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TIME - September 13



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Sep 13, 12:26pm


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TIME - September 13
Today in Middle-earth

September 13, 3018 (S.R. 3018)
1. The days go by in Bag End.
(not from the appendices)
..."Autumn was well under way before Frodo began to worry about Gandalf again. September was passing and there was still no news of him. The Birthday, and the removal, drew nearer, and still he did not come, or send word."


September 13, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Celeborn and Galadriel depart, the others set out for Rivendell.
(not from the appendices)
...[The Company lingered near the Silverlode before the Three Rings separated for the last time] "...they parted again for a while, until it was time for the Three Rings to pass away. Quickly fading into the stones and the shadows the grey-cloaked people of Lórien road towards the mountain; and those who were going to Rivendell sat on the hill and watched, until there came out of the gathering mist a flash; and then they saw no more. Frodo knew that Galadriel had held aloft her ring in token of farewell. Sam turned away and sighed: 'I wish I was going back to Lórien!'"


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Sep 14, 2:07pm


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TIME - September 14
Today in Middle-earth

September 14, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Gandalf at the White Council.
(not from the appendices-determined from LotR Appendix B text)
... "In the late summer... ...Gandalf had at last prevailed upon Saruman and the White Council to attack Dol Guldur, and Sauron retreated and went to Mordor, there to be secure, as he thought, from all his enemies. So it was that when the War came at last the main assault was turned southwards..."

September 14, 3001 (S.R. 1401)
1. A waggon is spotted on the road.
(not from the appendices)
..."Days passed and The Day drew nearer... ...At the end of the second week in September a cart came in through Bywater from the direction of Brandywine Bridge in broad daylight. An old man was driving it all alone. He wore a tall pointed blue hat, a long grey cloak, and a silver scarf. He had a long white beard and bushy eyebrows that stuck out beyond the brim of his hat. Small hobbit-children ran after the cart all through Hobbiton and right up the hill. It had a cargo of fireworks... ...At Bilbo's front door the old man began to unload: there were great bundles of fireworks of all sorts and shapes, each labelled with a large red G and the elf-rune

...That was Gandalf's mark... ...and the old man was Gandalf the wizard, whose fame in the Shire was due mainly to his skill with fires, smokes, and lights. His real business was far more difficult and dangerous, but the Shire-folk new nothing about it.... ...he was just one of the 'attractions' at the Party.
...When the old man, helped by Bilbo and some dwarves, had finished unloading, Bilbo gave a few pennies away; but not a single squib or cracker was forthcoming, to the disappointment of the onlookers.
...'Run away now!' said Gandalf. 'You will get plenty when the time comes.' Then he disappeared inside with Bilbo, and the door was shut. The young hobbits stared at the door in vain for a while, and then they made off, feeling that the day of the party would never come."


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We have been there and back again.


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Sep 15, 1:12pm


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TIME - September 15
Today in Middle-earth

September 15, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The White Council continues their debate.
(not from the appendices-determined from text – The Silmarillion)
..."... Mithrandir spoke to the Council, saying:
...'…The might of the Elves and the Elf-friends is less now than of old. Soon he will be too strong... ...even without the Great Ring; for he rules the Nine, and of the Seven he has recovered three. We must strike.'"

2. Saruman agrees to an attack on Dol Guldur.
(not from the appendices-determined from text)
..."To this Curunír now assented, desiring that Sauron should be thrust from Dol Guldur, which was nigh to the River, and should have leisure to search there no longer. Therefore, for the last time, he aided the Council..."


September 15, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf is still held captive atop Orthanc [since July 10].
(not from the appendices)
..."'...on the pinnacle of Orthanc, in the place where Saruman was accustomed to watch the stars. There is no descent save by a narrow stair of many thousand steps, and the valley below seems far away... ...I stood alone on an island in the clouds; and I had no chance of escape, and my days were bitter. I was pierced with cold, and I had but little room in which to pace to and fro, brooding on the coming of the Riders to the North.'"


September 15, 1977
1. The Silmarillion is published.
... Forty years after the publication of The Hobbit, Christopher Tolkien completed his father's work on The Silmarillion.


September 15, 2022
1. 45th Anniversary of The Silmarillion publication in 9/15/1977.


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Sep 16, 12:22pm


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TIME - September 16
Today in Middle-earth

September 16, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Bilbo feels the strain.
(determined from text - referencing Karen Wynn Fonstad, The Atlas of Middle-earth)
..."Bilbo did not like being depended upon by everyone, and he wished he had the wizard at hand. But that was no use: probably all the dark distance of Mirkwood lay between them."


September 16, 3001 (S.R. 1401)
1. Bilbo begins sending invitations.
(not from the appendices)
..."Before long the invitations began pouring out, and the Hobbiton post-office was blocked, and the Bywater post-office was snowed under, and voluntary assistant postmen were called for... ...a constant stream of them going up the Hill, carrying hundreds of polite variations on 'Thank you, I shall certainly come.'
...A Notice appeared on the gate at Bag End: "NO ADMITTANCE EXCEPT ON PARTY BUSINESS" .


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Sep 17, 12:21pm


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TIME - September 17
Today in Middle-earth

September 17, 3001 (S.R. 1401)
1. Bilbo party preparations keep him busy.
(not from the appendices)
..."Even those who had, or pretended to have, Party Business were seldom allowed inside. Bilbo was busy: writing invitation, ticking off answers, packing up presents, and making some private preparations of his own. From the time of Gandalf's arrival he remained hidden from view."


September 17, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf is captive atop Orthanc.
(not from the appendices)
..."'Fear was ever in my heart for my friends in the Shire... ...I hoped that Frodo has set forth at once, as my letter had urged, and that he had reached Rivendell before the deadly pursuit began. And both my fear and my hope proved ill-founded. For my hope was founded on a fat man in Bree; and my fear was founded on the cunning of Sauron. But fat men who sell ale have many calls to answer; and the power of Sauron is still less than fear makes it. But in the circle of Isengard, trapped and alone, it was not easy to think that the hunters before whom all have fled or fallen would falter in the Shire far away.'"


[A little related BS from a September 26 event in Frodo's dream while in the house of Tom Bombadil... for a moment of Tolkien-zen.

From The Council of Elrond: The Fellowship of the Ring

... "'I saw you!' cried Frodo. 'You were walking backward and forwards. The moon shone in your hair.'
... Gandalf paused astonished and looked at him. 'It was only a dream,' said Frodo, 'but it suddenly came back to me. I had quite forgotten... ...It came some time ago; after I left the Shire, I think.'
... 'Then it was late in coming,' said Gandalf, 'as you will see.'"


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We have been there and back again.


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grammaboodawg
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Sep 18, 2:20pm


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TIME - September 18
Today in Middle-earth

September 18, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The Company is still caught in Thranduil's caves.
(determined from text - referencing Karen Wynn Fonstad, The Atlas of Middle-earth)
...Bilbo continues to ponder an escape plan as he listens, watches and waits.


September 18, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Frodo prepares to leave Bag End for Crickhollow.
(not from the appendices)
..."Bag End began to be busy. Some of Frodo's friends came to stay and help him with the packing: there was Fredegar Bolger and Folco Boffin, and of course his special friends Pippin Took and Merry Brandybuck. Between them they turned the whole place upside-down."

2. Gandalf escapes from Orthanc in the early hours. The Black Riders cross the Fords of Isen.
(from the appendices)
..."'Those of you who know me will agree that I have seldom been in such need, and do not bear such misfortune well. Gandalf the Grey caught like a fly in a spider's treacherous web! Yet even the most subtle spiders may leave a weak thread.
...'At first I feared, as Saruman no doubt intended, that Radagast had also fallen. Yet I had caught no hint of anything wrong in his voice or in his eye at our meeting... ...He sought me in good faith, and so persuaded me.
...'That was the undoing of Saruman's plot. For Radagast knew no reason why he should not do as I asked; and he rode away towards Mirkwood where he had many friends of old. And the Eagles of the Mountains went far and wide, and they saw many things: the gathering of wolves and the mustering of Orcs; and the Nine Riders going hither and thither in the lands; and they heard news of the escape of Gollum. And they sent a messenger to bring these tidings to me.
...'So it was that when summer waned, there came a night of moon, and Gwaihir the Windlord... ...came unlooked-for to Orthanc; and he found me standing on the pinnacle. Then I spoke to him and he bore me away, before Saruman was aware. I was far from Isengard, ere the wolves and orcs issued from the gate to pursue me.
...'"How far can you bear me?" I said to Gwaihir.
...'"Many leagues," said he, "but not to the ends of the earth. I was sent to bear tidings not burdens."
...'"Then I must have a steed on land," I said, 'and a steed surpassingly swift, for I have never had such need of haste before."
...'"Then I will bear you to Edoras, where the Lord of Rohan sits in his halls..."'"

[league = 3 miles]


1. September 18, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
The Company rides to Rivendell
(not from the appendices-no text)
...Gandalf, the hobbits and Elrond with his company continue at their leisure on their journey to Rivendell as Saruman makes his way to the Shire.


September 18, 3020 (S.R. 1420)
1. The hobbits adjust.
(not from the appendices)
..."Frodo and Sam went back to ordinary attire, except that when there was need they both wore long grey cloaks, finely woven and clasped at the throat with beautiful brooches; and Mr. Frodo wore always a white jewel on a chain that he often would finger."


September 18, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. The family in Bag End.
(not from the appendices - no text - a drabble)
...Sitting before the fire, Frodo found himself watching Sam as he moved about Bag End, often with little Elanor cradled in one of his strong weathered arms. He suddenly became aware that he had contemplated a hope, a presumption, that would comfort himself in his decision; but would it be fair to Sam? The answer was clear to him. He looked over at Rosie as she set plates and cups on the table and she looked up at him and smiled. Frodo smiled in return. "I'll fetch Sam for you, Rosie. Then I'll come help you finish with the table."


sample

We have been there and back again.


