The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-04-14
GAMES AND PLAYTHINGS.
Modern Toys Are Only Notifications
of Ancient Ones.


of Ancient Ones.
Dolls and tops have equal claims 70
De the Oldest known toys, and il is
probable that children have played
with them in every century since the
world began. Many changes take
place in the course of even one hun
dred years, and fashions in dolls and
tops must have varied greatly since
the little Egyptians used these toys.
Tops of cedar wood, carved ia the
form of the whip-top of today have
been discovered in Egypt, dating back
to 25oO B. c. This was about the time
of Rameses H., the Pharaoh of the
Exodus, whose daughter found the lit
tie Moses on the river bank. Educat-
ed in the palace with the little princes
of Egypt going with them to tn
! school called the House of the Kings
Children" Moses, no doubt, spent his
playtme with the other boys, spinning
| his top in the marble-paved courts
that sloped down to the Niles blue
waters.
In the tombs of the Fharaohs, built
by this same Rameses, the body of the
! little daughter Of one of the Ptolemies
has been found, holding in her arms
her old-fashioned doll.
In the ruins of Troy, Schliemanr
found terra Gotta tops, and tipcats
precisely like ours. The history OF
Eastern nations, like that of moro
classic and modern peoples, is too
pompous and grand to concern itself
with children's playthings. 1t is the
same in Greece and in Rome. but there
are the monuments to speak for them
col
china figures have been unearthed that
| represented the daily life of the peo.
pie, and were intended as memorials
| of those in whose tunibs they were
placed. In the children's graves were
buried small figurines. evidently their
dolls and playthings. and though
broken to pieces in sign of grief. when
put together they were perfect and the
colors as bright on the china as if
they had just been burned in the kiln
In the National Museum at Naples.
too, may be seen toys, among them
balls, dolls and tops of wood recoV-
cred from the ruins Of Pompei The
Romans had a word pupa, meaning u
baby girl. from whlcr comes the
French poupee, doll, and our word pup
pet. Doll is thought to be froIl idol
|
ly enough, means a whipping~tOp aud
perhaps was originally general name
for toy. Dolly shops in England We're
places where rags and seCond-h
goods were sold, and were distinguish.
ed by the sign of a black doll,
There is a curious identity about,
games and tops found in different
parts of the world, as If they all orig
| hoH o. N n
spite of world wide wanderings, ana
the ages that have passed since their
invention. they have preserved this
identity in a marvellous degree. All
hall games and Quots can be traced
to the discus, an iron quot used Ey
the ancients. Homer tells Of the disk
throwing in the games at the obsequies
of Patroclus. and it was precisely like
the game that men and boys play with
horseshoes in our country towns and
villages
The South Sea Islanders have sixteen
different examples of string and finger
puzzles, all beginning like cat's-cradle,
which all civilized babies learn to
play. They have als) the games nf
tipcat. jaCkstones ami hop-scotch.
Ancient ring-puzzles Of carved ivory.
years ago. are of the same pattern aud
made on the same principle as the
steel and iron-rng puzzles made in 4
New England blacksmith shop In col
onial days.
The Hawaiians and the Indians Of
America have in common Il game or
dice stone, one face marked with 4
cross, and the different stones have
one two three dots and \ blank. The
spots count and the highest number
wins Instead of stones the MiCmacs
and the AlgOn0uinS use bone dice. The
Tewan Indians have n game played
on hoard with pieces like checkers
that is practically foX-and- geese.
Little as they know of mathematics,
in theory or in practice, tine New Zeal
anders and the islanders of the South
ern archipelago have til" same method
of counting out in turn the players
in a circle that is common among
children of civilized lands, ike our
Ecny-meeny, mony, mike, Pennsyl
yany-bony-strike. ara the English
William Matrinity he's a good :
waterman.
BUY a button, steal a button, and a
buttons on their own or on others
dresses to foretell tho profession the
future will bring them-rich man, poor
man. beggar man, thief; lawyer doc
tor Indian chief, are Identical with
The old custom of casting lots. ana all
these cases go to prove the theory that
In the beginning such games as cards,
chess or dice were invented, not 80
much to amuse the people, as to fore