Plush

“ Women, dressed in costly silks and satins and velvets, the majority of them wearing rich jewels and gold ornaments, are lounging on the plush sofas in a free and easy way, conversing with men whose dress betoken that they are in respectable society. A number of these are in full evening dress, wearing their overcoats, and a few of them have come from the clubs, a few from dinner parties, and a greater number from the theatres or opera. ”

“ Over the mantelpiece hung a rack of pipes, above which were two crossed foils, and under these a number of plush frames of all colors, with pretty faces smiling out of them; a remarkable fact being that all the photographs were of ladies, and not a single male face was to be seen, either on the walls or in the plush frames.
"Fond of the ladies, I see," said Mr. ”

“ The manufacture of Swiss cotton yarns and crochet embroideries was introduced at the end of the 18th century; at the beginning of the 19th figured stuffs, open-works and zephyrs were first produced. The manufacture of silk-plush for hats and machine-made velvets was set up towards the end of the 19th century. A busy trade is carried on in corn, cattle, linen, hemp, thread and leather. ”

“ As she spoke she nicked up from the table a big red plush photograph album. Seating herself at his side she opened it, and began to tell him of the pictures, one by one.
She did, indeed, know “quite a lot” of most of them. Tintypes, portraying stiffly held hands and staring eyes, ghostly reproductions of daguerreotypes of stern-lipped men and women, in old-time stock and kerchief; photographs of stilted family groups after the “he-is-mine-and-I-am-his” variety; snap-shots of adorable babies with blurred thumbs and noses—never had Mr. ”

“ Dolls are being dressed by the score, not only your wax and paste-board beauties, such as may be seen in every toy-shop window, but also other members of the doll family which are wholly of domestic manufacture, such as those huge babies of cotton and linen, almost as large as the live baby in the cradle, with pretty painted faces, and soft, supple limbs. These “rag-babies,” as they are sometimes called in the nursery—Moppets, as we are instructed to name them by great dictionaries—are always pets with little mammas; no other dolls are loved so dearly and so constantly as these. ”

“ There were velvet dresses trimmed with costly furs, and lace dresses, and embroidered ones, and hats with great, soft ostrich feathers, and ermine coats and muffs, and boxes of tiny gloves and handkerchiefs and silk stockings in such abundant supplies that the polite young women behind the counters whispered to each other that the odd little girl with the big, solemn eyes must be at least some foreign princess—perhaps the little daughter of an Indian rajah. ”

“ The lifelike black and white silk puppy, the creeping baby doll from Kyōto, the silk mosaic box and chopstick case,—the work of my lady's delicate fingers,—are most agreeable reminders of the kindness and sweetness of the little wife, whose sixteen summers have been spent among the surroundings of thirty years ago, and who lives, like the enchanted princess of the fairy tales, wrapped about by a spell which separates her from the bustling world of to-day. ”

“ A plain country servant-girl in a white under-dress stands at her glass, and, having had her fortune told, is ardently wishing to be a fine lady. As she retires from the glass in her mistress’s room, she is all amazement to find herself suddenly transformed to a princess. She is attired in a splendid pink or other silk dress, and wears a turban with ostrich feathers; but before she can show herself off to her friends the whole proves a vision! ”

“ Women with straight features, tow-coloured hair, and blue eyes, dress very like a glorified Sister of Charity, only of all the colours of the rainbow, and a white head-dress deep with lace. In short, fine linen, fine lace, white head-dress, embroidered bodice, stout shoes, and ribbons round waist and down the petticoat of all different colours, one shorter than the other, and the last a big sash, over a final petticoat, opening behind like an all-round apron, a kerchief over the shoulders, real massive gold ornaments, and flowers form the costume. ”

