The morning call., 1891-12-27
WHERE TOYS ARE MADE
Germany Furnishes Dolls and
SaXOny N0ah's Arks.

lis an open secret that Santa Claus brings
the greater part of his vast stock of Christ
mas toys from Europe. Germany being his
favorite collecting ground.
But he encourages American industry in
few directions, notably in cheap mechan-
zeal toys The tin railway trains and tin
horses and steamboats, that run when
wound up with a key are made in Brooklyn;
aud the cast-iron TOYS of the same descrip-
ton are made principally in New York.
When he desires an expensive mechanical
toy, however, he goes to France for it; to
Saxony for his Noahs arks and all the other
carved wooden toys: to Nuremberg for his
toys, tin trumpets and magic lanterns, and
10 Thuringia for his toy China tea-sets.
Far more important than all other toys
ars the dolls, and nine dolls out If ten are
little German girls. In whole districts in
Germany the country people spend the win
ter in making dolls, filling their fields IN the
summer
The cheap wax doll, commercially known
as composition WAX, such as may be
bought at retail in this country for twenty
five cents, furnishes. perhaps, the best idea
of how dolls are made.
a modeller," who has nothing further
to do with the making of dolls, makes pla S.
ter of paris models of the styles OF heads
and limbs most in demand, and sells them
slngly or IN sets, to the peasants who make
the dolls.
Throughout the winter father. mother
and all the larger children unite in making
papler mache casts from these models, each
cast being, of course. an exact counterpart
OF the models, but thin and light and gray
in color.
The legs and arms are dipped in flesh
COlOred paint, and the painted shoes are put
on with brushes. These various parts. to-
gether with the head, are fastened to a cloth
body stuffed with sawdust, and dolly goes
OF to the factory, where the more artistic
work is done.
An expert workman in the factory, hold
ing dolly by the feet dips her head and
shoulders for M ment in melted wax, and
sic energies from the bath the composition
wax doll of commerce.
When she is sufficiently dry she passes into
the hands of girl operator who quickly
paints the pink tinge upon her cheeks. An
other girl ADDS the blue eyes; still another
the eyebrows and eyelashes; ana so she
goes through the hands of q row of girls,
one girl for each tint, the whole process
taking about six hours, for there are delays
waile the paints are drying.
In six hours six girls are expected to
paint ten gross, or nearly 1900 dolls, COM
plete. This requires rapid work, and the
girls receive about 81 IS week each. Flow
Ing locks of mohair are fastened to the
head, aud dolly is ready to emgrate to
America.
For the real wax doll. more expen sive
in three parts-One back and two fronts.
The mold is filed with melted wax, which
is allowed TO remain for a minute or two,
and then all that is not hardened is poured
out.
But if we do not make dolls to any extent
in this country, we repair them at great
rate.
About Christmas times doll hospital
is established in all the big stores In New
York where toys are sold, and dolls with
eyes that should move but are fixed, with
legs that insist upon being knOckneed,
with arms that are loose, with wigs that
fall of, or with joints that refuse to bend,
are taken back to be repaired or exchanged.
In some of the larger concerns the doll
hospital at such times contains more pa
ITEMS than any real hospital in the city.
The wooden stables, kitchens, groceries,
butcher-shops and the familiar Noah's arks
are all made by hand in SaxOny. What
wages these simple carvers make may be
Judged from the fact that small Noah's arks,
containing more than a score of carved ami
mails, can be bought at retail for 5 or 10
cents.
Even in cheap Saxony the peasants could
not live by this industry alone. They have
some other calling; and on winter nights
the whole family gather about the blazing
IRE and carve out miniature lions and ele-
phants-BOston Globe.