The Return Of The Shadow Part 26

They were so deep in the doings of the s.h.i.+re that they did not notice the arrival of another hobbit. For several minutes he stood by them, looking at them with a smile. Suddenly they looked up. 'Ah, there you are, Peregrin!' said Bilbo. 'Trotter!' said Frodo.

'Both right! ' laughed Trotter.

'Well, that is tiresome of Gandalf! ' exclaimed Frodo. 'I knew you reminded me of some one, and he laughed at me.(5) Of course, you remind me of yourself, and of Folco, and of all the Tooks. You came once to Buckland when I was very small, but I never quite forgot it, because you talked to Old Rory about lands outside the s.h.i.+re, and about Bilbo who you were not allowed to see. I have wondered what became of you. But I was puzzled by your shoes. Why do you wear them? '

'I shall not tell you the reason now,' said Trotter quietly.

'No, Frodo, don't ask that yet,' said Bilbo, looking rather unhappy. 'Come on, Perry! I want your help. This song of mine has got to be finished this evening.'

At this point, while in the middle of writing the second text, my father wrote across it: '?? Trotter had better not be a hobbit - but a Ranger, remainder of Western Men, as originally planned.' Of course, looking back over the texts from Trotter's first appearance, there is no possibility that my father had 'originally planned' to make Trotter anything but a hobbit. The first suggestion that he might not be appears in Queries and Alterations (p. 223, $6). But by 'originally planned' my father may well have been thinking no further back than to the drafts for the opening of the 'Bree' chapter in the third phase (p. 331), where the idea that the Rangers were Men, 'the last remnant of the kingly people from beyond the Seas', first emerged, though this was not taken up in the chapter as actually written at that time. It may be that he had felt for some time that Trotter should not be a hobbit, but (as he said of the name 'Bingo', p. 221) he was now too used to the idea to change it. Even now, he did not follow up his directive, and Trotter remains Peregrin Boffin.

As in FR, Frodo sits alone and falls asleep during the music; but the song Earendil was a mariner is not present (though the word '? Messenger' written at the top of the page is a hint of it).(6) He woke to the sound of ringing laughter. There was no longer any music, but on the edge of his waking sense was the echo of a voice that had just stopped singing. He looked, and saw that Bilbo was seated on his stool, set now near to the middle fire, in the centre of a circle of listeners.

'Come now, tell us, Bilbo!' said one of the Elves, 'which is the line which Peregrin put in?'

'No! ' laughed Bilbo. 'I leave you to guess - you pride yourselves on your judgement of words.'

'But it is difficult to discriminate between two hobbits,' they laughed.

'Nonsense!' said Bilbo. 'But I won't argue the matter. I'm sleepy, after so much sound and song!' He got up and bowed and came back beside Frodo.

'Well, that's that,' he said. 'It went off better than I expected. As a matter of fact, quite a lot of it was Peregrin's.'

'I am sorry I did not hear it,' said Frodo. 'I heard the Elves laughing as I woke up.'

'Never mind,' said Bilbo. 'You'll hear it again, very likely. Just a lot of nonsense, anyway. But it is difficult to keep awake here, until you get used to it - not that hobbits ever acquire the Elves' appet.i.te for song and poetry and tales of all sorts. They will be going on for a long while yet.

The words of the chant to Elbereth (identical in both texts) are different from the form in FR: Elbereth Gilthoniel sir evrin pennar oriel dir avos-eithen miriel bel daurion sel aurinon pennaros evrin eriol.

The sweet syllables fell like clear jewels of mingled word and sound, and he halted for a moment looking back.

'That is the opening of the chant to Elbereth,' said Bilbo. 'They will sing that and other songs of the Blessed Realm many times tonight.'

Bilbo led Frodo back to his upper room. There they sat for some while, looking at the bright stars through the window, and talking softly. They spoke no longer of the small and happy news of the s.h.i.+re far away, but of the Elves, and of the wide world, and its perils, and of the burden and mystery of the Ring.

When Sam came to the door (at the end of the chapter in FR) Bilbo said: 'Quite right, Sam! Though I never expected to live long enough to be ordered about by Ham Gamgee's boy. Bless me, I am near 150 and old enough to be your great-grandfather.'

'No sir, and I never expected to be doing it.'

'It is Gandalf's fault, said Frodo. 'He chose Sam to be my companion in adventure, and Sam takes his task seriously.'