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grammaboodawg
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Sep 19, 12:28pm


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TIME - September 19
Today in Middle-earth

September 19, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf comes to Edoras as a beggar, and is refused admittance.
(from the appendices)
..."'...[Gwaihir] set me down in the land of Rohan ere dawn... ...In Rohan I found evil already at work: the lies of Saruman...'"
... [Éomer recounts:] "'Indeed since his last coming in the summer all things have gone amiss. At that time our trouble with Saruman began. Until then we counted Saruman our friend, but Gandalf came... ...and warned us that sudden war was preparing in Isengard. He said that he himself had been a prisoner in Orthanc and had hardly escaped, and he begged for help. But Théoden would not listen to him, and he went away.'"


September 19, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The Company continues to ride toward home.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...Elrond and his people along with Gandalf and the hobbits continue at their leisure on their journey to Rivendell as Saruman makes his way to the Shire.


September 19, 3020 (S.R. 1420)
1. Life seems to return to normal in the Shire.
(not from the appendices)
..."All things now went well, with hope always of becoming still better; and Sam was as busy and as full of delight as even a hobbit could wish. Nothing for him marred that whole year, except for some vague anxiety about his master. Frodo dropped quietly out of all the doings of the Shire, and Sam was pained to notice how little honour he had in his own country. Few people knew... ...about his deeds and adventures; their admiration and respect were given mostly to Mr. Meriadoc and Mr. Peregrin and (if Sam had known it) to himself. Also in the autumn there appeared a shadow of old troubles."


September 19, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. Frodo quietly makes plans.
(not from the appendices)
...'"Little Elanor was nearly six months old, and 1421 had passed to its autumn, when Frodo called Sam into the study.
...'It will be Bilbo's Birthday on Thursday, Sam,' he said. 'And he will pass the Old Took. He will be a hundred and thirty-one!'
...'So he will!' said Sam. 'He's a marvel!'
...'Well, Sam... ...I want you to see Rose and find out if she can spare you, so that you and I can go off together. You can't go far or for a long time now, of course,' he said a little wistfully.
...'Well, not very well, Mr. Frodo.'
...'Of course not. But never mind. You can see me on my way. Tell Rose that you won't be away very long, not more than a fortnight; and you'll come back quite safe.'
...'I wish I could go all the way with you to Rivendell... ...[to] see Mr. Bilbo,' said Sam. 'And yet the only place I really want to be in is here. I am that torn in two.'
...'Poor Sam! It will feel like that, I am afraid,' said Frodo. 'But you will be healed. You were meant to be solid and whole, and you will be.'"


sample

We have been there and back again.


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(This post was edited by grammaboodawg on Sep 19, 12:29pm)


grammaboodawg
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Sep 20, 12:58pm


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TIME - September 20
Today in Middle-earth

September 20, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The White Council assaults Dol Guldur.
(not from the appendices-determined from The Silmarillion text)
..."...[The White Council] put forth their strength; and they assailed Dol Guldur, and drove Sauron from his hold, and Mirkwood for a brief while was made wholesome again."
..."But their stroke was too late. For the Dark Lord had foreseen it, and he had long prepared all his movements; and... ...his Nine Servants, had gone before him to make ready for his coming. Therefore his flight was but a feint, and he soon returned, and ere the Wise could prevent him he re-entered his kingdom in Mordor and reared once again the dark towers of Barad-dûr. And in that year the White Council met for the last time, and Curunír withdrew to Isengard, and took counsel with none save himself."


September 20, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf gains entrance to Edoras.
(from the appendices)
...[Théoden commands him to go]"'Take any horse, only be gone ere tomorrow is old!'"
..."'...the king of the land would not listen to my warnings. He bade me take a horse and be gone; and I chose one much to my liking, but little to his. I took the best horse in his land, and I have never seen the like of him.'"

2. It's busy at Bag End.
(not from the appendices)
..."On September 20th two covered carts went off laden to Buckland, conveying the furniture and goods that Frodo had not sold to his new home, by way of the Brandywine Bridge."


September 20, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The Travellers are still on the road.
(not from the appendices)
...The Travellers approach the moors leading to the Valley of Rivendell as Saruman passes the borders of the Shire.


September 20, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. Frodo finishes his arrangements.
(not from the appendices)
..."In the next day or two Frodo went through his papers and his writings with Sam, and he handed over his keys. There was a big book with plain red leather covers... ...pages were now almost filled. At the beginning there were many leaves covered with Bilbo's thin wandering hand; but most of it was written in Frodo's firm flowing script. It was divided into chapters but Chapter 80 was unfinished, and after that were some blank leaves. The title page had many titles on it, crossed out one after another, so:

...My diary. My Unexpected Journey. There and Back Again. And What Happened After.
...Adventures of Five Hobbits. The Tale of the Great Ring, compiled by Bilbo Baggins from his own observations and the accounts of his friends. What we did in the War of the Ring.

Here Bilbo's hand ended and Frodo had written:

THE DOWNFALL
OF THE
LORD OF THE RINGS
AND THE
RETURN OF THE KING

(as seen by the Little People; being the memoirs
of Bilbo and Frodo of the Shire, supplemented
by the accounts of their friends and the learning
of the Wise.)

Together with extracts from Books of Lore
translated by Bilbo in Rivendell.



...'Why, you have nearly finished it, Mr. Frodo!' Sam exclaimed. 'Well, you have kept at it, I must say.'
...'I have quite finished, Sam,' said Frodo. 'The last pages are for you.'"


sample

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Sep 21, 1:50pm


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TIME - September 21
Today in Middle-earth

September 21, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Bilbo makes a discovery.
(determined from text - referencing Karen Wynn Fonstad, The Atlas of Middle-earth)
..."One day, nosing and wandering about, Bilbo discovered a very interesting thing: the great gates were not the only entrance to the caves. A stream flowed under part of the lowest regions of the palace, and joined the Forest River some way further to the east, beyond the steep slope out of which the main mouth opened....
......When the barrels were empty the elves cast them through the trapdoors, opened the water-gate, and out the barrels floated on the stream…"
......For some time Bilbo sat and thought about this water-gate, and wondered if it could be used for the escape of his friends, and at last he had the desperate beginnings of a plan…."

2. Bilbo and the Dwarves escape in the afternoon.
(determined from text – referencing Karen Wynn Fonstad, The Atlas of Middle-earth)
..."…Bilbo heard the king's butler bidding the chief of the guards good-night.
..."Now come with me," he said, "and taste the new wine that has just come in. I shall be hard at work tonight clearing the cellars of the empty wood, so let us have a drink first to help the labour..."

...…When he heard this Bilbo was all in a flutter, for he saw that luck was with him and he had a chance at once to try his desperate plan. He followed the two elves, until they entered a small cellar and sat down at a table on which two large flagons were set. Soon they began to drink and laugh merrily…. …Then in crept the hobbit. Very soon the chief guard had no keys…
......First he unlocked Balin's door… "You must follow me! We must all keep together and not risk getting separated. All of us must escape or none, and this is our last chance. If this is found out, goodness knows where the king will put you next, with chains on your hands and feet too, I expect. Don't argue, there's a good fellow!"
...Then off he went from door to door, until his following had grown to twelve… … At last after much blundering they came to Thorin's dungeon, far down in a deep place and fortunately not far from the cellars.
..."Upon my word!" said Thorin, when Bilbo whispered to him to come out and join his friends, "Gandalf spoke true, as usual. A pretty fine burglar you make, it seems, when the time comes. I am sure we are all for ever at your service, whatever happens after this. But what comes next?"
...Bilbo saw that the time had come to explain his idea, as far as he could...
..."...We shall be bruised and battered to pieces, and drowned too, for certain!" they muttered. "We thought you had got some sensible notion, when you managed to get hold of the keys. This is a mad idea!"
..."Very well!" said Bilbo very downcast, and also rather annoyed. "Come along back to your nice cells, and I will lock you all in again, and you can sit there comfortably and think of a better plan—but I don't suppose I shall ever get hold of the keys again, even if I feel inclined to try."
...That was too much for them, and they calmed down. In the end, of course, they had to do just what Bilbo suggested…
...…They soon found thirteen [casks] with room enough for a dwarf in each. In fact some were too roomy, and as they climbed in the dwarves thought anxiously of the shaking and the bumping they would get inside, though Bilbo did his best to find straw and other stuff to pack them in as cosily as could be managed in a short time....
......Bilbo suddenly discovered the weak point in his plan... ...he was not in a barrel himself...
......Now the very last barrel was being rolled to the doors! In despair and not knowing what else to do, poor little Bilbo caught hold of it and was pushed over the edge with it. Down into the water he fell, splash! into the cold dark water with the barrel on top of him.
...He came up again spluttering and clinging to the wood like a rat, and lay on the top spread out to keep the balance as best he could."

3. At dusk Bilbo and the barrel-packed Dwarves reach the huts of the Raft-men.
(determined from text – referencing Karen Wynn Fonstad, The Atlas of Middle-earth)
... "...the hurrying water of the Forest River swept all the company of casks and tubs away to the north bank... ...On the shallow shore most of the barrels ran aground, though a few went on to bump against the stony pier.
...There were people on the look-out on the banks. They quickly poled and pushed all the barrels together into the shallows… …counted them… …roped them together and left them till the morning. Poor dwarves! Bilbo… …slipped from his barrel and waded ashore, and then sneaked along to some huts that he could see near the water's edge. He no longer thought twice about picking up a supper uninvited if he got the chance… …and he knew only too well what it was to be really hungry… …Also he had caught a glimpse of a fire through the trees, and that appealed to him with his dripping and ragged clothes clinging to him cold and clammy."


September 21, 3001 (S.R. 1401)
1. Party preparations are in full swing.
(not from the appendices)
..."The tents began to go up. There was a specially large pavilion, so big that the tree that grew in the field was right inside it, and stood proudly near one end, at the head of the chief table. Lanterns were hung on all its branches. More promising still (to the hobbits' mind): an enormous open-air kitchen was erected in the north corner of the field. A draught of cooks, from every inn and eating-house for miles around, arrived to supplement the dwarves and other odd folk that were quartered at Bag End. Excitement rose to its height.
...Then the weather clouded over. That was on Wednesday the eve of the Party. Anxiety was intense..."


