...assuming that Colfax had decided on the double cross plan from the beginning, why does he get Charleston to bring the Swede along to the gang's initial meeting? If Charleston had chosen to take part in the robbery, wouldn't that have made Colfax's set-up much harder to realize? Would the Swede have readily believed that his prison buddy would have been a party to cutting him out of the deal?
shareThat's a good question.
Well, Charleston is an old, jaded, risk-adverse crook so his wimping out is very likely and anticipated by Colfax. If he has chosen to be part of the robbery, I think Colfax would have figured out how to "sever" him from the Swede.
I also don't think Colfax has any choice because the Swede has been in prison for 3 years and his most recent "link" with the criminal life is Charleston so the best way to get to the Swede is through his prison mate.
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1. Please indicate SPOILERs in the title of anything giving away crucial plot details.
2. Good point about what would have happened if Charleston hadn't bowed out. But the Swede is brought in because Colfax knows his attraction to Kitty, and can use Kitty as a key element in the double cross.
Isn't it possible that the idea for Colfax's double cross occurred to him later, like perhaps once he saw how protective the Swede was of Kitty?
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