This was replaced at the time of writing by the ending in FR. Bilbo was in fact 128.

Both texts continue on briefly into what became 'The Council of Elrond' in FR (the t.i.tle that my father had given to the 'third phase' text Chapter XII, p. 362, afterwards called 'Many Meetings', when he antic.i.p.ated that it would contain the Council as well as the 'many meetings' that preceded it).

Frodo awoke early next day, feeling refreshed and well. Sam brought him breakfast, and would not allow him to get up till he had eaten it. Then Bilbo and Gandalf carne and talked for a while. Suddenly a single bell rang out. [All the remainder of the text from this point was struck out; see p. 399.]

'Bless me! ' said Gandalf. 'The council is in half an hour. That is the warning. I must be off. Bilbo will bring you to the place, as soon as you are ready. Sam had better come with you.'

The council was held in a high glade among the trees on the valley-side far above the house. A falling stream ran at the side of : the meeting place, and with the trickling and bubbling of the water was mingled the sound of many birds. There were twelve seats of carved stone in a wide circle; and behind them many other :- smaller seats of wood. The ground was strewn with many red and yellow leaves, but the trees above were still clothed with fading green; a clear sky of pale blue hung high above, filled with the light of morning.

When Bilbo, Frodo and Sam arrived Elrond was already seated, and beside him, as at the feast, were Gandalf and Glorfindel. Gloin was there also with [an attendant >] a younger dwarf, whom Frodo later discovered was Burin son of Balin.(7) A strange elf, a messenger from the king of the Wood-elves... Eastern Mirkwood was seated beside Burin.(8) Trotter (as Frodo continued to call him instead of Peregrin or the Elvish equivalent Ethelion) was there, and all the rest of the hobbit party, Merry, Folco, and Odo. There were besides three other counsellors attendant on Elrond, one an Elf named Erestor, and two other kinsmen of Elrond, of that half-elvish folk whom the Elves named the children of Luthien.(9) And seated alone and silent was a Man of n.o.ble face, but dark and sad.

'This is Boromir,' said Elrond. 'He arrived only yesterday, in the evening. He comes from far away in the South, and his tidings may be of use to us.'

It would take long to tell of all that was spoken in that council under the fair trees of Rivendell. The sun climbed to noon and was turning westward before all the tidings were recounted. Then Elves brought food and drink for the company. The sun had fallen low and its slanting light was red in the valley before an end was made of the debate and they rose and returned down the long path to the house.

Both texts end at this point. At the end of the second my father wrote: '(The Council must be behind closed doors. Frodo invited to presence of Elrond. Tidings of the world. They decide Ring must be destroyed.)'

While Trotter is Peregrin Boffin, and the long-awaited 'recognition' between Trotter and Frodo takes place, Odo is still present: but in the papers dated August 1939, where the identification of Trotter with Peregrin Boffin first appears, Odo appears to be emphatically abandoned. Once again, Odo seems to have proved unsinkable, even though, as discussed on p. 375, Folco had effectively a.s.sumed his character. - Of course, these 'Rivendell' ma.n.u.scripts may very well belong to the same time, and a step-by-step reconstruction cannot be expected. In any case, the removal of Odo and (much more) the ident.i.ty of Trotter were questions long revolved, and such notes as 'Trotter had better not be a hobbit' or 'Odo must be cut out' are rather the traces of a long debate than a series of clear-cut, successive decisions.

The text just given was continued in a further ma.n.u.script of different form, in which appears the first complete version of the Council of Elrond; but before going on to this, two sides of a single isolated page seem undoubtedly to represent my father's first expressed ideas for the Council. It was written in pencil so faint and rapid that it would be largely illegible had my father not gone over it in ink; and he himself could not be sure in places of what he had written, but had to make guesses at words, marking them with queries. In representing this extraordinarily interesting text I give these guessed words of his in italic within brackets. At the head of the page is an isolated direction that the 'Weathertop business' must be 'simplified'. It would be interesting to know what he had in mind: the only 'complication' that was, in the event, removed was the disappearance of Odo, and it may be that this is what he was referring to. It is clear from the first line of this text that the 'third phase' story of Odo was present.

Ring Wraiths. They will get (no P new?) horses (in time ?). Odo's capturing explained.

