se my fables were making in
Italy, and abased himself so far as to send a fabulous composition of
his own fabrication back to Venice. It was called _Il Genio buono e il
Genio cattivo_, and appeared at the theatre of S. Giov. Grisostomo,
enjoying a long run. The cause of its success lay in the fact that his
piece displayed dramatic art, agreeable characters, moral reflection,
and some philosophy. I conclude, therefore, that allegorical fables on
the stage are not so wholly contemptible.

At the same time, just as there are differences between the different
kinds of dogs, fishes, birds, snakes, and so forth, though they all
belong to the species of dogs, fishes, &c., so are there notable
differences between Goldoni's _Genio buono e cattivo_ and my ten
_Fiabe_, though all are grouped under the one species of dramatic fable.
Goldoni, who has deserved renown for his domestic comedies, had not the
gifts necessary for producing poetic fables of this kind; nor could I
ever understand why my ridiculous censors cast the ephemeral success of
his two _Genj_ in my teeth, with the hope of mortifying a pride I did
not feel.

The dramatic fable, if written to engage the interest of the public and
to keep its hold upon the theatre, is more difficult than any other
species. Unless it contains a grandeur which imposes, some impressive
secret which enchants, novelty sufficient to arrest attention, eloquence
to enthral, sententious maxims of philosophy, witty and attractive
criticisms, dialogues prompted by the heart, and, above all, the great
magic of seduction whereby impossibilities are made to seem real and
evident to the mind and senses of the audience--unless it contains all
these elements, I repeat, it will never produce a firm and distinctive
impression, nor will it repay the pains and perseverance of our poor
actors by its permanent pecuniary value. It may be that my fables
possess none of these qualities. Yet the fact remains that they
contrived to produce the effects I have described.

XLIII.

_I re-open a lawsuit, and continue to scribble my fantastic pieces for
the stage_.

In this same year, 1766, my brothers warmly urged me to revive the
lawsuit against Marchese Terzi of Bergamo.[34] Since our family
documents had been dispersed, and only three old wills and some
worm-eaten summaries remained to guide me, I obtained an injunction
ordering the defendant to produce the deeds whereby he claimed the
disputed proper