St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1892-05-07
WHERE TOYS ARE MADE.

WHERE rows ARE MADE.
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.f NoaA's AsAs.
'Tis IN open secret that Santa Claus
brings the greater part Of his vast
stock Of Christmas toys from Europe.
Germany being his favorits collecting
ground
But he eneourages American industry
in few directions, notsbly in chesp
mechanical .toyA The tin railway
trains and tin horses aud steamboats
that run when wound up with . key
are made IN Brooklyn. and the cast
iron toys OF &ho same description are
made principally in New York
When he desires IN expensive mo.
chemical toy, however. he goes to
France for IL: 70 Saxony for his Noah's
arks and all the other carved wooden
toys: 70 Nuremberg for his toys, tin
trumpets and magic lanterns. and to
Thuringia Tor his China tea sets.
Far more important than al other
toys arc the dolls. and nine dolls ont Of
every ten sre little German girl~ In
whole districts IN Germany the country
people spend the winter in making
dolls. tillisR their nelds In The summer.
= The cheap Wax doll, commercially
known q ''composition wax" such ss
may be bought and retailed in the
country for twenty-five cents. furnishes
perhaps the best idea Of how dolls are
made.
A 'moda.er." Who has nothing fur.
ther TO do with the making OF dolls.
makes plaster Of paris models OF the
styles Of heads aud limbs most Ia de-
mand and sells them singly or In sets
to the peasau4s who make the dollA
Throughoat the wintar father,
mother and all the larger children
unite in making papier mache casts
from these models. es.h cast being, Of
course. an exact counterpart Of the
models. but thin and light and gray in
color
The legs and srms are dipped in
desh-colored paint and tbs painted
shoes arc put on with brushes These
various parts. together with the head.
are fastened 70 cloth hody stuffed
with sawdust and dolly goes OF TO the
factory. where the moro artistic work
Is done. t-5
An expert workman In the factory,
holding dolly by the feet dips her
head aud shoulders for . moment into
melted wax. and she emerges from the
bath the composition wax doll Of COM
merce.
When she Is sufficiently dry she
passes into tho hands Of . girl 0per.
ator. who quickly paints tho pink tinge
on her cheekA Another girl adds the
blue eyes: still another the eyebrows
and eyelashes; and 60 she goes through
the hands Of . row Of girls. one girl
for each tint the whole process taking
about six h0urs for there are delays
while the paints arc drying.
In six hours six girls arc expected TO
paint ten gross. or nearly one thous-
and i've hundrsd dolls. complete. This
requires rapid work. and the girls re-
ceive about one dollar and seveuty.Ave
cents . week each. Flowing locke Of
mohair are fastened 20 the head. and
dolly Il ready t. smigrate TO America
Fur the red wax doll . moro ex-
pensive article. tho molds for the heal
are made in three parts-one back and
two fronta Tho mold Is filed with
melted wax, which. b allowed 70 re-
main for . minute or two. and then Ill
that Is not hardened Il poured out
But II we do not make dolls 10 any
extent In tais country We repair them
ot great rate.
About Christmas times . doll hos
pital" b established IN al the big
stores in New York where toys arc
sold, and dolls with eyes that should
move but are Axed. with legs that In
sist upon being knocknesd, with arms
that are loose. with wigs that fall OF.
or joints that refuse 70 bend. arc taken
back 70 b repaired o. exchanged. a
In some OF the larger concerns tbs
doll hospital At su.h times contains
moro patients than any real hospitsl In
tia city. ''. Hf q,
The wooden stableA kitchens, gro.
cerles butchershops and the familiar
Noah's aras sss al made By hand In
Saxony. What wsges these simple
carvers make may be judged from the
fact that small Noah's srks. containing
moro thah . seoro OF carved sninals,
can be bought ct retail for ave. or ten
centa
Even In cheap Ssxony the peassnts
could not lire by this Industry aloae.
They have some other calling; and On
winter nights the whole family gather
about The azisg 6rs' and carve out
lions aud elephantA A-Boston
HlohA