Ring offered to Elrond. He refuses. 'It is a peril to all possessors: more to myself than all others. It is fate that the hobbits should rid the world of it.'

'What will then become of the other rings?' 'They will lose their power. But we must sacrifice that power in order to destroy the Lord. As long as anyone in the world holds the Ruling Ring there is a chance for him to get it back again. Two things can be done. We can send it West, or we can destroy it. If we had sent it West long ago that would have been well enough. But now the power of the Lord is grown too great, and he is fully awake. It would be too perilous - and his war would come over the s.h.i.+re and destroy the Havens.'(10) [In the margin is written Radagast.] They decide that the Ring must be taken to the Fiery Mountain. How? - it can hardly be reached except by pa.s.sing over the borders of the Land of Mordor. Bilbo? No - 'It would kill me now. My years are stretched, and I shall live some time yet. But I have no longer strength for the Ring.' Frodo volunteers to go. Who shall go with him? Gandalf. Trotter. Sam. Odo. Folco. Merry. (7) Glorfindel and Frar [written beneath: Burin] son of Balin. South along mountains. Over the Red Pa.s.s down the Red way to the Great River. 'Beware!' said Gandalf 'of the Giant Treebeard, who haunts the Forest between the River and the South Mts.' Fangorn? After a time of rest they set out. Bilbo bids farewell; gives him Sting and his armour. The others are armed. Snow storm.

The reverse of the page, while not continuous with the first side, was certainly written at the same time, and is again in ink over faint pencil: First he was asked to give as complete an account of the journey as possible. The story of their dealings with Tom Bombadil seemed to interest Elrond and Gandalf most. Much that was said was now known already to Frodo. Gandalf spoke long, making clear to all the history of the Ring, and the reason why the Dark Lord so greatly desired it. 'For not only does he desire to discover and control the lost rings, those of the Elves and dwarves - but without the Ring he is still shorn of much power. He put into that Ring much of his own power, and without it is weaker than of old [and obliged to lean more on servants].(11) Of old he could guess or half see what were the hidden purposes of the Elflords, but now he is blind as far as they are concerned. He cannot make rings until he has regained the master ring. And also his mind is moved by revenge and hatred of the Elves and Men that (disputed him?). 'Now is the time for true speaking. Tell me, Elrond, if the Three Rings still are? And tell me, Gloin, if you know it, whether any of the Seven remain?' 'Yes, the Three still are,' said Elrond, 'and it would be ill indeed if Sauron should discover where they be, or have power over their rulers; for then perhaps his shadow would stretch even to the Blessed Realm.'

'Yes! Some of the Seven remain,' said Gloin. 'I do not know whether I have the right to reveal this, for Dain did not give me orders concerning it. But Thrain of old had one that descended from his sires. We do not now know where it is. We think it was taken from him, ere you found him in the dungeons long ago [or maybe it was lost in Moria].(12) Yet of late we have received secret messages from Mordor demanding all such rings as we have or know of. But there are others still in our power. Dain has one - and on that his fortune is founded: his age, his wealth, and (....... ?) future. Yet of late we have received secret messages from Mordor bidding us yield up the rings to the Master, and threatening us and all our allies of Dale with war.(13) It is on this account that I am now come to Rivendell. For the messages have asked often concerning one Bilbo, and offered us peace if we would obtain from him (willing or unwilling) his ring. That they said they would accept in lieu of all. I now understand why. But our hearts are troubled, for we guess that King Brand's heart is afraid, and that the Dark Lord will (move?) eastern men to some evil. Already there is war upon the (southern?) borders. And (of course that matter whereof?) I seek counsel, the disappearance of Balin and his people, is now (revealed?) as part of the same evil.'

Boromir the (lord? Land?) of Ond. These men are besieged by wild men out of the East. They send to the (F..... ?) of Balin of Moria. He promised a.s.sistance.

Here this text ends. Against the pa.s.sage beginning '"Yes! Some of the Seven remain," said Gloin' my father wrote: 'No! This won't do - otherwise the dwarves would have been more suspicious of Bilbo.' In this text, again, there is an apparent contradiction of the 'August 1939 papers: Bilbo gives his mailcoat to Frodo at Rivendell, and had therefore taken it with him when he left Bag End - a story that first appears under the date August 1939' (p. 371, $2), whereas it is also proposed there that the 'Odo-story' be abandoned - a story that is expressly present here. - The Fellows.h.i.+p of the Ring is to consist of five 's.h.i.+re hobbits', Frodo, Sam, Merry, Folco, and Odo, with Trotter, Gandalf, Glorfindel, and the dwarf Frar (> Burin).

