# Deposit Your Money in a Forest Rather Than with a Notary explained — Les Misérables

> Chapter companion for Les Misérables by Victor Hugo.

## What happens

Jean Valjean retrieves the fortune he earned as Monsieur Madeleine and hid in the forest of Montfermeil, including the Bishop's candlesticks, and learns of Javert's apparent suicide.

## Themes in this chapter

### Redemption and Transformation

Jean Valjean's careful preservation of the Bishop's candlesticks symbolizes his ongoing moral transformation and the enduring influence of the Bishop's mercy.

### Suffering and Sacrifice

The hidden fortune represents years of labor and sacrifice, and the expenditure over ten years reflects Valjean's frugal life and hidden suffering.

## Character check-ins

### Jean Valjean

Retrieves his hidden fortune and the Bishop's candlesticks from the Blaru-bottom; learns of Javert's death.

### Javert

Reported drowned; his suicide is confirmed by a newspaper article.

### Boulatruelle

Previously seen Jean Valjean in the woods; later inherits the pickaxe left behind.

### Toussaint

Admires the Bishop's candlesticks placed on the chimneypiece.

### Monseigneur Bienvenu

His candlesticks are preserved by Jean Valjean and placed on display.

## Key lines

> The sum, six hundred and thirty thousand francs, all in bank-bills, was not very bulky, and was contained in a box; only, in order to preserve the box from dampness, he had placed it in a coffer filled with chestnut shavings.

Valjean hid 630,000 francs in banknotes inside a box, which he placed in a chest lined with chestnut shavings to protect it from moisture.

_Describes the careful concealment of Valjean's fortune._

> In the same coffer he had placed his other treasures, the Bishop’s candlesticks.

Alongside the money, Valjean kept the Bishop's candlesticks, his most cherished possessions.

_Highlights the symbolic importance of the candlesticks._

> The story had been told in his presence, and he had verified the fact in the Moniteur , how a police inspector named Javert had been found drowned under a boat belonging to some laundresses, between the Pont au Change and the Pont-Neuf, and that a writing left by this man, otherwise irreproachable and highly esteemed by his superiors, pointed to a fit of mental aberration and a suicide.

Valjean confirmed through the Moniteur that Inspector Javert had drowned himself, leaving a note indicating insanity.

_Reveals Valjean's relief and the official account of Javert's death._

## Links

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