September 21, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf meets Shadowfax.
(from the appendices)
..."'There is one among them that might have been foaled in the morning of the world. The horses of the Nine cannot vie with him... ...swift as the flowing wind. Shadowfax they called him. By day his coat glistened like silver; and by night it is like a shade, and he passes unseen. Light is his footfall! Never before had any man mounted him...'"

2. Frodo continues to anticipate Gandalf's return.
(not from the appendices)
..."Frodo became really anxious, and kept a constant look-out for Gandalf."


September 21, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. They return to Rivendell.
(from the appendices)
..."At last one evening they came over the high moors, suddenly as to the travellers it always seemed, to the brink of the deep valley of Rivendell and saw far below the lamps shining in Elrond's [home]... ...filled with light and song for joy at Elrond's homecoming.
...First of all, before they had eaten or washed or even shed their cloaks, the hobbits went in search of Bilbo. They found him all alone in his little room. It was littered with papers and pens and pencils; but Bilbo was sitting in a chair before a small bright fire. He looked very old, but peaceful, and sleepy.
...He opened his eyes and looked up as they came in. 'Hullo, hullo! ...So you've come back? And tomorrow's my birthday, too. How clever of you! Do you know, I shall be one hundred and twenty-nine? And in one year more, if I am spared, I shall equal the Old Took. I should like to beat him; but we shall see.'"

2. Saruman comes to the Shire.
(from the appendices)
..."You made me laugh, you hobbit-lordlings, riding along with all those great people, so secure and so pleased with your little selves. You thought you had done very well out of it all, and could now just amble back and have a nice quiet time in the country.... ...but you must go dangling after him, dawdling and talking, and riding round twice as far as you needed. "Well," thought I, "if they're such fools, I will get ahead of them and teach them a lesson. One ill turn deserves another."


September 21, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. Frodo and Samwise set out from Hobbiton.
(from the appendices)
..."...they set out together, Frodo on the pony that had borne him all the way from Minas Tirith, and was now called Strider: and Sam on his beloved Bill. It was a fair golden morning, and Sam did not ask where they were going: he thought he could guess."


September 21, 1937
1. The Hobbit is published.
..."In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit."

...In the early 1930's, J.R.R. Tolkien found a blank page on one of his students' school papers he was correcting and wrote this first line of what would become one of the greatest fantasy stories written. Once a bedtime story for his young children, the Professor eventually penned his tale of the adventures of a Hobbit, Dwarves, Elves and a Dragon into a book.
...The first edition of The Hobbit was published by George Allen & Unwin, Ltd. of London in 1937 with 1,500 prints. To date, it has been published in 40 different languages. Tolkien's world of Middle-earth eventually expanded into The Lord of the Rings.


sample

We have been there and back again.


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(This post was edited by grammaboodawg on Sep 21, 1:53pm)


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Sep 22, 1:40pm


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TIME - September 22
Today in Middle-earth

September 22, 2890 (S.R. 1290)
1. Bilbo born in the Shire.
(from APPENDIX B: THE TALE OF YEARS (CHRONOLOGY OF THE WESTLANDS): Third Age-no text)
...Bungo Baggins and Belladonna Took celebrate the birth of their only child, "Bilbo Baggins of Hobbiton, the Shire."


September 22, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Bilbo and the barrels reach Lake-town just after sunset.
(not from the appendices)
..."...a barrel was cut loose by Bilbo and pushed to the shore and opened. Groans came from inside, and out crept a most unhappy dwarf. Wet straw was in his draggled beard; he was so sore and stiff, so bruised and buffeted he could hardly stand or stumble through the shallow water to lie groaning on the shore....
..."Well, are you alive or are you dead?" asked Bilbo quite crossly... "...Are you still in prison, or are you free? If you want food, and if you want to go on with this silly adventure---it's yours after all and not mine---you had better slap your arms and rub your legs and try and help me get the others out while there is a chance!"

..."Well! Here we are!" said Thorin. "And I suppose we ought to thank our stars and Mr. Baggins. I am sure he has a right to expect it, though I wish he could have arranged a more comfortable journey. Still---all very much at your service once more, Mr. Baggins. No doubt we shall feel properly grateful, when we are fed and recovered. In the meanwhile what next?"
..."I suggest Lake-town," said Bilbo. "What else is there...?"


September 22, 2968 (S.R. 1368)
1. Birth of Frodo in the Shire.
(from APPENDIX B: THE TALE OF YEARS (CHRONOLOGY OF THE WESTLANDS): Third Age-no text)
...Drogo Baggins and Primula Brandybuck celebrate the birth of their only child, "Frodo Baggins of Buckland, the Shire."




September 22, 3001 (S.R. 1401) 1. A long expected party!!
(not from the appendices)
[Bilbo is eleventy-one and Frodo is thirty-three]
..."The sun got up, the clouds vanished, flags were unfurled and the fun began.
...Bilbo met the guests (and additions) at the new white gate in person. He gave away presents to all and sundry....
......There were three official meals: lunch, tea, and dinner (or supper). But lunch and tea were marked chiefly by the fact that at those times all the guests were sitting down and eating together. At other times there were merely lots of people eating and drinking—continuously from elevenses until six-thirty, when the fireworks started.
...The fireworks were by Gandalf: they were not only brought by him, but designed and made by him; and the special effects, set pieces, and flights of rockets were let off by him. But there was also a generous distribution of squibs, crackers, backarappers, sparklers, torches, dwarf-candles, elf-fountains, goblin-barkers and thunder-claps. They were all superb. The art of Gandalf improved with age….
...…And there was also one last surprise, in honour of Bilbo, and it startled the hobbits exceedingly, as Gandalf intended. The lights were out. A great smoke went up. It shaped itself like a fountain seen in the distance, and began to flow at the summit. It sprouted green and scarlet flames. Out flew a red-golden dragon—not life-size, but terribly life-like: fire came from his jaws, his eyes glared down; there was a roar, and he whizzed three times over the heads of the crowd. They all ducked, and many fell flat on their faces. The dragon passed like an express train, turned a somersault, and burst over Bywater with a deafening explosion.
...'That is the signal for supper!' said Bilbo. The pain and alarm vanished at once, and the prostrate hobbits leaped to their feet..."

......After the feast (more or less) came the Speech. Most of the company were, however, now in a tolerant mood, at that delightful stage which they called 'filling up the corners'. They were sipping their favourite drinks, and nibbling at their favourite dainties, and their fears were forgotten. They were prepared to listen to anything, and to cheer at every full stop.
... My dear People, began Bilbo, rising in his place. 'Hear! Hear! Hear!' they shouted, and kept on repeating it in chorus… …[he] left his place and went and stood on a chair under the illuminated tree. The light of the lanterns fell on his beaming face; the golden buttons shone on his embroidered silk waistcoat. They could all see him standing, waving one hand in the air, and the other was in his trouser-pocket.
... My dear Bagginses and Boffins, he began again; and my dear Tooks and Brandybucks, and Grubbs, and Chubbs, and Burrowses, and Hornblowers, and Bolgers, Bracegirdles, Goodbodies, Brockhouses and Proudfoots.
...'ProudFEET!' shouted an elderly hobbit from the back of the pavilion. His name, of course, was Proudfoot, and well merited; his feet were large, exceptionally furry, and both were on the table.
... Proudfoots, repeated Bilbo. Also my good Sackville-Bagginses that I welcome back at last to Bag End. Today is my one hundred and eleventh birthday: I am eleventy-one today! 'Hurray! Hurray! Many Happy Returns!' they shouted, and they hammered joyously on the tables... ...This was the sort of stuff they like: short and obvious.
... I hope you are all enjoying yourselves as much as I am. Deafening cheers. Cries of YES (and NO)… ...I have called you all together for a Purpose. Something in the way that he said this made an impression. There was almost silence, and one or two of the Tooks pricked up their ears.
... Indeed, for Three Purposes! First of all, to tell you that I am immensely fond of you all, and that eleventy-one years is too short a time to live among such excellent and admirable hobbits. Tremendous outburst of approval.
... I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve. This was unexpected and rather difficult. There was some scattered clapping, but most of them were trying to work it out and see if it came to a compliment.

... …Secondly, to celebrate my birthday. Cheers again. I should say: OUR birthday. For it is, of course, also the birthday of my heir and nephew, Frodo. He comes of age and into his inheritance today….
... …It is also, if I may be allowed to refer to ancient history, the anniversary of my arrival by barrel Esgaroth on the Long Lake; though the fact that it was my birthday slipped my memory on that occasion. I was only fifty-one then, and birthdays did not seem so important. The banquet was very splendid, however, though I had a bad cold at the time, I remember, and could only say "thag you very buch". I now repeat it more correctly: Thank you very much for coming to my little party. Obstinate silence. They all feared that a song or some poetry was now imminent… …they were getting bored. Why couldn't he stop talking and let them drink his health? But Bilbo did not sing or recite….
... …Thirdly and finally, he said, 'I wish to make an ANNOUNCEMENT… …I regret to announce that—though, as I said, eleventy-one years is far too short a time to spend among you—this is the END. I am going. I am leaving NOW. GOOD-BYE!'
...He stepped down and vanished. There was a blinding flash of light, and the guests all blinked. When they opened their eyes Bilbo was nowhere to be seen."

2. Bilbo's ready to go.
(not from the appendices)
..."Bilbo drew his hand over his eyes. 'I am sorry,' he said. 'But I felt so queer. And yet it would be a relief in a way not to be bothered with it any more. It has been so growing on my mind lately. Sometimes I have felt it was like an eye looking at me. And I am always wanting to put it on and disappear, don't you know; or wondering if it is safe, and pulling it out to make sure. I tried locking it up, but I found I couldn't rest without it in my pocket…. …And I don't seem able to make up my mind.'
...'Then trust mine,' said Gandalf. 'It is quite made up. Go away and leave it behind. Stop possessing it. Give it to Frodo, and I will look after him.'
...Bilbo stood for a moment tense and undecided. Presently he sighed. 'All right,' he said with an effort. 'I will.' Then he shrugged his shoulders, and smiled rather ruefully. 'After all that's what this party business was all about, really: to give away lots of birthday presents, and somehow make it easier to give it away at that same time. It hasn't made it any easier in the end, but it would be a pity to waste all my preparations. It would quite spoil the joke.'
...'Indeed it would take away the only point I ever saw in the affair,' said Gandalf."