Whatever the relative age of these texts, and they can scarcely be far apart, there have now appeared the younger Dwarf, Balin's son, who had come with Gloin - precursor of Gimli Gloin's son in LR; the Elf from Mirkwood, precursor of Legolas; Erestor, counsellor of Elrond; two kinsmen of Elrond; and Boromir - so named unhesitatingly from the start (14) - from the Land of Ond far in the South. The Land of Ond is named in an outline dated August 1939 (p. 381). Treebeard is no longer placed in 'the Forest of Neldoreth' (p. 384), but in 'the Forest between the [Great] River and the South Mountains' - the first mention of the mountains that would afterwards be Ered Nimrais, the White Mountains; and Gandalf warns against him (as well he might, having been his captive, 'in Fangorn', p. 363).

The pa.s.sage concerning the Three Rings of the Elves and the Seven Rings of the Dwarves is to be compared with a pa.s.sage in the third phase version of 'Ancient History', p. 320, where Gandalf says that he does not know what has become of 'the Three Rings of Earth, Sea, and Sky', but believes that 'they have long been carried far over the Great Sea' - which is to be a.s.sociated no doubt with Elrond's words in the present text: 'it would be ill indeed if Sauron should discover where they be, or have power over their rulers; for then perhaps his shadow would stretch even to the Blessed Realm.' In the same pa.s.sage of 'Ancient History' Gandalf says that 'the foundation of each of the Seven h.o.a.rds of the dwarves of old was a golden ring', and that it is said that all the Seven Rings perished in the fire of the dragons: 'Yet that account, maybe, is not wholly true.' With the menacing messages to King Dain out of Mordor here cf. Queries and Alterations (p. 226, $ 11 ): 'The dwarves might have received threatening messages from Mordor - for the Lord suspected that the One Ring was in their h.o.a.rds.' In the same note it is said that 'after a time no word was heard of them [Balin and his companions]. Dain feared the Dark Lord'; so also Gloin says here that 'the disappearance of Balin and his people is now revealed as part of the same evil.' At this time the story was that Sauron demanded the return of the Rings which the Dwarves still possessed - or Bilbo's Ring 'in lieu of all'; in FR (p. 254) they were offered the return of three of the ancient Rings of the Dwarves if they could obtain Bilbo's Ring.

The reference to Thrain, father of Thorin Oakens.h.i.+eld, in the dungeons of the Necromancer, where Gandalf found him, goes back to The Hobbit (Chapter I); but the story emerges here that he possessed one of the Rings of the Dwarves, and that it was taken from him after his capture (see FR pp. 281 - 2, and LR Appendix A III, pp. 353 - 4, 357 - 8).

The 'Many Meetings' text (extant in two forms) given on pp. 391 ff. continued into the beginning of an account of the Council of Elrond, held in the open in a glade above the house; but from the words '"Bless me!" said Gandalf. "The council is in half an hour"' (p. 395) my father struck it through, and added the note at the end saying that the Council must be held 'behind closed doors' (p. 396). A new ma.n.u.script now begins, taking up at '"Bless me!" said Gandalf', and in this is found the first complete narrative of the deliberations of the Council. This was originally paginated 'XII' with page-numbers consecutive from 'Suddenly a single bell rang out' (p. 395). As noticed before, my father at this stage saw all the meetings and discussions at Rivendell as const.i.tuting a single chapter, and had given the number and t.i.tle 'XII. The Council of Elrond' to the third phase chapter which begins with Frodo waking up at Rivendell (p. 362).

The ma.n.u.script is partly in ink and partly in pencil, but though very rough is legible throughout. Being in the first stage of composition it is full of alterations, phrases or whole pa.s.sages constantly rewritten in the act of composition; and many other corrections, made to pa.s.sages which at the time of writing had been allowed to stand, are probably pretty well contemporary. In general I give the text in its final form, but with more important changes indicated.

'Bless me!' said Gandalf. 'That is the warning bell for the council. We had better make our way there at once.'