“ There they saw all kinds of dolls,—rubber babies, fat kewpies with roguish eyes, doll soldiers, tiny Japanese ladies dressed in flowered silk kimonos, little Eskimo boys in pointed hoods and woolly coats, Dutch dolls in wooden shoes and snow-white caps, brown-eyed dolls with rich dark hair, blue-eyed dolls with golden curls.
Nothing could look lovelier than the little shop at Christmas time when the ground was white with snow. Then many of the dolls wore their gayest dresses, and when the lights were turned on, the little show window sparkled like fairyland. ”

“ She knew she must be beautiful, and wondered if she were a princess. She always pictured her so, and she was always on the watch for her. At times she came out with something in her arms, which Molly knew was a doll, and Molly used to fancy how the doll looked; it must have golden ringlets, and blue eyes, and pink cheeks, and look like a princess. Molly felt sure that the little girl must be a princess. The doll would be dressed in silk and embroidery. ”

“ THE big doll in Miss Maria's shop window had been for years the model after which the village infants were clothed. When Miss Maria's baby wore thread lace, so also did every baby in Moon Center. When blind embroidery became the fashion, the doll wore its stiffened glories smilingly, although the other infants shouted lusty rebellion. And when everything gave way to hem-stitched flounces, according to the agent who made semi-quarterly visits im a mud-spattered buggy, the baby in the window blossomed out in a complete hem-stitched outfit, with tiny tucks and feather-stitching. ”

“ Just one perfect gown on a stand, perhaps, one filmy dream of a lingerie blouse, a pair of silk stockings that looked as if they'd been fashioned by the fairies out of spun sunset, and a French girl's name splashed in bold white letters across the pane—that was the sort of decoration of the establishments patronised by Miss Million and her maid. ”

“ On colder days the women wear bright-coloured capes made of fine spun silk, from underneath the ample folds of which you sometimes hear a little cry; and sometimes a little hooded head peeps out, regards with preternatural thoughtfulness the toy-like world without, then dives back into shelter. As for the children—women in miniature, the single difference in dress being the gay pinafore—you can only say of them that they look like Dutch dolls. ”

“ Of the ready-made toys, toy furniture for the house, the sand pile for outdoors and the doll for both are most useful. “The doll,” as Sully tells us, “takes a supreme place in this fancy realm of play. The doll is an all-important comrade in that solitude à deux, of which the child, like the adult, is so fond.” The complete adaptability of the doll makes it an ideal means for the puppet play of idealism. “A good, efficient, able-bodied doll, like the American girl’s,” says Joseph Lee, “is at home in any situation in life, from princess to kitchen maid, to which she may be called. ”

“ Standing before him, her coat over one arm, the vivid of her hair uncovered, the brown silk of her blouse revealing the full throat, she seemed like a young girl; more an affianced bride than a woman who intended running away from her husband. ”

“ The fact was he thought them very ugly, with their sun-burnt necks, their great red hands, their coarse petticoats and their wooden shoes. He had heard that somewhere in the world there were girls whose necks were white and whose hands were small, who were always dressed in the finest silks and laces, and were called princesses, and while his companions round the fire saw nothing in the flames but common everyday fancies, he dreamed that he had the happiness to marry a princess. ”

“ Now Lily's maid left the disgraced doll on a chair in the kitchen, and there Mary the cook found it. It had on a pretty muslin dress and sash, and nice embroidered underwear, just like any fashionable young lady. It was Christmas week, and Mary had bought a doll to give to her little niece on Christmas-day, and seeing at once what a treasure this costume would be, she took it off, did it up as fresh as new, and made the doll she had bought look quite like a princess in it. So the old broken-armed doll had not a rag left of its former glory. But luck sometimes comes even to dolls. ”

“ The little fox seemed to understand, for he cowered closer to the princess. He poked his nose into the palm of her hand and kissed it gently.
“You may have the price of the foxling, but you may not have his life, poor baby,” said the little princess. “Here,” she pulled her purse from her kimono sleeve—“here is a gold piece for the flesh, and one for the liver, one for the fur, and still another for the life of this poor little bundle of fur. And pray the gods to give you kinder hearts in your breasts, for neither the gods nor men like cruel souls.” ”