September 22, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Bilbo and Frodo's birthdays.
(not from the appendices)
..."Thursday, his birthday morning, dawned as fair and clear as it had long ago for Bilbo's great Party. Still Gandalf did not appear. In the evening Frodo gave his farewell feast: it was quite small, just a dinner for himself and his four helpers; but he was troubled and felt in no mood for it. The thought that he would so soon have to part with his young friends weighed on his heart...
...…The four younger hobbits were, however, in high spirits and the party soon became very cheerful in spite of Gandalf's absence…
...…When they had sung many songs, and talked of many things they had done together, they toasted Bilbo's birthday, and they drank to his health and Frodo's together according to Frodo's custom. Then they went out for a sniff of air, and glimpse of the stars, and then they went to bed. Frodo's party was over, and Gandalf had not come."

2. The Black Riders reach Sarn Ford at evening; they drive off the guard of Rangers.
(from the appendices-no text)
...A presence of old crept through the forest which the Ranger felt long before he heard the sound of galloping hoofs. With a rush, five Black Riders swept over him as he stood in the defence. Yet in the end he yielded to their force, feeling it prudent to alert his brethren and prepare for the battle they long sensed would come.

3. Gandalf overtakes Shadowfax.
(from the appendices)
..."I took the best horse in his land, and I have never seen the like of him.... ...Never had any man mounted him, but I took him and I tamed him..."


September 22, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The hundred and twenty-ninth birthday of Bilbo and Frodo's fifty-first birthday.
(not from the appendices)
..."After the celebration of Bilbo's birthday the four hobbits stayed in Rivendell for some days, and they sat much with their old friend, who spent most of his time now in his room, except at meals. For these he was still very punctual as a rule, and he seldom failed to wake up in time for them. Sitting round the fire they told him in turn all that they could remember of their journeys and adventures."

2. Sharkey in the Shire.
(not from the appendices)
..."'…since Sharkey came it's been plain ruination.' [tells Farmer Cotton]
...'Who is this Sharkey?' said Merry. 'I heard one of the ruffians speak of him.'
...'The biggest ruffian o' the lot, seemingly,' answered Cotton. 'It was about last harvest, end o' September maybe, that we first heard of him. We've never seen him, but he's up at Big End; and he's the real Chief now, I guess. All the ruffians do what he says; and what he says is mostly: hack, burn, and ruin; and now it's come to killing. There's no longer even any bad sense in it. They cut down trees and let 'em lie, they burn houses and build no more…. …They're always a-hammering and a-letting out a smoke and a stench, and there isn't no peace even at night in Hobbiton. And they pour out filth a purpose; they've fouled all the lower Water, and it's getting down into the Brandywine. If they want to make the Shire into a desert, they're going the right way about it. I don't believe that fool of a Pimple's behind all this. It's Sharkey, I say.'"


September 22, 3020 (S.R. 1420)
1. Bilbo's hundred and thirtieth birthday. Frodo's fifty-second birthday.
(from the appendices-no text)
...There was a quiet gathering of friends and family at Bag End. Merry, Pippin, Rosie, Sam and Frodo enjoyed food, drink and song in front of the fire. At the end of the evening, as is Frodo's custom, they drank to Bilbo and Frodo's health. Laughter followed as stories of Bilbo's adventures were shared while Frodo fell silent and gazed into the flames.


September 22, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. They meet the Last Riding of the Keepers of the Rings in Woody End.
(from the appendices)
..."They camped in the Green Hills, and on September the twenty-second they rode gently down into the beginning of the trees as afternoon was wearing away.
...'If that isn't the very tree you hid behind when the Black Rider first showed up, Mr. Frodo!' said Sam pointing to the left. 'It seems like a dream now.'
...It was evening, and the stars were glimmering in the eastern sky… …Sam was silent, deep in his memories. Presently he became aware that Frodo was singing softly to himself, singing the old walking-song, but the words were not quite the same.

Still round the corner there may wait
A new road or secret gate;
And though I oft have passed them by,
A day will come at last when I
Shall take the hidden paths that run
West of the Moon, East of the Sun.



And as if in answer, from down below, coming up the road out of the valley, voices sang:

A! Elbereth Gilthoniel!
silivren penna míriel
o menel aglar elenath,
We still remember, we who dwell
In this far land beneath the trees
The starlight on the Western Seas.



...Frodo and Sam halted and sat silent in the soft shadows, until they saw a shimmer as the travellers came towards them.
...There was Gildor and many fair Elven folk; and there to Sam's wonder rode Elrond and Galadriel. Elrond wore a mantle of grey and had a star upon his forehead, and a silver harp was in his hand, and upon his finger was a ring of gold with a great blue stone, Vilya, mightiest of the Three. But Galadriel sat upon a white palfrey and … …seemed to shine with a soft light. On her finger was Nenya, the ring wrought of mithril, that bore a single white stone flickering like a frosty star. Riding slowly behind on a small grey pony, and seeming to nod in his sleep, was Bilbo himself.
......Bilbo woke up and opened his eyes. 'Hullo, Frodo!' he said. 'Well, I have passed the Old Took today! So that's settled. And now I think I am quite ready to go on another journey. Are you coming?'
...'Yes, I am coming.' said Frodo. 'The Ring-bearers should go together.'"

[They reach the Grey Havens and sail into the West on September 29, 3021 (S.R. 1421)]


September 22, 3082 (S.R. 1482)
1. Sam leaves for the Havens.
(from the appendices)
[at ninety-nine years of age] "...Master Samwise rides out from Bag End. He comes to the Tower Hills, and is last seen by Elanor, to whom he gives the Red Book afterwards kept by the Fairbairns. Among them the tradition is handed down from Elanor that Samwise passed the Towers, and went to the Grey Havens, and passed over Sea, last of the Ring-bearers."

September 22, 3082 (S.R. 1482)
1. Hope on the Horizon [Frodo in Valinor]
(not from the appendices - no text - a drabble)
... Gandalf found the room empty. Nodding knowingly to himself, he turned and walked back through the quiet halls.

... As he's often done in recent years, Frodo rested by the sea just off the white sand under a silver tree in deep fragrant grass. The eastern sunrise held special meaning for him now as he waited. Peace has been his comfort and Gandalf his companion; but he waited now for one dearest to his heart.
... "Hello Frodo," said Gandalf as he stood beside the tree, his gaze on the horizon. "It will be soon."
... "Yes," whispered Frodo almost to himself. "Soon."'

'


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TIME - September 23
Today in Middle-earth

September 23, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The Dwarves and Bilbo come to Lake-town.
(not from the appendices
..."[The] dwarves were brought into the town amid scenes of astonishing enthusiasm. They were all doctored and fed and housed and pampered in the most delightful and satisfactory fashion. A large house was given up to Thorin and his company; boats and rowers were put at their service; and crowds sat outside and sang songs all day, or cheered if any dwarf showed so much as his nose."

September 23, 3001 (S.R. 1401)
1. After a long expected party!!
(not from the appendices)
..."Then a number of other people came (without orders)... ...By mid-day, when even the best-fed were out and about again, there was a large crowd at Bag End, uninvited but not unexpected.
...Frodo was waiting on the step, smiling, but looking rather tired and worried. He welcomed all the callers, but he had not much more to say than before... ...'Mr. Bilbo Baggins has gone away; as far as I know, for good.' Some of the visitors he invited to come inside, as Bilbo had left 'messages' for them.
...Inside in the hall there was piled a large assortment of packages and parcels and small articles of furniture. On every item there was a label tied....
......Frodo had a very trying time that afternoon. A false rumour that the whole household was being distributed free spread like wildfire; and before long the place was packed with people who had no business there, but could not be kept out...
...'...It's time to close the shop, Merry,' Frodo said. 'Lock the door, and don't open it to any one today, not even if they bring a battering-ram.' Then he went to revive himself with a belated cup of tea.
...He had hardly sat down, when there came a soft knock at the front-door. 'Lobelia again most likely,' he thought. 'She must have thought of something really nasty, and have come back again to say it. It can wait.'
...He went on with his tea. The knock was repeated, much louder, but he took no notice. Suddenly the wizard's head appeared at the window.
...'If you don't let me in, Frodo, I shall blow your door right down your hole and out through the hill.'"


September 23, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Four Riders enter the Shire before dawn. The others pursue the Rangers eastward, and then return to watch the Greenway.
(from the appendices)
...[Gandalf]"'So I stayed [in Bree] that night, wondering much what had become of the Riders... ...But in the night... ...Five at least came from the west, and they threw down the gates and passed through Bree like a howling wind...'
... '...it seems clear to me that this is what happened. Their Captain remained in secret away south of Bree, while two rode ahead through the village, and four more invaded the Shire... ...when these were foiled in Bree and at Crickhollow, they returned to their Captain with tidings, and so left the Road unguarded for a while... ...The Captain sent some eastward straight across country, and he himself with the rest rode along the Road in great wrath.'"

