Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1890-01-04
SOMETHING ABOUT TOYS.

| WILL A44s0 AOVO4 ~ - s
THE PAINTINGS OF ANCIENT ANE
| MODERN TIMES.
Evidences That the Ancient Eeyptianl
We're Inesnsoos Toy Aaksrs-In the
Middle Ases-Good and had fiaythipe,
for the Youth of Today.
The toy Il perhaps best defined a. a triffng
object, designed for the amusement Of the
young, and we may safely infer that wher-
ever children have existed they have not
been without playthingx From the earliest
historical times we 6nd traces Of toys, many
OF them OF complicated and ingenious con-
| struetion- Among the specimens disinterred
from Egyptian tombs are dolls, elastic balls,
round pellets, evidently used in the same way
as our modern marbles, and footballs secure
ly covered with leather. Movable puppets
have also been discovered, consisting of joint
ed figures capable Of working rollers, knead-
ing bread, ETC., when pulled By a string.
Models of animals of ali kinds seem to have
been pretty abundant among the Egyptians
The crocodile is not unnaturaIy one OF the
most common Of these, and some wooden
crocodiles have been found with the upper
| jaw hinged
AGE OF THE WHIPPING TOP
| The tombs Of Goigoi and Idalium, in Cy-
prus, have supplied US with some specimens
Of the toys of ancient Greece, such as painted
| dolls of clay, modelled with the fingers,
mounted cavaliers armed with shields, and
70 xul,, nk
| abreast. We also know from Suidas that tho
Greek lads anticipated our own in the use of
whipping tops
The Roman toys were of various kinds, in
GLIDING popguns, bows and arrows and many
varieties of dolls and puppets, some of the
latter being loose jointed and movable by q
| string, like our modern marionettes The
whipping top, too, which was perhaps Dor
rowed from the Greeks, was favorite toy,
and is thus referred to by Virgil in the sew
enth book Of the lEneid tConington's trans
lation):
Like top that whiriing meath the thong
Is scourged by eager boys along
Bent on their Gamesome strife;
With eddying motion it careers
Round empty courts in circling spheres;
The beardless troop in strange amaze
Upon the winged lockwood gaze;
The lashes lend it life
DR.. faris, in his curious and interesting
book, PHILOSOPHY in Sport Made Science in
Earnest" says that the Romans probably in
troduced this toy into Britain. A game VERY
similar to marbles, but played with nuts,
seems also to have been common in ancient
Rome. 1t is stated by Suetonius that Augus-
tus, when youth, spent many hours of the
day in playing with little Moorish boys ''cum
nucibus."
The same toys. with variations. seem to
have been popular throughout the Middle
Ages. Marginal paintings In Fourteenth
century manuscripts represent boys whipping
tops OF much the same shape as those now in
use; and writer in 1887 mentions rattles.
balls, wooden horses and drums as among the
current toys of his time In the Harleisn
manuscripts at the British museum there is
very curious anecdote about the whipping
top, showing it to have been well known
about the end of the Sixteenth century; it
refers to Prince Henry, the eldest son Of
James / of England and VI of Scotland:
''The first TYNE that the Prince went to the
towne Of Sterling to mete the King, seeing
little within the gate of the towne a stack Of
corne, In proportion not unlike topp, where
with be used to play, ne said to some that
were with him, 'Loe, there is goodly topr
whereupon one Of them saying, why doe
you not play with it thenr he answered, Set
it up for me, and win play with it,"
Our modern toys are SO varied as to DEFY
and their rough classification is
the most that can be attempted Imitation
being the foundation of many childish modes
OF recreation, we are not surprised to find
that it has been largely drawn upon in the
of toys Horses, dogs, babies,
houses, windmills and boats form very favor
lie playthings, and are made in materials so
widely different as iron, wood, wax and india
rubber. Additional faithfulness to nature is
in some cases by adding mimicry of
sounds and actions. Thus, dogs are made to
bark, dolls to open their eyes and utter
strange noises supposed to mean mamma"
Or papa" while monkeys climb up a pole
and mice run about the floor.
Another species Of toy, perhaps the most
educatioually, as well as the most |
really interesting, appeals to the spirit of |
and the love OF success inherent in |
human nature, rather than TO any intrinsic |
merit in the playthings themselves To this |
lass belong marbles, balls, cards, bricks, /
ops. kites, ETC., in fact all toys which call |
Tor the exercise of skill and ability when /
olayed with.
A third kind owes its success to exciting
he feelings OF wonder and surprise; but 40
hese emotions are Of a low order and ere in
heir nature transient such boys must take
Inferior rank from an intellectual point o.
7iew. Among them we may reckon the
magnetic swan, which follows a loadstone
'ver the water, the automatic figures worked
~ sand or hidden mechanism, and crackers,
Tacks-in-the- box, etc. Lastly, come the kind
which give pleasure to children by crafty
ng their love of noise, including trumpets,
!rums, pistols and squsaking denominations
# all sorts These PROBABLY give more an
ioyance to the elders than pleasure to tho
youngsters. -Chambers' Journal
The Use of Coffee.
1t is asserted by men Of high profes-
SIGNAL ability that when the system needs