Philip turned to the English Ambassador.
"It is a pity," he said, "that my sister of England cannot be here with us on such a night as this.

We saw no such sights in London in my day, my lord." "There have been changes since then, Sire," answered the Ambassador.
"The Queen is very much inclined to magnificence and to great entertainments, and does not hesitate to dance herself, being of a very vital and pleasant temper.

Nevertheless, your Majesty's court is by far the most splendid in the world." "There you are right, my lord!" exclaimed the King.

"And for that matter, we have beauty also, such as is found nowhere else." The Princess of Eboli was close by, waiting for him to speak to her, and his eyes fixed themselves upon her face with a sort of cold and snakelike admiration, to which she was well accustomed, but which even now made her nervous.

The Ambassador was not slow to take up the cue of flattery, for Englishmen still knew how to flatter in Elizabeth's day.
"The inheritance of universal conquest," he said, bowing and smiling to the Princess.