Bilbo and Frodo (and Sam [added: uninvited]) followed him down many stairs and pa.s.sages towards the western wing of the house, until they came to the porch where Frodo had found his friends the evening before. But now the light of a clear autumn morning was glowing in the valley. The sky was high and cool above the hill-tops; and in the bright air below a few golden leaves were fluttering from the trees. The noise of bubbling waters came up from the foaming river-bed. Birds were singing and a wholesome peace lay on the land, and to Frodo his dangerous flight and the rumours of the dark shadow growing in the world outside seemed now only like memories of a troubled dream.

But the faces that were turned to meet him were grave.(15) Elrond was there and several others were already seated about him in silence. Frodo saw Glorfindel and Gloin, and Trotter (sitting in a corner).

Elrond welcomed Frodo and drew him to a seat at his knee and presented him to the company, saying: 'Here my friends is the hobbit who by fortune and courage has brought the Ring to Rivendell. This is Frodo son of Drogo.' He then pointed out and named those whom Frodo had not seen before. There was a younger dwarf at Gloin's side, [Burin the son of Balin >] his son Gimli.(16) There were three counsellors of Elrond's own household: Erestor his kinsman (a man of the same half-elvish folk known as the children of Luthien), (17) and beside him two elflords of Rivendell. There was a strange elf clad in green and brown, Galdor, a messenger from the King of the Wood-elves in Eastern Mirkwood.(18) And seated a little apart was a tall man of n.o.ble face, but dark and sad.

'Here,' said Elrond, turning to Gandalf, 'is Boromir from the Land of Ond, far in the South. He arrived in the night, and brings tidings that must be considered.'

It would take long to tell of all the things that were spoken in that council. Many of them were known already to Frodo. Gandalf spoke long, making clear to those who did not already know the tale in full the ancient history of the Ring, and the reasons why the Dark Lord so greatly desired it. Bilbo then gave an account of the finding of the Ring in the cave of the Misty Mountains, and Trotter described his search for Gollum that he had made with Gandalf's help, and told of his perilous adventures in Mordor. Thus it was that Frodo learned how Trotter had tracked Gollum as he wandered southwards, through Fangorn Forest, and past the Dead Marshes,(19) until he had himself been caught and imprisoned by the Dark Lord. 'Ever since I have worn shoes,' said Trotter with a shudder, and though he said no more Frodo knew that he had been tortured and his feet hurt in some way. But he had been rescued by Gandalf and saved from death.(20) In this way the tale was brought slowly down to the spring morning when Gandalf had revealed the history of the Ring to Frodo. Then Frodo was summoned to take up the tale, and he gave a full account of all his adventures from the moment of his flight from Hobbiton. Step by step they questioned him, and every detail that he could tell concerning the Black Riders was examined.(21) Elrond was also deeply interested in the events in the Old Forest and on the Barrow-downs. 'The Barrow-wights I knew of,' he said, 'for they are closely akin to the Riders;(22) and I marvel at your escape from them. But never before have I heard tell of this strange Bombadil. I would like to know more of him. Did you know of him, Gandalf?'

'Yes,' answered the wizard. 'And I sought him out at once, as soon as I found that the hobbits had disappeared from Buckland. When I had chased the Riders from Crickhollow I turned back to visit him. I daresay he would have kept the travellers longer in his home, if he had known that I was near. But I am not sure of it: he is a strange creature, and follows his own counsels, which few can fathom.'(23) 'Could we not even now send messages to him and obtain his help?' asked Erestor. 'It seems that he has a power even over the Ring.'

'That is not quite the way of it,' said Gandalf. 'The Ring has no power over him or for him: it can neither harm nor serve him: he is his own master. But he has no power over it, and he cannot alter the Ring itself, not break its power over others. And I think that the mastery of Tom Bombadil is seen only on his own ground - from which he has never stepped within my memory.'(24) 'But on his own ground nothing seems to dismay him,' said Erestor. 'Would he not perhaps take the Ring and keep it there for ever harmless?'

'He would, perhaps, if all the free folk of the world begged him to do so,' said Gandalf. 'But he would not do so willingly. For it would only postpone the evil day. In time the Lord of the Ring would find out its hiding-place, and in the end he would come in person.(25) I doubt whether Tom Bombadil, even on his own ground, could withstand that power; but I am sure that we should not leave him to face it. Besides, he lives too far away and the Ring has come from his land only at great hazard. It would have to pa.s.s through greater danger to return. If the Ring is to be hidden - surely it is here in Rivendell that it should be kept: if Elrond has might to withstand the coming of Sauron in all his power?'

