ain by a long series of new and successful
dramatic pieces. If prejudice or malignity were to cast it in my teeth
that I had evil motives in this choice of my companions through so many
years, I might easily turn the satire back against what is commonly
called the respectable society of _casini_, assemblies, and caffes. In
order not to incur hatred by describing inconvenient facts, I will,
however, confine myself to begging my critics to reflect and to be
indulgent for differences of taste.

Returning to my comic proteges, I have yet to say that the insinuation
of so-called culture into our theatres gradually corrupted the customs
of this well-regulated family of actors, much in the same way as the
advance of culture into private families corrupted domestic manners.
Outsiders, hired at wages to swell the ranks and to take serious parts
in tragedies or comedies, introduced a new freedom of thinking and
behaving. The old habits of the troupe, which may perchance have only
worn a feigned appearance of respectability, altered for the worse. The
time has not arrived for describing this change, which I shall have to
do in its proper place, since it was closely connected with important
occurrences in my own life.

Some weaknesses are so entwined with our instincts as to be incurable.
Such, in my case, are good faith and compliance, which often degenerated
into silliness. During the whole course of my life, as my writings
prove, and as is well known to my friends and acquaintances, I have
always scourged hypocrisy. I cannot, however, deny the fact that the
apparent honesty, piety, and good behaviour, in which my proteges
persevered for so long a period, was convenient to their friends and
extremely profitable to their pockets; whereas the freedom of thinking
and acting introduced among them by the science of this depraved century
and by so-called culture, brought them to the condition of the builders
of the Tower of Babel.

I have seen them pass from ease to indigence, forget that they were
relatives and friends--all at war together, all suspicious, each man of
his neighbour--all irreconcilable and hostile--in spite of frequently
renewed attempts on my part to bring them into harmony again; so that,
at the last, I had to withdraw from their society, as will be stated in
the sequel of these Memoirs.

XLII.

_The end of the rage for Goldoni and Chiari.--I go on amusing my
fellow-citizens with plays.--Make reflections,