That's exactly right! Ever notice how the rear seats are often empty at the end of the ride, when you swear there were a bunch of kids back there when you embarked on the "happy" journey?
I heard this story from a couple ex-CMs who worked the ride. There is a secret society of evil dolls that have infiltrated the Small World rides at each of the parks. Disney is working with the law enforcement agencies in the US, Paris and Asia, but the battle has been waging for years without any success. They evil dolls are smart. They mix with the real dolls. It is virtually impossible to tell them apart. What they do is stand there in the ride with those fake smiles on their faces, lulling you into a sense of cheerfulness and calm. Then as your boat passes, three or four of them slip silently into the water and grab unsuspecting passengers from their seats and pull them under. The victims are dragged away and undergo one of two processes. Some are bound and kept under the water for months until they shrink, after which their faces are painted with a smile and they are surgically nailed to the floor with iron rods, along with the other dolls. After a day or two of the music, they go insane, and thus become new members in the evil doll clan. Some vicitms are processed into food which DOES include a beheading, Laurie528's fears were correct. Occasionally they will commandeer an entire boat and direct it into the place CM's refer to as "The Cave". On rare occasions the evil dolls fail in their mission to snag the food source or the new members, which is why they have placed that smiling crocodile with the umbrella in the ride. Depending on the situation, this smiling croc will snatch the escapee or simply devour the entire boat in one bloody mess.
This is apparently a serious problem for Disney, but they are keeping it all hush hush. You should be very afraid on this ride. It is a very very bad place.