Notes

Monte-Cristo lives in a house on the Champs-Elysées. It is served by several servants and in particular by the faithful Bertuccio. Bertuccio shares a desire to take revenge against Villefort because it was Villefort who refused to prosecute the men who killed his brother. Bertuccio also reveals that 24 years ago, while following Villefort to Versailles (the city, not the castle), he saw that Madame de Norgonne* (now Danglars’s wife) had a child (Villefort’s illegitimate son) lying down.

To get his revenge, Bertuccio stabs Villefort with a knife and saves the baby, whom Villefort tried to kill to hide his infidelity. Villefort did not die, and Bertuccio decided to raise the child (Benedetto) with his dead brother’s wife. Soon after, Bertuccio sees Caderousse, who negotiates the wind of the diamond he was given by Dantes. Unhappy with the price of the diamond and full of greed, Caderousse kills his wife and the jeweler and flees with the silver and the diamond. Bertuccio is unfortunately arrested for this crime of murder, but he is released when they found Caderousse in Spain. Soon after all this, Bertuccio began to work for the Count of Monte Cristo and Dantes saves Benedetto from prison (Benedetto does many small crimes in his life). He gives the name Viscount Andrea Cavalcanti to Benedetto and presents it to society of Paris. He also saves Caderousse, but does not help him with a title. **

The day after his arrival in Paris, at five o'clock in the afternoon, the Count of Monte-Cristo asks his servant Ali to have his car ready to take him to the banker Danglars. Danglars presides over a meeting when he is told about the visit of the Count of Monte-Cristo. Hearing the Count’s name, he gets up.

– Gentlemen, he said, forgive me if I leave you like this; but imagine that the House of Thomson and French, of Rome, addresses me a certain Count of Monte Cristo, opening to him an unlimited credit. It must be a joke. However, I became curious and this morning I stopped by his house to meet him, but he was out. His house on the Champs-Elysées, which is his, I inquired, seemed quite suitable to me. I can’t wait to see our man.

On this note, Danglars leaves the room and passes into the living room where his visitor is waiting for him. Danglars greets the count of the head and gives him a sign to sit down.

'Monsieur le comte,' he said, 'I have received a letter from the House of Thomson and French, and to tell you the truth, it seems to me that I have misunderstood the meaning of it; that is why I came to your house this morning to ask you for some explanation.'

"What do you want to know, sir?"

"This letter gives the Count of Monte Cristo unlimited credit for my house.

'Well! Baron, what do you see in this?

'Nothing, sir, only the word unlimited.'

– What do you find strange about that word? I think it’s perfectly clear. Listening to you, sir, I get the impression that you are not prepared to meet my request.

– It’s not about that, sir, says Danglars. The only thing I want is for you to decide for yourself how much you’re going to get from me.

"But, sir," said Monte-Cristo, "if I have asked for unlimited credit, it is precisely because I do not know how much money I am going to need."

"Oh, sir," said Danglars, "you can ask for a million, and I won’t hesitate to satisfy you."

– A million? answers Monte-Cristo, and what will I do with a million? But I still have a million in my wallet. Mr. Danglars, if this is a problem for you, don’t worry. I have two more letters from Thomson and French, I’ll go find another banker. Danglars is getting pale.

'I think,' he said, 'that it is not necessary to go and find someone else and that we can agree.

'Perfect. Then let us fix, if we may, a general sum for the first year, six million, for example.

"Six million," said Danglars in a small voice, "very well, sir."

'If I need more,' says Monte-Cristo, 'we’ll put more, we’ll see...

First of all, please send me five hundred thousand francs tomorrow.

"The money will be with you tomorrow at ten o'clock, sir," replied Danglars. "Do you want gold, bank notes, or money?"

"Gold and bills in half, please. And the count rises and leaves the room."