'I have not,' said Elrond.

'In that case,' said Erestor,(26) 'there are but two things for us to attempt: we may send the Ring West over the Sea, or we may try to destroy it. If the Ring had gone to the West long ago that would have perhaps been well. But now the power of the Lord is grown great again, and he is awake, and he knows where the Ring is. The journey to the Havens would be fraught with the greatest peril. On the other hand we cannot by our own skill or strength destroy the Ring; and the journey to the Fiery Mountain would seem still more perilous, leading as it does towards the stronghold of the Enemy. Who can read this riddle for us?'

'None here can do so,' said Elrond gravely.(27) 'None can foretell which road leads to safety, if that is what you mean. But I can choose which road it is right to take, as it seems to me - and indeed the choice is clear. The Ring must be sent to the Fire. The peril is greater on the western road; for my heart tells me that is the road which Sauron will expect us to take when he hears what has befallen. And if we take it he will pursue us swiftly and surely, since we must make for the Havens beyond the Towers. Those he would certainly destroy, even if he found us not, and there would be thereafter no way of escape for the Elves from the darkening world.'

'And the s.h.i.+re too would be destroyed,' said Trotter in a low voice, looking towards Bilbo and Frodo.

'But on the other road,' said Elrond, 'with speed and skill the travellers might go far unmarked. I do not say there is great hope in the quest; but only in this way could any lasting good be achieved. In the Ring is hidden much of the ancient power of Sauron. Even though he does not hold it that power still lives and works for him and towards him. As long as the Ring lives on land or sea he will not be overcome. While the Ring lasts he will grow, and have hope, and the fear lest the Ring come into his hand again will ever weigh on the world. War will never cease while that fear lives, and all Men will be turned to him.'

'I do not understand this,' said Boromir. 'Why should the Elves and their friends not use the Great Ring to defeat Sauron? And I say that all men will not join him: the men of Ond will never submit.'

'Never is a long word, O Boromir,' said Elrond. 'The men of Ond are valiant and still faithful amid a host of foes; but valour alone cannot withstand Sauron for ever. Many of his servants are as valiant. But as for the Ruling Ring - it belongs to Sauron and is filled with his spirit. Its might is too great for those of lesser strength, as Bilbo and Frodo have found, and in the end it must lead them captive to him if they keep it. For those who have power of their own, its danger is far greater. With it they might perchance overthrow the Dark Lord, but they would set themselves in his throne. Then they would become as evil as he, or worse. For nothing is evil in the beginning. Even Sauron was not so. I dare not take the Ring to wield it.'

'Nor I,' said Gandalf.

'But is it not true, as I have heard said, O Elrond,' said Boromir, 'that the Elves keep yet and wield Three Rings, and yet these too came from Sauron in the ancient days? And the dwarves, too, had rings, it is said. Tell me, Gloin, if you know it, whether any of the Seven Rings remain?'

'I do not know,' said Gloin. 'It was said in secret that Thrain (father of Thror father of Thorin (28) who fell in battle) possessed one that had descended from his sires. Some said it was the last. But where it is no dwarf now knows. We think maybe it was taken from him, ere Gandalf found him in the dungeons of Mordor long ago (29) - or maybe it was lost in Moria. Yet of late we have received secret messages from Mordor offering us rings again. It was partly on this account that I came to Rivendell; for the messages asked concerning one Bilbo, and commanded us to obtain from him (willing or unwilling) the ring that he possessed. For this ring we were offered [seven >] three such as our fathers had of old. Even for news of where he might be found we were offered friends.h.i.+p for ever and great wealth.(30) Our hearts are troubled, for we perceive that King Brand in Dale is afraid, and if we do not answer Sauron will move other men to evil against him. Already there are threats of war upon the south.'

'It would seem that the Seven Rings are lost or have returned to their Lord,' said Boromir. 'What of the Three?'

