News In Brief

American shoppers tussle to buy some hot new dolls

Hundreds of people, some waiting at the doors for four hours, battled in the aisles of a department store Sunday for a limited supply of the hottest dolls on the market this Christmas.

The skirmish was over the Cabbage Patch Kids, the rage of the season's doll market. The dolls are in short supply despite efforts by Coleco, the manufacturer of the toys, to keep up with the demand.

Augusta was not unique, as shoppers in such towns as West Allis, Wis., and Portland, Maine, scrambled to purchase the $20-plus dolls.