2. A Black Rider comes to Hobbiton at nightfall, Frodo leaves Bag End.
(from the appendices)
..."...Frodo was going on foot... ...for pleasure and a last look at the Shire as much as any other reason—was to walk from Hobbiton to Bucklebury Ferry, taking it fairly easy.
...'I shall get myself a bit into training, too,' he said, looking at himself in a dusty mirror in the half-empty hall. He had not done any strenuous walking for a long time, and the reflection looked rather flabby, he thought....
...'...It's going to be a fine night,' he said aloud. 'That's good for a beginning. I feel like walking. I can't bear any more hanging about. I am going to start, and Gandalf must follow me.' He turned to go back, and then stopped, for he heard voices, just round the corner by the end of Bagshot Row. One voice was certainly the old Gaffer's; the other was strange, and somehow unpleasant. He could not make out what it said, but he heard the Gaffer's answers, which were rather shrill. The old man seemed put out...
...'...I am sick of questions and curiosity about my doings...' (Frodo thought). He had half a mind to go and ask the Gaffer who the inquirer was; but he thought better (or worse) of it, and turned and walked quickly back to Bag End...
...'...Sam!' he called. 'Sam! Time!'
...'Coming, sir!' came the answer from far within, followed soon by Sam himself, wiping his mouth. He had been saying farewell to the beer-barrel in the cellar...
......Frodo shut and locked the round door, and gave the key to Sam. 'Run down with this to your home, Sam!' he said... '...Well, now we're off at last!' said Frodo. They shouldered their packs and took up their sticks, and walked round the corner to the west side of Bag End. 'Good-bye!' said Frodo, looking at the dark blank windows. He waved his hand, and then turned and (following Bilbo, if he had known it) hurried after Peregrin down the garden-path..."

3. Gandalf having tamed Shadowfax rides from Rohan.
(from the appendices)
[Gandalf addressed the Council about Shadowfax] "'Shadowfax they called him... ...speedily he bore me... ...I set out from Rohan... ...when [Frodo] set out from Hobbiton.'"


September 23, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The hobbits enjoy their time with Bilbo in the comfort of Imladris.
(not from the appendices - no text - a drabble)
...It became quite a talent of the four to overlap stories, expand on events, and share comments while Bilbo's face turned from one to another. Slowly puffing his pipe, he would occasionally close his eyes, abruptly grunt in understanding or gasp startled; but he wouldn't ask questions until each tale had been told. He knew from experience that a year of adventures would be full of stories that come alive in the telling and needed to flow from the teller as it will. Gandalf joined them later, but was careful not to influence the tale until sharing his version later.


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TIME - September 24
Today in Middle-earth

September 24, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Bilbo nurses a bad cold as he and the Dwarves enjoy the hospitality and praise of Lake-town.
(determined from text)
... "...they were well contented and they quickly grew fat and strong again."


September 24, 3001 (S.R. 1401)
1. Gandalf leaves unexpectedly.
(not from the appendices-tiny no text then determined from text)
...Frodo began to recover from the excitement and fury of the Party and distribution of gifts. Gandalf had once again come and gone the night before in his usual rush.
... "'Good-bye now! Take care of yourself! Look out for me, especially at unlikely times! Good-bye!'
...Frodo saw him to the door. He gave a final wave of his hand, and walked off at a surprising pace; but Frodo thought the old wizard looked unusually bent, almost as if he was carrying a great weight. The evening was closing in, and his cloaked figure quickly vanished into the twilight. Frodo did not see him again for a long time."


September 24, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf crosses the Isen.
(from the appendices-no text)
...Shadowfax raced across the vast leagues between the land of the Rohirrim and the Northern Realm. Gandalf reached the River Isen as the hobbits leisurely made their way across the Shire.

[league = 3 miles]

2. The Hobbits cross the Shire.
(not from the appendices)
..."Frodo woke up first, and found that a tree-root had made a hole in his back, and that his neck was stiff. 'Walking for pleasure! Why didn't I drive?' he thought, as he usually did at the beginning of an expedition. 'And all my beautiful feather beds are sold to the Sackville-Bagginses!' ... He stretched. 'Wake up, hobbits!' he cried. 'It's a beautiful morning!'
...'What's beautiful about it?' said Pippin, peering over the edge of his blanket with one eye. 'Sam! Get breakfast ready for half-past nine! Have you got the bath-water hot?'
...Sam jumped up, looking rather bleary. 'No, sir, I haven't, sir!' he said.
...Frodo stripped the blankets from Pippin and rolled him over, and then walked off to the edge of the wood."

[Later that day]
..."...They had been jogging along again for an hour or more when Sam stopped a moment as if listening. They were now on level ground, and the road after much winding lay straight ahead through grassland sprinkled with tall trees...
...'...I can hear a pony or a horse coming along the road behind,' said Sam.
...They looked back, but the turn of the road prevented them from seeing far. 'I wonder if that is Gandalf coming after us,' said Frodo; but even as he said it, he had a feeling that it was not so, and a sudden desire to hide from the view of the rider came over him.
...'It may not matter much,' he said apologetically, 'but I would rather not be seen on the road—by anyone... ...let's get out of sight!'
......Frodo hesitated for a second; curiosity or some other feeling was struggling with his desire to hide. The sound of the hoofs drew nearer. Just in time he threw himself down in a patch of long grass behind a tree...
......Round the corner came a black horse, no hobbit-pony but a full-sized horse; and on it sat a large man, who seemed to crouch in the saddle, wrapped in a great black cloak and hood, so that only his boots in the high stirrups showed below; his face was shadowed and invisible.
...When it reached the tree and was level with Frodo the horse stopped. The riding figure sat quite still with its head bowed, as if listening. From inside the hood came a noise of someone sniffing to catch an elusive scent; the head turned from side to side of the road.
...A sudden unreasoning fear of discovery laid hold of Frodo, and he thought of his Ring. He hardly dared to breathe, and yet the desire to get it out of his pocket became so strong that he began slowly to move his hand..."

3. They meet Gildor and the High Elves travelling through the Shire.
(not from the appendices)
..."The song ended. 'And now to bed! And now to bed' sang Pippin in a high voice.
...'Hush!' said Frodo. 'I think I hear hoofs again.'
...They stopped suddenly and stood as silent as tree-shadows, listening. There was a sound of hoofs in the lane... ...coming slow and clear down the wind. Quickly and quietly they slipped off the path, and ran into the deeper shade under the oak-trees.
...'Don't let us go too far!' said Frodo. 'I don't want to be seen, but I want to see if it is another Black Rider.'
...'Very well!' said Pippin. 'But don't forget the sniffling!'
...The hoofs drew nearer. They had no time to find any hiding-place better than the general darkness under the trees; Sam and Pippin crouched behind a large tree-bole, while Frodo crept back a few yards towards the lane... ...The sound of hoofs stopped. As Frodo watched he saw something dark pass across the lighter space between two trees, and then halt. It looked like the black shade of a horse led by a smaller black shadow. The black shadow stood close to the point where they had left the path, and it swayed from side to side. Frodo thought he heard the sound of snuffling. The shadow bent to the ground, and then began to crawl towards him.
...Once more the desire to slip on the Ring came over Frodo; but this time it was stronger than before... ...almost before he realized what he was doing, his hand was groping in his pocket. But at that moment there came a sound like mingled song and laughter. Clear voices rose and fell in the starlit air. The black shadow straightened up and retreated...
...'...Elves!' exclaimed Sam in a hoarse whisper. 'Elves, sir!' He would have burst out of the trees and dashed off towards the voices, if they had not pulled him back.
...'Yes, it is Elves,' said Frodo. 'One can meet them sometimes in the Woody End. They don't live in the Shire, but they wander into it in Spring and Autumn, out of their own lands away beyond the Tower Hills.... ...Listen! They are coming this way,' said Frodo. 'We have only to wait….'

...…Before long the Elves came down the lane towards the valley.... ...the hobbits could see the starlight glimmering on their hair and in their eyes... ...They were now silent, and as the last Elf passed he turned and looked towards the hobbits and laughed.
...'Hail, Frodo!' he cried. 'You are abroad late. Or are you perhaps lost?' Then he called aloud to the others, and the company stopped and gathered round.
...'This is indeed wonderful!' they said. 'Three hobbits in a wood at night! We have not seen such a thing since Bilbo went away. What is the meaning of it?'
...'...we seem to be going the same way as you are. I like walking under the stars. But I would welcome your company.' [said Frodo]
...'But we have no need of other company, and hobbits are so dull,' they laughed. '...I am Gildor,' answered their leader, the Elf who had first hailed him. 'Gildor Inglorion of the House of Finrod... ...Come now, Frodo, tell us what you are doing. For we see that there is some shadow of fear upon you.'
...'O Wise People!' interrupted Pippin eagerly. 'Tell us about the Black Riders!'
...'Black Riders?' they said in low voices. 'Why do you ask about Black Riders?'
...'Because two Black Riders have overtaken us today, or one has done so twice' said Pippin, 'only a little while ago he slipped away as you drew near.'
...The Elves did not answer at once, but spoke together softly in their own tongue. At length Gildor turned to the hobbits. 'We will not speak of this here... ...We think you had best come now with us. It is not our custom, but for this time we will take you on our road, and you shall lodge with us tonight, if you will.'
...'O Fair Folk! This is good fortune beyond my hope,' said Pippin. Sam was speechless. 'I thank you indeed, Gildor Inglorion,' said Frodo bowing. 'Elen síla lúmenn omentilmo, a star shines on the hour of our meeting.' he added in the high elven-speech.
...'Be careful, friends!' cried Gildor laughing. 'Speak no secrets! Here is a scholar in the Ancient Tongue. Bilbo was a good master. Hail, Elf-friend!' he said, bowing to Frodo. 'Come now with your friends and join our company! You had best walk in the middle so that you may not stray….'

...…Sam could never describe in words, nor picture clearly to himself, what he felt or thought that night, though it remained in his memory as one of the chief events of his life. The nearest he ever got was to say: 'Well, sir, if I could grow apples like that, I would call myself a gardener. But it was the singing that went to my heart, if you know what I mean.'"


September 24, 2014
100 years of Middle-earth
...Today marks 100 years since Middle-earth first came into being. On 24 September 1914, Tolkien wrote the poem ‘The Voyage of Éarendel the Evening Star’. It was, as Christopher Tolkien described it, “the first of the mythology”.


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TIME - September 25
Today in Middle-earth

September 25, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Sauron appears in Mordor
(not from the appendices)
...[Mordor!!] "That name the hobbits only knew in legends of the dark past, like a shadow in the background of their memories, but it was ominous and disquieting. It seemed that the evil power in Mirkwood had been driven out by the White Council only to reappear in great strength in the old strongholds of Mordor. The Dark Tower had been rebuilt... ...From there the power was spreading far and wide, and away far east and south there were wars and growing fear. Orcs were multiplying again in the mountains. Trolls were abroad, no longer dull-witted, but cunning and armed with dreadful weapons. And there were murmured hints of creatures more terrible than all these, but they had no name."