'The Three Rings remain still,' said Elrond. 'They have conferred great power on the Elves, but they have never yet availed them in their strife with Sauron. For they came from Sauron himself, and can give no skill or knowledge that he did not already possess at their making. And to each race the rings of the Lord bring such powers as each desires and is capable of wielding. The Elves desired not strength or domination or riches, but subtlety of craft and lore, and knowledge of the secrets of the world's being. These things they have gained, yet with sorrow. But they will turn to evil if Sauron regains the Ruling Ring; for then all that the Elves have devised or learned with the power of the rings will become his, as was his purpose.'

Against this pa.s.sage concerning the Three Rings of the Elves my father wrote later; 'Elfrings made by Elves for themselves. The 7 and 9 were made by Sauron - to cheat men and dwarves. They originally accepted them because they believed they were elfrings.' And he also wrote, separately but against the same pa.s.sage: 'Alter this: make the Elfrings their own and Sauron's made in answer.' This is the first appearance of this central idea concerning the origin and nature of the Rings; but since it does not emerge in actual narrative until considerably later these notes cannot be contemporary with the text. - In FR it is Gloin, not Boromir, who raises the question of the Three Rings of the Elves; but he also, like Boromir in the present text, a.s.serts that they were made by the Dark Lord. Elrond corrects Gloin's error; yet earlier in the Council (FR p. 255) Elrond has expressly said that Celebrimbor made the Three, and that Sauron forged the One in secret to be their master. Gloin's a.s.sertion (FR p.282) is thus not appropriate, and is probably an echo of my father's original conception of the Rings. The text continues: 'What then would happen, if the Ruling Ring were destroyed?' asked Boromir.

'The Elves would not lose what they have already won,'

answered Elrond; 'but the Three Rings would lose all power thereafter.'

'Yet that loss,' said Glorfindel, 'all Elves would gladly suffer, if by it the power of Sauron might be broken.'

'Thus we return again to the point whence we started,' said Erestor. 'The Ring should be destroyed; but we cannot destroy it, save by the perilous journey to the Fire. What strength or cunning have we for that task?'

'In this task it is plain that great power will not avail,' said Elrond. 'It must be attempted by the weak. Such is the way of things. In this great matter fate seems already to have pointed the way for us.'

'Very well, very well, Master Elrond!' said Bilbo suddenly.(31) 'Say no more! It is plain at least what you are pointing at. Bilbo the hobbit started this affair, and Bilbo had better finish it, or himself. I was very comfortable here, and getting on with my book. If you want to know, I am just writing an ending for it. I had thought of putting "and he lived happily ever afterward to the end of his days": which is a good ending, and none the worse for having been used before. Now I shall have to alter that - it does not look like being true, and anyway there will have to be several more chapters, even if I don't write them myself. It is a frightful nuisance! When ought I to start? '

Elrond smiled, and Gandalf laughed loudly. 'Of course,' said the wizard, 'if you had really started the affair, my dear Bilbo, you would be expected to finish it. But starting is a strong word. I have often tried to suggest to you that you only came in (accidentally, as you might say) in the middle of a long story, that was not made up for your sake only. That is, of course, true enough of all heroes and all adventures, but never mind that now. As for you, if you want my opinion once more, I should say that your part is finished - except as a recorder. Finish your book and leave the ending! But get ready to write a sequel, when they come back.'

Bilbo laughed in his turn. 'I have never known you to give pleasant advice before, Gandalf,' he said, 'or to tell me to do what I really wanted to do. Since all your unpleasant advice has usually been good, I wonder if this is not bad. Yet it is true that my years are stretched and getting thin, and I do not think I have strength for the Ring. But tell me: who do you mean by "they"?'

'The adventurers who are sent with the Ring.'

'Exactly, and who are they to be? That seems to me precisely what this council now has to decide.'

There was a long silence. Frodo glanced round at all the faces, but no one looked at him - except Sam; in whose eyes there was a strange mixture of hope and fear. All the others sat as if in deep thought with their eyes closed or upon the ground. A great dread fell on Frodo, and he felt an overmastering longing to remain at peace by Bilbo's side in Rivendell.

These words stand at the foot of a page. The next page, beginning 'At last with an effort he spoke', continues only a brief way, and was replaced by another beginning with the same words. I give both forms.

At last with an effort he spoke. 'If this task is fated to fall to the weak,' he said, 'I will attempt it. But I shall need the help of the strong and the wise.'

'I think, Frodo,' said Elrond, looking keenly at him, 'that this task is appointed for you. But it is very well that you should offer yourself unbidden. All the help that we can contrive shall be yours.'

