Quinola Spare us, good sir, all this rigmarole about love, in the presence of the king; for the king, hark you-- A page The King! Fontanares Come on, and let all our thoughts be for Marie! Quinola (noticing that the Duke of Olmedo is fainting) How are you? (He puts a flask to his nostrils.) SCENE THIRTEENTH The same persons, the King, the Queen, the Captain of the Guards, the Grand Inquisitor, the Marchioness of Mondejar, the President of the Council of Castile and the whole court. Philip II. (to the Captain of the Guards) Has our man arrived? The Captain The Duke of Olmedo, whom I met on the palace steps, has at once obeyed the commands of the king. The Duke of Olmedo (falling on one knee) Will the king deign to pardon a delay--unpardonable? Philip II. (raising him by his wounded arm) I was told you were dying--(he glances at the marchioness)--of a wound received in a nocturnal attack. The Duke of Olmedo Well, you see me here, sire, a sufficient answer. The Marchioness (aside) He is rouged! Philip II. (to the duke) Where is your prisoner? The Duke of Olmedo (pointing to Fontanares) Yonder he stands. Fontanares (kneeling) And ready, to the great glory of God, to do wonders which shall add splendor to the reign of the king, my master. Philip II. Rise up and speak to me; what is this force miraculous which shall give to Spain the empire of the world? Fontanares It is a force invincible, sire. It is steam; for, when water has become expanded in steam, it demands a much more extensive area than that which it occupies in its natural form; and in order to take that space it would blow up mountains. By my invention this force is confined; the machine is provided with wheels, which beat the sea and propel a vessel as swiftly as the wind, so that tempests cannot resist its course. Voyages can be made in safety and so swiftly that there is no limit to speed excepting in the revolution of the wheels. Human life is lengthened every time a moment is economized. Sire, Christopher Columbus gave to you a world three thousand leagues across the ocean; I will bring one to you at the port of Cadiz, and you shall claim, with the assistance of God, the dominion of the sea. The Queen You do not seem to be astonished, sire? Philip II. Astonishment is involuntary flattery, and kings may never flatter. (To Fontanares) What do you ask of me? Fontanares That which Columbus asked, a ship and the presence of my king to witness the experiment. Philip II. You shall have all--the king, the realm of Spain--the whole world. They tell me that you love a maid of Barcelona. I am about to cross the Pyrenees, to visit my possessions, Roussillon and Perpignan; you shall receive your vessel at Barcelona. Fontanares In granting me this vessel, sire, you have done me justice; in giving it to me at Barcelona, you have bestowed a favor which, from a subject, makes me your slave.