September 25, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. The hobbits come to Maggot's Farm.
(not from the appendices)
..."'I know these fields and this gate!' [Pippin] said. 'We are on old Farmer Maggot's land. That must be his farm away there in the trees.'
... 'One trouble after another!' said Frodo, looking nearly as much alarmed as if Pippin had declared the lane was the slot leading to a dragon's den....
... 'What's wrong with old Maggot?' asked Pippin. 'He's a good friend to all the Brandybucks. Of course he's a terror to trespassers, and keeps ferocious dogs—but after all, folk down here are near the border and have to be more on their guard.'
... 'I know... ...I am terrified of him and his dogs. I have avoided his farm for years and years. He caught me several times trespassing after mushrooms, when I was a youngster at Brandy Hall. On the last occasion he beat me, and then took me and showed me to his dogs. "See, lads," he said, "next time this young varmint sets foot on my land, you can eat him…'

...…Suddenly as they drew nearer a terrific baying and barking broke out, and a loud voice was heard shouting: 'Grip! Fang! Wolf! Come on, lads!'
...Frodo and Sam stopped dead, but Pippin walked on a few paces. The gate opened and three huge dogs came pelting out into the lane, and dashed towards the travellers, barking fiercely…. …Through the gate there now appeared a broad thick-set hobbit with a round red face. 'Hallo! Hallo! And who may you be, and what may you be wanting?' he asked.
... 'Good afternoon, Mr. Maggot!' said Pippin.
...The farmer looked at him closely. 'Well, if it isn't Master Pippin--Mr. Peregrin Took, I should say!' he cried, changing from a scowl to a grin... '…It's lucky for you that I know you. I was just going out to set my dogs on any strangers. There are some funny things going on today. Of course, we do get queer folk wandering in these parts… …But this fellow was the most outlandish I have ever set eyes on….'
'…What fellow do you mean?' asked Pippin.
'Then you haven't seen him?' said the farmer. 'He went up the lane towards the causeway not a long while back. He was a funny customer and asking funny questions…'

...…Pippin introduced the other two to the farmer. 'Mr. Frodo Baggins,' he said. 'You may not remember him, but he used to live at Brandy Hall.' At the name Baggins the farmer started, and gave Frodo a sharp glance. For a moment Frodo thought that the memory of stolen mushrooms had been aroused, and that the dogs would be told to see him off. But Farmer Maggot took him by the arm.
...'Well, if that isn't queerer than ever!' he exclaimed. 'Mr. Baggins is it? Come inside! We must have a talk… …What do you think that funny customer asked me?' "…Have you seen Baggins?" he asked in a queer voice, and bent down towards me. I could not see any face, for his hood fell down so low; and I felt a sort of shiver down my back. But I did not see why he should come riding over my land so bold."
...'"Be off!" I said. "There are no Bagginses here. You're in the wrong part of the Shire. You had better go back west to Hobbiton--but you can go by road this time...."'

...…Maggot looked at [Frodo] thoughtfully. 'Well, I see you have ideas of your own,' he said. 'It is as plain as my nose that no accident brought you and that rider here on the same afternoon; and maybe my news was no great news to you, after all. I am not asking you to tell me anything you have a mind to keep to yourself; but I can see you are in some kind of trouble. Perhaps you are thinking it won't be too easy to get to the Ferry without being caught?'
...'I was thinking so... ....I am afraid we must be going. Thank you very much indeed for your kindness! I've been in terror of you and your dogs for over thirty years, Farmer Maggot, though you may laugh to hear it. It's a pity: for I've missed a good friend....'
...'...You'll be welcome when you come,' said Maggot. 'But now I've a notion… …after a bit of supper, I'll get out a small waggon, and I'll drive you all to the Ferry. That will save you a good step, and it might also save you trouble of another sort.'
...Frodo now accepted the invitation gratefully, to the relief of Pippin and Sam....

... …They reached the entrance to the Ferry lane at last…. …They were just beginning to scramble out, when suddenly they heard what they had all been dreading: hoofs on the road ahead. The sound was coming towards them….
...'…You'd better be hidden, Mr. Frodo,' said Sam anxiously. 'You get down in the waggon and cover up with blankets, and we'll send this rider to the rightabouts!' He climbed out and went to the farmer's side. Black Riders would have to ride over him to get near the waggon.
... Clop-clop, clop-clop. The rider was nearly on them.
...'Hallo there!' called Farmer Maggot. The advancing hoofs stopped short. They thought they could dimly guess a dark cloaked shape in the mist, a yard or two ahead.
...'Now then!' said the farmer... 'Don't you come a step nearer! What do you want and where are you going?'
...'I want Mr. Baggins. Have you seen him?' said a muffled voice...."

2. The Conspiracy Unmasked
(not from the appendices)
..."'It's coming out in a minute,' whispered Pippin to Merry. Merry nodded.
...'Well!' said Frodo at last, sitting up and straightening his back, as if he had made a decision. 'I can't keep it dark any longer. I have got something to tell you all. But I don't know quite how to begin.'
...'I think I could help you,' said Merry quietly, 'by telling you some of it myself.'
...'What do you mean?' said Frodo, looking at him anxiously.
...'Just this, my dear old Frodo: you are miserable, because you don't know how to say good-bye. You meant to leave the Shire, of course. But danger has come on you sooner than you expected, and now you are making up your mind to go at once... ...We know the Ring is no laughing matter; but we're going to do our best to help you against the Enemy.'
...'The Ring!' said Frodo, now completely amazed...

...'...we formed our own conspiracy... ...You are not a very easy nut to crack, and Gandalf is worse. But if you want to be introduced to our chief investigator, I can produce him.'
...'Where is he?' said Frodo, looking round, as if he expected a masked and sinister figure to come out of a cupboard.
...'Step forward, Sam!' said Merry; and Sam stood up with a face scarlet up to the ears. 'Here's our collector of information! And he collected a lot, I can tell you, before he was finally caught. After which, I may say, he seemed to regard himself as on parole, and dried up.'
...'Sam!' cried Frodo, feeling that amazement could go no further...' '…it does not seem that I can trust anyone…'
...'...It all depends on what you want,' put in Merry. 'You can trust us to stick to you through thick and thin—to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours—closer than you keep it yourself. But you cannot trust us to let you face trouble alone, and go off without a word. We are your friends, Frodo. Anyway: there it is. We know most of what Gandalf has told you. We know a good deal about the Ring. We are horribly afraid—but we are coming with you; or following you like hounds....'
...'...And after all, sir,' added Sam, 'you did ought to take the Elves' advice. Gildor said you should take them as was willing, and you can't deny it.'
...'I don't deny it,' said Frodo, looking at Sam, who was now grinning. 'I don't deny it, but I'll never believe you are sleeping again, whether you snore or not. I shall kick you hard to make sure.'"


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TIME - September 26
Today in Middle-earth

September 26, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. The Old Forest.
(from the appendices)
..."It was dark and damp. At the far end it was closed by a gate of thick-set iron bars. Merry got down and unlocked the gate, and when they had all passed through he pushed it to again. It shut with a clang, and the lock clicked. The sound was ominous.
...'There!' said Merry. 'You have left the Shire, and am now outside, and on the edge of the Old Forest.'"

..."...Sam sat down and scratched his head, and yawned like a cavern. He was worried. The afternoon was getting late, and he thought his sudden sleepiness uncanny. 'There's more behind this than sun and warm air,' he muttered to himself. 'I don't like this great big tree. I don't trust it. Hark at it singing about sleep now! This won't do at all...!'
......he heard two noises; one loud, and the other soft but very clear. One was the splash of something heavy falling into the water; the other was a noise like the snick of a lock when a door quietly closes fast.
...He rushed back to the bank. Frodo was in the water close to the edge, and a great tree-root seemed to be over him and holding him down, but he was not struggling. Sam gripped him by the jacket, and dragged him from under the root; and then with difficulty hauled him on to the bank. Almost at once he woke, and coughed and spluttered.
...'Do you know, Sam... ...the beastly tree threw me in...!'

... …They went round to the other side of the tree, and then Sam understood the click that he had heard. Pippin had vanished. The crack, by which he had laid himself, had closed together, so that not a chink could be seen. Merry was trapped: another crack had closed about his waist; his legs lay outside, but the rest of him was inside a dark opening, the edges of which gripped like a pair of pincers.
...Frodo and Sam beat first upon the tree-trunk where Pippin had lain. They then struggled frantically to pull open the jaws of the crack that held poor Merry. It was quite useless.
...'What a foul thing to happen!' cried Frodo wildly. 'Why did we ever come into this dreadful Forest?'"

2. Frodo comes to Bombadil.
(from the appendices)
..."[Frodo] ran along the path crying help! help! help…!
......Suddenly he stopped. There was an answer, or so he thought; but it seemed to come from behind him, away down the path further back in the Forest. He turned round and listened, and soon there could be no doubt: someone was singing a song; a deep glad voice was singing carelessly and happily, but it was singing nonsense:

Hey dol! merry dol! ring a dong dillo!
Ring a dong! hop along! fal lal the willow!
Tom Bom, jolly Tom, Tom Bombadillo!

...Half hopeful and half afraid of some new danger, Frodo and Sam now both stood still. Suddenly out of a long string of nonsense-words (or so they seemed) the voice rose up loud and clear and burst into this song...
......Frodo and Sam stood as if enchanted... ...suddenly, hopping and dancing along the path, there appeared above the reeds an old battered hat with a tall crown and a long blue feather stuck in the band. With another hop and a bound there came into view a man, or so it seemed... ...stumping along with great yellow boots on his thick legs, and charging through grass and rushes like a cow going down to drink....
...'...Help!' cried Frodo and Sam running towards him with their hands stretched out.

