Evening star., 1936-12-13
Doll Family of Many Lands
Brigl,tens Life of Capital Girl
Soldiers, Tribal Chiefs, Peasants and
Celebrities of History in Collection
of Little Jean Frants.

Bolivian doll. Whoever fashioned her
from bits of silk and wool has in a
very human homemade way managed
to convey, high cheek bones and all,
that she is Of proud Indian ancestry.
Nor is Jean in any way like "the
old woman in the shoe, who had so
many children she didn't know what
to do" Often when she Is away on
vacations from this very large family
of hers, she misses them so that she
sketches some of them from mem
ory. Such a series, reproduced one
rainy day on large sheet of white
wrapping paper Jeans mother had
happened to save, was shown to me
at my insistence. Graphically. there
was portrayal of Turkish doll, one
from the Fiji Islands, a Peruvian
devil dancer, and an italian peasant.
with And that's all JEAN" scribbled
at the bottom of the jagged piece of
paper, as if by way of apology to
the other members of her doll family.
They are remarkably lifelike
sketches. too, as I can testify, for I
saw the originals
Story of Friendship.
In almost every instance the men,
berS Of Jeans doll family tell a story
of friendship for her or her father or
mother or some of her people. Mod
eStly, jeans mother admits that their
daughters group of South American
dolls is probably one of the most COM
plete in the United States. What she
doesn't tell you is that jeans dolls al
ready are famous in her home town,
which happens to be the Nations Cap
ital, and that knowledge of Jeans in
terest in an appreciation of all sorts
OF dolls has gone far beyond the bor-
ders of her native land
At this time of the year the friendly
poStman on the route is apt to say to
Jean: Il have very suspicious looking
package today. If Santa Claus from
some faraway land is having me play
messenger for him, I want to come in
tomorrow and see what I have deliv-
cred" He is. by the way, the first
person to receive personal invitation
from Jean herself whenever there Is
special doll exhibit party on the
calendar.
The day of my visit this same post
man had handed Jean long package
with the remark: 1T does look as If
some one had sent you a doll, not
knowing you didn't have one to your
name" 1t proved to be doll dressed
as Napoleon, with a note to this effect:
This doll has for many years been
the priced possession of a dear, elderly
French friend who has heard of you
as a little girl who will love and
cherish it. not only for itself, but be-
cause it was dressed long ago for a
beloved little girl who didn't live to
receive it."
Cooked hat, gold epaulets. medals,
sword at its side, real pride of bearing
and natty, white broadcloth breeches,
this doll is every inch the Emperor
of France in the heyday of his glory.
Nearby, from the family Of a men,
Der of the Spanish Embassy now re-
turned, is a doll of old Spain that
looks every inch the patrician she
is meant to typify with her wide bill
lowing red skirt banded with yellow
satin and her lace mantilla sweeping
away from a tortoise shell comb car
ried high upon her naughty head.
Harriet Chalmers Adams, famous
woman geographer and explorer, has
contributed to young jeans collection
several fascinating dolls from Greece.
A beguiling one from Yugoslavia in
native costume is another new arrival.
There are also jeans four latest
dolls from her father. two from the
Philippines and two from Guam.
Brought to America in six days and
six hours on the China Clipper, it is
believed that they are the first dolls
to fly the Pacific. One wears an ex-
act replica of costume called the
"balintawak," which is characteristic
of that worn by Tagaleg country
women in the vicinity of Manila.
Most intriguing are several small
rubber dolls from the interior of
Venezuela nodded from wild rubber
worked up while it was red hot and
Drlgnuy painted WIFI vegetable ayes
after it had cooled.
From Ecuador there are wooden
dolls that are anything but wooden
in facial expression. One represents
man carrying faggots, the other
woman with basket of vegetables
so naturally colored that they look
edible.
An interesting South American doll
is an Araucanian Indian from South
Chile. Cunningly contrived from wood
and wire, his woolen poncho wraps
about his tall. erect figure with such
dignity that you wonder if he doesn't
typify the descendant of a chieftain.
An antique Inca doll from Bolivia
likewise intrigued me. It WAS evi-