“ Little girls with hair elaborately dressed, tied with gold cords and bright crape, and gowns and girdles of the brightest colors, look like walking dolls themselves. The tiniest toddler is a quaint and comical figure in the same long gown and long sleeves as its mother, the gay-patterned kimono, the bright inner garments showing their edges here and there, and obis shot with gold threads, making them irresistible. ”

“ The princess became greatly surprised when the lad beckoned her to follow him into the pantry. She complied, however, and when Mother's Pet had closed the door after them he said to her: "Shall I tell you how to get rid of your suitors?" "I wish you would," replied the sweet princess. "Listen," pursued Mother's Pet, "and mark my words! Tell them you are willing to marry any one of them who brings you a hen which lays golden eggs, a golden hand-mill which grinds by itself, and a golden lantern which can light up the whole kingdom." ”

“ She held it out to the queen, saying, ‘In the basket you will find a bird’s egg. This you must be careful to keep in a warm place for three months, when it will turn into a doll. Lay the doll in a basket lined with soft wool, and leave it alone, for it will not need any food, and by-and-by you will find it has grown to be the size of a baby. Then you will have a baby of your own, and you must put it by the side of the other child, and bring your husband to see his son and daughter. The boy you will bring up yourself, but you must entrust the little girl to a nurse. ”

“ Our shining curls, our dresses new,
Our pride and dignity.
You surely don’t want that old doll!
She’s been worn out for years.
You’ll change your mind when you get home
And hurry back in tears.
And then you’ll find we all are gone
With other little girls
Who like our style, our pretty clothes,
Our lovely flowing curls. Sailor Doll (stepping to front and motioning rest to be still) :
She’s right. I know, for I am wise;
Although it is to my surprise
She shows such sense, for little girls
[11] Are always pleased by silly curls. ”

“ I, in my simplicity, thought it was the natural tenderness of that amiable and penetrating sex, ever quick to detect trouble, and anxious to relieve it, that induced three ladies, in silk attire—one having a hat and plume, the other two with a profusion of ringlets—to leave a little knot of gentlemen with whom they were conversing, and to plant themselves before my uncle. ”

“ It was just about this time that Mademoiselle Cerise was bought by a lady as a present for her little god-daughter.
“But the color of the doll’s dress has become faded,” said the lady. “She must have a new one before I take her.”
“That can easily be arranged in a day,” said the owner of the shop.
“Very well,” answered the lady, “then I will buy her. You need not send her. I will bring my little friend with me to-morrow afternoon when we shall be passing your shop. She will like to carry her new doll through the streets.” ”

“ You Will Help Me Now, or You Will Never Help Me
HOW can I write the fourth act with this ridiculous thing posed among my papers? What thing? It is a doll in a pink silk dress, an elaborate doll that walks and talks and warbles snatches from the operas. A terrible lot it cost! Why does an old dramatist keep a doll on his study table? ”

“ But come! Unfasten our dresses. To-morrow there is to be another ball, and we must get to bed and rest, so as to look our best.”
So Cinderella helped her sisters to undress, and all the while she did so they could talk of nothing but the unknown princess, of how beautiful she was, and of how much the Prince had admired her.
The next night Cinderella helped to dress her sisters and make them ready for the ball. They rolled away in their coach, and then Cinderella waited impatiently for her godmother to come. It was not long before the old fairy appeared. ”

“ But the following day he came back again, and said to the second girl:
‘Wilt thou wed me, farmer’s daughter?’
‘Indeed I will not,’ answered she, ‘an ugly brute is the hoodie.’ And the hoodie was more angry than before, and went away in a rage. However, after a night’s rest he was in a better temper, and thought that he might be more lucky the third time, so back he went to the old place.
‘Wilt thou wed me, farmer’s daughter?’ he said to the youngest.
‘Indeed I will wed thee; a pretty creature is the hoodie,’ answered she, and on the morrow they were married. ”