...'Whoa! Whoa! Steady there!' cried the old man, holding up one hand, and they stopped short, as if they had been struck stiff. 'Now, my little fellows, where be you a-going to, puffing like bellows? What's the matter here then? Do you know who I am? I'm Tom Bombadil....'"

3. Frodo dreams of Gandalf's capture while in the House of Bombadil.
(not from the appendices)
..."In the dead night, Frodo lay in a dream without light. Then he saw the young moon rising; under its thin light there loomed before him a black wall of rock, pierced by a dark arch like a great gate. It seemed to Frodo that he was lifted up, and passing over he saw that the rock-wall was a circle of hills… …within it was a plain, and in the midst of the plain stood a pinnacle of stone, like a vast tower but not made by hands. On its top stood the figure of a man. The moon as it rose seemed to hang for a moment above his head and glistened in his white hair as the wind stirred it. Up from the dark plain below came the crying of fell voices, and the howling of many wolves. Suddenly a shadow, like the shape of great wings, passed across the moon. The figure lifted his arms and a light flashed from the staff that he wielded. A mighty eagle swept down and bore him away. The voices wailed and the wolves yammered."


September 26, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. They rest in Rivendell
(not from the appendices)
..."...The four hobbits stayed in Rivendell for some days, and they sat much with their old friend, who spent most of his time now in his room, except at meals. For these he was still very punctual as a rule, and he seldom failed to wake up in time for them."


September 26, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. The Company rides to the Grey Havens.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...Dread lay on Sam's heart. Despite the enchanting songs of the Elven company as they made their way, the endless miles weighed heavier on him with each step. Yet when he would anxiously look over at Frodo riding beside him, he couldn't deny a peace on his friend's face that he hadn't seen since their return.

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TIME - September 27
Today in Middle-earth

September 27, 3001 (S.R. 1401)
1. Bilbo crosses the Shire
(not from the appendices-no text)
...Bilbo makes his way to Rivendell as Frodo and Hobbiton recover from the Long-Expected Party. Bilbo's mysterious disappearance, followed by Gandalf's, became the frenzied topic of conversation at the Green Dragon and every other pub and fence in the Shire.


September 27, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf crosses Greyflood.
(from the appendices)
..."Ever as I came north I heard tidings of the Riders, and though I gained on them day by day, they were ever before me."

2. In the house of Tom Bombadil.
(not from the appendices)
..."'Good morning, merry friends!' cried Tom, opening the eastern window wide. A cool air flowed in; it had a rainy smell. 'Sun won't show her face much today, I'm thinking.... ...Forget the nightly noises…! ...If you come soon you'll find breakfast on the table. If you come late you'll get grass and rain-water!'
...Needless to say—not that Tom's threat sounded very serious—the hobbits came soon, and left the table late and only when it was beginning to look rather empty.

......Frodo stood near the open door and watched the white chalky path turn into a little river of milk and go bubbling away down into the valley. Tom Bombadil came trotting round the corner of the house waving his arms as if he was warding off the rain—and indeed when he sprang over the threshold he seemed quite dry, except for his boots...

...'…This is Goldberry's washing day,' he said, 'and her autumn-cleaning. Too wet for hobbit-folk—let them rest while they are able! It's a good day for long tales, for questions and for answers, so Tom will start the talking.
...He then told them many remarkable stories, sometimes half as if speaking to himself, sometimes looking at them suddenly with a bright blue eye under his deep brows... ...As they listened, they began to understand the lives of the Forest, apart from themselves, indeed to feel themselves as the strangers where all other things were at home...
......Then suddenly he stopped, and they saw that he nodded as if he was falling asleep. The hobbits sat still before him, enchanted... ...Whether the morning and evening of one day or of many days had passed Frodo could not tell. He did not feel either hungry or tired, only filled with wonder... ...He spoke at last out of his wonder and a sudden fear of that silence:
...'Who are you, Master?' he asked.
...'Eh, what?' said Tom sitting up, and his eyes glinting in the gloom. 'Don't you know my name yet? That's the only answer. Tell me, who are you, alone, yourself and nameless? But you are young and I am old. Eldest, that's what I am... ...Tom was here before the river and the trees; Tom remembers the first raindrop and the first acorn. He made paths before the Big People, and saw the little People arriving. He was here before the Kings and the graves and the Barrow-wights. When the Elves passed westward, Tom was here already, before the seas were bent. He knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless—before the Dark Lord came from Outside...'

......'Show me the precious Ring!' he said suddenly in the midst of the story: and Frodo, to his own astonishment, drew out the chain from his pocket, and unfastening the Ring handed it at once to Tom.
...It seemed to grow larger as it lay... ...on his big brown-skinned hand. Then suddenly he put it to his eye and laughed. For a second the hobbits had a vision both comical and alarming, of his bright blue eyes gleaming through a circle of gold. Then Tom put the Ring round the end of his little finger and held it up to the candlelight. For a moment the hobbits noticed nothing strange about this. Then they gasped. There was no sign of Tom disappearing!
...Tom laughed again, and then he spun the Ring in the air—and it vanished with a flash. Frodo gave a cry—and Tom leaned forward and handed it back to him with a smile.
...Frodo looked at it closely, and rather suspiciously... ...He was perhaps a trifle annoyed with Tom for seeming to make so light of what even Gandalf thought so perilously important. He waited for an opportunity when the talk was going again... ...then he slipped the Ring on. Merry turned towards him to say something and gave a start, and checked an exclamation. Frodo was delighted (in a way)... ...He got up and crept quietly away from the fireside towards the outer door.
...'Hey there!' cried Tom, glancing towards him with a most seeing look in his shining eyes. 'Hey! come Frodo, there! Where be you a-going? Old Tom Bombadil's not as blind as that yet. Take off your golden ring! Your hand's more fair without it. Come back! Leave your game and sit down beside me! We must talk a while more, and think about the morning. Tom must teach the right road, and keep your feet from wandering...'

......Then he taught them a rhyme to sing, if they should by ill-luck fall into any danger of difficulty the next day.

Ho! Tom Bombadil, Tom Bombadillo!
By water, wood and hill, by reed and willow,
by fire, sun and moon, harken now and hear us!
Come, Tom Bombadil, for our need is near us!"

September 27, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The Travellers are still on the road.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...The hobbits rest with Bilbo in Rivendell.


September 27, 3020 (S.R. 1420)
1. Fall comes to the Shire.
(not from the appendices)
..."Merry and Pippin lived together for some time at Crickhollow... ...The two young Travellers cut a great dash in the Shire with their songs and their tales… '…Lordly' folk called them, meaning nothing but good; for it warmed all hearts to see them go riding by… …laughing and singing songs of far away… …they were indeed more fairspoken and more jovial and full of merriment....
......Frodo and Sam, however, went back to ordinary attire… ...[Sam felt] some vague anxiety about his master. Frodo dropped quietly out of all the doing of the Shire…"


September 27, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. The Company rides to the Grey Havens.
(not from the appendices)
... "Elrond and Galadriel rode on; for the Third Age was over, and the Days of the Rings were passed, and an end was come to the story and song of those times. With them went many Elves of the High Kindred who would no longer stay in Middle-earth; and among them, filled with a sadness that was yet blessed and without bitterness, rode Sam, and Frodo, and Bilbo, and the Elves delighted to honour them.
... Though they rode through the midst of the Shire... ...all the night, none saw them pass, save the wild creatures; or here and there some wanderer in the dark who saw a swift shimmer under the trees, or a light and shadow flowing through the grass as the Moon went westward."


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Sep 28, 1:42pm


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TIME - September 28
Today in Middle-earth

1. Thorin and Company enjoy their stay in Lake-town.
(determined from text – no text - a drabble)
...Bilbo nurses a bad cold as he and the dwarves continue to enjoy the hospitality and praise of Lake-town's inhabitants. The hobbit was about as comfortable staying in a man-built house hovering over the water as he was in the eagles' eyrie. After the nearly disastrous ride down the river atop an unstable barrel, he was anxious for the dwarves to finish their business here and leave for the mountain. Even with the prospect of facing the worm Smaug, he wanted to get on with what they came to do and return to his own cozy hole under the hill.


September 28, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf reaches Sarn Ford.
(from the appendices)
[As Shadowfax goes through his paces, Gandalf races for Hobbiton from Rohan to intercept Frodo... fearing the worst.]
..."I reached the Shire when Frodo was on the Barrow-downs, though I set out from Rohan only when he set out from Hobbiton."

2. The Hobbits captured by a Barrow-wight.
(from the appendices)
..."...they woke suddenly and uncomfortably from a sleep they had never meant to take... ...The hobbits sprang to their feet in alarm, and ran to the western rim. They found that they were upon an island in the fog. Even as they looked out in dismay towards the setting sun, it sank before their eyes into a white sea, and a cold grey shadow sprang up in the East behind...
......Their going was very slow. To prevent their getting separated and wandering in different directions they went in file, with Frodo leading. Sam was behind him, and after him came Pippin, and then Merry. The valley seemed to stretch on endlessly....
...'…Come on! Follow me!' Frodo called back over his shoulder, and he hurried forward. But his hope soon changed to bewilderment and alarm. The dark patches grew darker but they shrank; and suddenly he saw, towering ominous before him and leaning slightly towards one another like the pillars of a headless door, two huge standing stones. He could not remember having seen any sign of these in the valley, when he looked out from the hill in the morning.... ...His pony reared and snorted, and he fell off. When he looked back he found that he was alone: the others had not followed him.
...'Sam!' he called. 'Pippin! Merry! Come along! Why don't you keep up?' There was no answer. Fear took him, and he ran back past the stones shouting wildly: 'Sam! Sam! Merry! Pippin!' The pony bolted into the mist and vanished. From some way off, or so it seemed, he thought he heard a cry: 'Hoy! Frodo! Hoy!' ...Then a cry that sounded like help, help! often repeated, ending with a last help! that trailed off into a long wail suddenly cut short. He stumbled forward with all the speed he could towards the cries; but the light was now gone, and clinging night had closed about him...

