At the beginning of the scene, the Prince gushes over his good fortune of unexpectedly meeting the Princess, who he will soon wed. Prince: ‘Tis so. For I have traveled the world, searched near and far, high and low, and every point in-between to find my princess. Painfully without success. Until yesterday evening. When fate brought my beloved here to the Kingdom of Parsnipia.

At a later point, the Queen, his mother, does something to upset the Princess. Prince: Mother! See what you have done! You dismay the Princess! (To Princess) Courage, my love. I beseech you!

Later, he’s shocked and in disbelief when the Milkmaid makes a startling discovery in a palace bed. Prince: Good Lord! A cracker crumb! … Precisely where she said.