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228 . the miracles of antichrist
they would compel Don Antonio to arrange
everything as before.
But Don Antonio belonged to a family of artists.
His father and his brother owned
marionette-theaters, his brothers-in-law, all his relatives were
specialists. And Don Antonio understands his art. He
can change his voice infinitely, he can at the same
time maneuver a whole army of dolls, and he knows
by heart the text to whole cycles of plays founded on
the chronicles of Carolus Magnus.
And Don Antonio’s artist-soul became wounded.
He would not be prevailed upon to take back the blind
players. He wanted people to come to his theater
for his sake, and not on account of the musicians.
He changed, and began to give grand plays showily
mounted. But it was in vain.
There is a play called " The Knight Errant’s
Death" which treats of Roland’s struggle with
Ronceval. It requires such an elaborate mechanism
that a marionette-theater has to be kept closed two
days in order to properly arrange it. The people are
so fond of it that double the usual prices could be
charged and still full houses be secured for at least a
whole month. Don Antonio now brought out this
play, but he did not need to give it, he had no
spectators.
After this Don Antonio was broken-hearted. He
tried to get back Father Elia, and Brother Tommaso,
but these, knowing now what they were worth to
him, asked such prices that it would have been ruin
to pay them. It was impossible to come to any
agreement.
In the little dwelling back of the marionette-thea-
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