Walking and looking about; then addressing someone off the stage
.] Why, Priyamvadá, for whose use are you carrying that ointment of Usíra-root and those lotus leaves with fibres attached to them? [
Listening for her answer
.] What say you?—that Śakoontalá is suffering from fever produced by exposure to the sun, and that this ointment is to cool her burning frame? Nurse her with care, then, Priyamvadá, for she is cherished by our reverend Superior as the very breath of his nostrils. I, for my part, will contrive that soothing waters, hallowed in the sacrifice, be administered to her by the hands of Gautamí.
[Exit.
ACT THIRD
Scene.—The Sacred Grove
Enter King Dushyanta, with the air of one in love.