The Count of Monte Cristo

Caderousse’s Drunken Opposition to Harming Dantès

Throughout the conversation, Caderousse serves as an obstacle to the conspiracy, his remaining faculties repeatedly protesting against harming Dantès. He declares Dantès to be a good fellow and reminds them that Dantès offered to share his money with him that morning, as Caderousse had shared his own with Dantès. Despite becoming increasingly drunk, Caderousse insists on drinking to Dantès’s health and threatens to prevent any harm to his friend. Even as his reason fades, he instinctively comprehends the “infamous shame” of the planned betrayal and reaches for the incriminating letter, though Danglars snatches it away.

The Plan to Falsely Denounce Dantès as a Bonapartist Agent

Danglars devises an elaborate scheme to have Dantès arrested on false charges of Bonapartism. He explains that after Dantès’s recent voyage, during which he touched at the Island of Elba, someone could denounce him to the king’s attorney as an agent of Murat. This accusation would be serious enough to warrant imprisonment without requiring any actual killing. Danglars emphasizes that the scheme allows for revenge that “will not revert to yourself,” meaning the conspirators can avoid direct consequences. The plan involves accusing Dantès of carrying letters from Murat to the Bonapartist committee in Paris, with the implication that such letters would be found either on his person, at his father’s home, or in his cabin aboard the Pharaon.

Danglars Writes the Disguised Denunciation Letter

To ensure the accusation cannot be traced back to the conspirators, Danglars proposes writing the letter with his left hand and in a reversed style totally unlike his normal handwriting. He demonstrates this technique by composing the denunciation, which he then hands to Fernand to read silently. The letter falsely accuses Edmond Dantès of being “intrusted by Murat with a letter for the usurper, and by the usurper with a letter for the Bonapartist committee in Paris.” Danglars further suggests folding the letter and addressing it to the king’s attorney to complete the scheme. He fills Caderousse’s glass with more wine, successfully clouding the tailor’s remaining judgment and preventing further interference.