Villefort’s Harsh Judicial Stance
When a young lady, daughter of the Comte de Salvieux, begs Villefort to arrange a famous trial for her entertainment, he responds with chilling enthusiasm. He describes the law court as a drama of life, where the pale, agitated prisoner is led away to prison and the executioner rather than supping peacefully at home. He boasts of having already pronounced five or six death sentences against political conspirators, acknowledges that daggers may await him in return, and declares it his pride to see the accused pale and beaten out of composure by his eloquence. The company praises his oratory, and Renée grows increasingly terrified.
Renée’s Plea for Mercy
Renée pleads with Villefort, begging him always to show mercy to those she intercedes for. The marquise silences her daughter, telling her to attend to her doves, lap-dogs, and embroidery rather than meddle in matters she does not understand, citing the Latin proverb “Cedant arma togae” (let arms yield to the toga). Villefort reassures Renée that they will always consult upon their verdicts. The marquis expresses hope that Villefort will prove the moral and political physician of the province, an achievement that would efface the memory of his father’s conduct. Villefort hopes that his father has atoned for past errors and become an even better royalist than himself.
Royal Approval of Villefort’s Marriage
The Comte de Salvieux recounts that he had spoken of Villefort at the Tuileries to the king’s principal chamberlain, justifying the union between the son of a Girondin and the daughter of an officer of the Duc de Condé as a sound means of reconciling political differences. The king himself, having overheard, approved the match warmly, praising Villefort as a young man of great judgment and discretion destined to make a figure in his profession. His majesty expressed pleasure at the proposed marriage and declared he would have recommended it himself had the Marquis de Saint-Méran not already sought royal consent.
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