
but her regular customers did not like
the idea and she gave it up. A GLOBE
reporter who called at two of the stores
Yesterday was shown glass cases filled
with dazzling rows of dolls that she had
dressed in the brightest colurs of the
costIiest goods, made up according to
the latest fashions. Everything was
nicely made and in perfect style. There
were dolls dressed for the ball room,
for gong out driving, for going out
walking, and for all the gay events OF
lite.
How all of the pretty costumes were
designed was the first question that Sug-
gested itself; and the observer of them
could but imagine the little worker
adopting the tactics of Miss Jennie
Wren. Dickens renowned dolls dress
maker. The reader of "Our Mutual
Friend" involuntarily pictures her, like
Jenny Wren. spying upon
THE RICH LADIES
as they attend grand public gatherings,
taking observations Of their dress, and,
perhaps. making a Lady Belinda Whit
rose ''do double duty in one night"
Everybody remembers how the little
cripple went to the grand gathering
and saw Lady Belinda alight from her
carriage. then how she lodged among
the horses and hurried home to ''cut
her out and baSte her," hobbling back
and waiting around i'll the rain for her
to come out and ':try On," and
how Lady Belinda was eventually
hung up by the waist in the
show window with her toes turned in.
1t is probable that st. Paul'S little dress
maker had just as much trouble in fit
ting and finding the sawduSt figures
lust as uncertain, because you never
know where to expect their waists"
She probably found just as much an
noyance in cutting away Miss Belinda
here, sloping her away there. or
FOLLOWING HER OUT
a bit somewhere else. st. PaufS little
dressmaker Is widely mourned. She
will be kindly remembered for many
wears by the young ladies who handled
her work in the big stores, and it will
be long time before the children find
another who cad so quickly asSuage
their grief over broken treasures. The
merchants. too, miss her sadly. Not
only was her work we'll done and pleas
ing. but wherever the plnched face and
bent figure appeared there was sunshine
and good nature and sharp, pleasant re-
ioinder. The unfortunate child who
was called from earth SO early was
daughter of the late Police Officer DAN
iel, who was a toymaker in the old
country, and who taught the little girl
his trade. She was early afflicted with
a curvature of the spine and became a
hopeless cripple before she was ten years
of age. After her fathers death she
contributed largely to the support of a
little brother and her aged mother, who
watched over the little c0nsnmptive
during the last stages of her sickness in
the single room where she worked,
lived and died. Their grief knows no
bounds. The little dressmaker's sign
will soon be taken down, but the pleas
ant. sunny-faced little cripple will re-
main in the memory of many people for
a long time to come.
AMUSEMEN NOTES.