I marvel that the touch of this strange child
Should thrill me with delight; if so it be,
How must the fond caresses of a son
Transport the father's soul who gave him being!
ATTENDANT. [Looking at them both.
Wonderful! Prodigious!
KING.
What excites your surprise, my good woman?
ATTENDANT.
I am astonished at the striking resemblance between the child and yourself; and, what is still more extraordinary, he seems to have taken to you kindly and submissively, though you are a stranger to him.
KING. [Fondling the CHILD.
If he be not the son of the great sage, of what family does he come, may I ask?