'But you won't send him alone, surely, master!' cried Sam.

'No indeed,' said Elrond, turning to him. 'You at least shall go - since you are here although I do not think you were summoned. It seems difficult to separate you from your master Frodo.'

Sam subsided, but whispered to Frodo: 'How far is this Mountain? A nice pickle we have landed ourselves in, Mr. Frodo!'(32) 'Taking care of hobbits is not a task that everyone would like,' said Gandalf, 'but I am used to it. I suggest Frodo and his Sam, Merry, Faramond, and myself. That is five. And Glorfindel, if he will come and lend us the wisdom of the Elves: we shall need it. That is six.'

'And Trotter!' said Peregrin from the corner. 'That is seven, and a fitting number. The Ring-bearer will have good company.'

Here this version of the pa.s.sage ends. Pencilled beneath is an unfinished sentence: 'The choice is good,' said Elrond. 'Though Other very rough pencillings read: 'Alter this. Hobbits only, including Trotter. Gandalf as [?guide] in early stages. Gandalf says he will go all way? No Glorfindel.' And below these notes, the single isolated name Boromir. - On the back of this page is a remarkable sketch of events to come; for this see p. 410.

The replacement page treats the selection of the Company quite differently: At last with an effort he spoke. 'I will take the Ring,' he said. 'Though I don't know the way.'

Elrond looked keenly at him. 'If I understand all the tale that I have heard,' he said, 'I think that this task is appointed for you, Frodo, and that if you do not find the way, no other will.'

'But you won't send him off alone surely, master!' cried Sam, unable to contain himself.

'No indeed!' said Elrond, turning towards him with a smile. 'You at least shall go with him, since it is hardly possible to separate you from him - even when he is summoned to a secret council and you are not.'

Sam subsided, but whispered to Frodo: 'How far is this Mountain? A nice pickle we have landed ourselves in, Mr. Frodo!'

'When shall I start?' asked Frodo.

'First you shall rest and recover full strength,' answered Elrond, guessing his mind. 'Rivendell is a fair place, and we will not send . you away, until you know it better. And meanwhile we will make plans for your guidance.'

Later in the afternoon of the council Frodo was strolling in the woods with his friends. Merry and Faramond were indignant when they heard that Sam had crept into the council, and been chosen as Frodo's companion. 'Not the only one!' said Merry. 'I have come so far and I am not going to be left behind now. Someone with intelligence ought to be in the party.'

'I don't see that your inclusion will help much in that way,' said Faramond. 'But, of course, you must go, and I must too. We hobbits must stick together. We seem to have become mighty important these days. It would be a bit of an eye-opener for the people back in the s.h.i.+re! '

'I doubt it!' said Frodo. 'Hardly any of them would believe a word of it. I wish I was one of them, and back in Hobbiton. Anyone who wants can have all my importance.'

'Quite accidental! Quite accidental, as I keep on telling you,' said a voice behind them. They turned to see Gandalf hurrying round a bend in the path. 'Hobbit voices carry a long way,' he said. 'All right in Rivendell (or I hope so); but I should not discuss matters so loud outside the house. Your importance is accidental, Frodo - by which I mean, someone else might have been chosen and done as well - but it is real. No one else can have it now. So be careful - you can't be too careful! As for you two, if I let you come, you'll have to do just what you are told. And I shall make other arrangements for the supply of intelligence.'

'Ah, now we know who really is important,' laughed Merry. 'Gandalf is never in doubt about that, and does not let anyone else doubt it. So you are making all the arrangements already, are you? '

'Of course!' said Gandalf. 'But if you hobbits wish to stick together I shall raise no objection. You two and Sam can go - if you are really willing. Trotter would also be useful (33) - he has journeyed South before. Boromir may well join the company, since your road leads through his own land. That will be about as large a party as will be at all safe.'

'Who is to be the brains of the party?' asked Frodo. 'Trotter, I suppose. Boromir is only one of the Big Folk, and they are not as wise as hobbits.'

'Boromir has more than strength and valour,' answered Gandalf. 'He comes of an ancient race that the people of the s.h.i.+re have not seen, at least not since days that they have forgotten. And Trotter has learned many things in his wanderings that are not known in the s.h.i.+re.(34) They both know something of the road: but more than that will be needed. I think I shall have to come with you! '