Griggs courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., Dak. [N.D.]) 1885-1902, 1901-02-07
ACTS ABOUT DOLLS.
CAUSE or THe ORIGIN or THE WAX
AND CHINA VARIETIES.


NeAels % Costly Dresses ana In the
Sevsatsenth Century Were Whss
ynohSon Papers Are To-day.
The origin Of the word dcll is curl
Dus. Centuries ago. when saints namet
4 svere much in vogue Tor children. st
Dorothea was the most popular. and
der name the best and luckiest that
could be given to little girl. The
nickname was Dolly. or Doll, and from
Giving babies the nickname 1t was an
easy step to pass II on to the little
images Of which the babies were 90
fond. III ss5
The word doll Is not found in com.
mon use, ingaonr language until the
\ middle OF the eighteenth century, and.
o. far as can be discovered. first sp-
pears in The Gentleman's Magazine for
September. 1851. in the following:
Several dolls with different dresses.
made in St. James street. have been
sent to the czarina to show the manner
az dressing al present in fashion among
English ladies'
Previous to this the word used to
describe the favorite plaything Of all
girls in all countries and in all ages
was baby" which is to be found,
together with ''poplet.' or ''puppet."
In this sense in the works of most Of
the earlier writer's.
The wax and china doll originated
In the middle Of the seventeenth CEN
fury. There were no fashion papers
as now. and in order to show what was
being worn on the continent dolls were
beautifully and extensively dressed
Ind sent to the various European coun-
tries. and from the model orders We're
taken. The dolls. to show off their
costly garb. must be made of more
precious stuff than wood. so wax and
china and even ivory ones were made.
Thuringia is the lan6 where most
dolls are born-puppetland. as 1t is call
ed on this account. About POO years
ago most Of the dolls were made in
Flanders. and they were called not
dolls but Flanders babies. There used
to lie an old English couplet which ran
thus:
The children Of Holland take pleasure in making
What the children Of England take pleasure in
breaking.
At one European doll factory Of the
present day 100000 dolls are produced
annually. some 500 men. women and
children being employed To mako
one talking doll requires the joint labor
of -; men. Dolls eyes art, made in un'
foreground rooms. into which the sun.
light rarely peeps. and violet orhs are
the most difficult to color. There is
one town in Germany where three,
fuurtlls Of all the dolls eyes in the
world are made. Only in the ease Of
the most expensive dolls is real human
hair used
In doll factory are wood carvers.
headmakpra leg and arm makers. eye,
makers portrait artists. hairdressers.
doll sewers and doll suffers: also q
small army of fashionable dressmakers
and milliners
The Hindoo child Is probably the
only doll-lpss child in the world. The
little Egyptians have their wooden
sUshabti.' the same In style as 1000
years ago These were sometimes
made Of porcelain. When O. child died
its dolls were buried with II. in the ex
pectation that their spirit forms would
rise and do service in another world
The paradise Of dolls Is Japan. where
they are most deliberately and gor
Eeously attired affairs. So are the dolls
Ut oto-..genrOku.' as they are call
I'd. They are often valuable wood
carvings. enameled In colOrs or statu
cites of great artistic merit.
One Of the most interesting coilec
lions Of dolls in this country Is that
belonging to the bureau of ethnology
Washington. They are dolls of the Uni
Indians Of Arizona and are made from
the roots or subterranean branches of
the cottonwood tree. whitfield out with
knives. They are decorated bright red
yellow. green and represent the gods Of
the tribe the god of the. snow. the god
that eats up the rainclouds. the fire;
god. the sun god and the corn goddess
The Uni children play with these dolls
as other children do Any one who
goes into Uni habitation is certain to
ace row Of these dolls suspended
from the ceiling When not in use.
they are hung up until wanted
La lnfantila is q doll with history.
II is made of clay and Ia considered by
dts owner. M.sgcan lady, and by
hosts Of other persons to be. q WORKER
Of miracles. and quantities Of costly
gifts arr. t.OnSfanflvs offered RI n