......To his right there loomed against the westward stars a dark black shape. A great barrow stood there.
...'Where are you?' he cried again, both angry and afraid.
...'Here!' said a voice, deep and cold, that seemed to come out of the ground. 'I am waiting for you!'
...'No!' said Frodo; but he did not run away. His knees gave, and he fell on the ground.... ...Then suddenly he knew that he was imprisoned, caught hopelessly; he was in a barrow. A Barrow-wight had taken him, and he was probably already under the dreadful spells of the Barrow-wights about which whispered tales spoke….

......As he lay there, thinking and getting a hold on himself, he noticed all at once that the darkness was slowly giving way: a pale greenish light was growing round him. It did not at first show him what kind of a place he was in, for the light seemed to be coming out of himself, and from the floor beside him, and had not yet reached the roof or wall. He turned, and there in the cold glow he saw lying beside him, Sam, Pippin, and Merry. They were on their backs, and their faces looked deathly pale; and they were clad in white. About them lay many treasures... ...Swords lay by their sides, and shields were at their feet. But across their three necks lay one long naked sword...

......At first Frodo felt as if he had indeed been turned into stone by the incantation... ...But the courage that had been awakened in him was now too strong... ...he seized a short sword that lay beside him, and kneeling he stooped low over the bodies of his companions. With what strength he had he hewed at the crawling arm near the wrist, and the hand broke off; but at the same moment the sword splintered up to the hilt....

......All at once back into his mind, from which it had disappeared with the first coming of the fog, came the memory of the house down under the Hill, and of Tom singing. He remembered the rhyme that Tom had taught them. In a small desperate voice he began: Ho! Tom Bombadil! and with that name his voice seemed to grow strong: it had a full and lively sound, and the dark chamber echoed as if to drum and trumpet.

Ho! Tom Bombadil, Tom Bombadillo!
By water, wood and hill, by the reed and willow,
By fire, sun and moon, harken now and hear us!
Come, Tom Bombadil, for our need is near us!

......There was a loud rumbling sound, as of stones rolling and falling, and suddenly light streamed in, real light, the plain light of day. A low door-like opening appeared at the end of the chamber beyond Frodo's feet; and there was Tom's head (hat, feather, and all)... '...Come, friend Frodo!' said Tom. 'Let us get out on to the clean grass! You must help me bear them.' Together they carried out Merry, Pippin, and Sam... ...To Frodo's great joy the hobbits stirred, stretched their arms, rubbed their eyes, and then suddenly sprang up. They looked about in amazement, first at Frodo, and then at Tom standing large as life on the barrow-top above them...

......For each of the hobbits he chose a dagger, long, leaf-shaped, and keen, of marvellous workmanship, damasked with serpent-forms in red and gold. They gleamed as he drew them from their black sheaths, wrought of some strange metal, light and strong, and set with many fiery stones... '...these blades were forged many long years ago by Men of Westernesse: they were foes of the Dark Lord, but they were overcome by the evil king of Carn Dum in the Land of Angmar. Few now remember them,' Tom murmured, 'yet still some go wandering, sons of forgotten kings walking in loneliness, guarding from evil things folk that are heedless.'
...The hobbits did not understand his words, but as he spoke they had a vision as it were of a great expanse of years behind them, like a vast shadowy plain over which there strode shapes of Men, tall and grim with bright swords, and last came one with a star on his brow. Then the vision faded..."


September 28, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. The Company rides to the Grey Havens.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...Sam was quiet as he rode beside Frodo who was also silent and reflective. The terrain was changing and there was a scent of the sea in the air. Sam struggled with thoughts of what to say or do to try and change Frodo's purpose, but he knew his master's mind was set. Thinking back he considered how for months he failed to recognize Frodo's pain and discontent as signs that there was no hope of healing for him in the Shire.


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TIME - September 29
Today in Middle-earth

September 29, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The company of Thorin recovers in Lake-town.
(determined from text)
... "...within a week they were quite recovered, fitted out in fine cloth of their proper colours, with beards combed and trimmed, and proud steps. Thorin looked and walked as if his kingdom was already regained and Smaug chopped up into little pieces….
...... the dwarves' good feeling towards the little hobbit grew stronger... ...There were no more groans or grumbles. They drank his health, and they patted him on the back, and they made a great fuss of him; which was just as well, for he was not feeling particularly cheerful. He had not forgotten the look of the Mountain, nor the thought of the dragon, and he had besides a shocking cold... ...his speeches at banquets were limited to "Thag you very buch.""


September 29, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Frodo reaches Bree at night.
(from the appendices)
..."...Even from the outside the inn looked a pleasant house to familiar eyes... ...Over the door was painted in white letters: THE PRANCING PONY by BARLIMAN BUTTERBUR.... ...Frodo went forward and nearly bumped into a short fat man with a bald head and a red face... '...Half a minute, if you please!' shouted the man over his shoulder, and vanished into a babel of voices and a cloud of smoke. In a moment he was out again, wiping his hands on his apron.
...'Good evening, little master!' he said, bending down. 'What may you be wanting?'
...'Beds for four, and stabling for five ponies, if that can be managed. Are you Mr. Butterbur?'
...'That's right! Barliman is my name! Barliman Butterbur at your service! You're from the Shire, eh...? ...Hobbits!' he cried. 'Now what does that remind me of...?'

......The landlord hovered round for a little, and then proposed to leave them. 'I don't know whether you would care to join the company, when you have supped,' he said... '...We don't get Outsiders—travellers from the Shire, I should say, begging your pardon...'
......Frodo, Pippin and Sam decided to join the company. Merry said it would be too stuffy. 'I shall sit here quietly by the fire for a bit, and perhaps go out later for a sniff of the air. Mind your Ps and Qs, and don't forget that you are supposed to be escaping in secret...'
......As soon as the Shire-hobbits entered, there was a chorus of welcome from the Bree-landers. The strangers, especially those that had come up the Greenway, stared at them curiously.... ...Sam and Pippin, where were now feeling quite at home, and were chatting gaily about events in the Shire....
......Suddenly Frodo noticed that a strange-looking weather-beaten man, sitting in the shadows near the wall, was also listening intently to the hobbit-talk. He had a tall tankard in front of him, and was smoking a long-stemmed pipe curiously carved. His legs were stretched out before him, showing high boots of supple leather that fitted him well, but had seen much wear and were now caked with mud. A travel-stained cloak of heavy dark-green cloth was drawn close about him, and in spite of the heat of the room he wore a hood that overshadowed his face; but the gleam of his eyes could be seen as he watched the hobbits.
...'Who is that?' Frodo asked, when he got a chance to whisper to Mr. Butterbur...
...'Him?' said the landlord... ...cocking an eye without turning his head. 'I don't rightly know. He is one of the wandering folk—Rangers we call them. He seldom talks: not but what he can tell a rare tale when he has the mind. He disappears for a month, or a year, and then he pops up again. He was in and out pretty often last spring; but I haven't seen him about lately. What his right name is I've never heard: but he's known round here as Strider. Goes about at a great pace on his long shanks...' ...Frodo found that Strider was now looking at him..."

2. Gandalf visits the Gaffer.
(from the appendices)
..."But fear grew in me as I rode. Ever as I came north I heard tidings of the Riders, and though I gained on them day by day, they were ever before me. They had divided their forces... ...some remained on the eastern borders, not from the Greenway, and some invaded the Shire from the south. I came to Hobbiton and Frodo had gone; but I had words with old Gamgee. Many words and few to the point. He had much to say about the short-comings of the new owners of Bag End... ...I gathered at last that Frodo had left Hobbiton less than a week before, and that a black horseman had come to the Hill the same evening. Then I rode on in fear...'"


September 29, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. They come to the Grey Havens.
(from the appendices)
..."...they came to the Far Downs, and to the Towers, and looked on the distant Sea; and so they rode down at last to Mithlond, to the Grey Havens in the long firth of Lune.
...As they came to the gates Círdan the Shipwright came forth to greet them... ...and he looked at them and bowed, and said: 'All is now ready.'
...Then Círdan led them to the Havens, and there was a white ship lying, and upon the quay… …stood a figure robed all in white awaiting them. As he turned and came towards them Frodo saw that it was Gandalf; and on his hand he wore the Third Ring, Narya the Great, and the stone upon it was red as fire. Then those who were to go were glad, for they knew that Gandalf also would take ship with them."

2. Frodo and Bilbo depart over the Sea with the Three Keepers.
(from the appendices)
..."But Sam was now sorrowful at heart, and it seemed to him that if the parting would be bitter, more grievous still would be the long road home alone. But even as they stood there, and the Elves were going aboard, and all was being made ready to depart, up rode Merry and Pippin in great haste. And amid his tears Pippin laughed.
...'You tried to give us the slip once before and failed, Frodo... ...This time you have nearly succeeded... ...It was not Sam, though, that gave you away this time, but Gandalf himself!'
...'Yes,' said Gandalf; 'for it will be better to ride back three together than one alone. Well, here at last, dear friends, on the shores of the Sea comes the end of our fellowship in Middle-earth. Go in peace! I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil.'
...Then Frodo kissed Merry and Pippin, and last of all Sam, and went aboard; and the sails were drawn up, and the wind blew, and slowly the ship slipped away... ...the light of the glass of Galadriel that Frodo bore glimmered and was lost. And the ship went out into the High Sea and passed on into the West...

......to Sam the evening deepened to darkness as he stood at the Haven; and as he looked at the grey sea he saw only a shadow on the waters... ...There still he stood far into the night, hearing only the sigh and murmur of the waves on the shores of Middle-earth, and the sound of them sank deep into his heart. Beside him stood Merry and Pippin, and they were silent.
...At last the three companions turned away, and never again looking back they rode slowly homewards; and they spoke no word to one another until they came back to the Shire, but each had great comfort in his friends on the long grey road."

3. The end of the Third age.
(from the appendices)
..."...The Third Age was over, and the Days of the rings were passed, and an end was come of the story and song of those times. With them went many Elves of the High Kindred who would no longer stay in Middle-earth..."

...”...at last on a night of rain Frodo smelled a sweet fragrance on the air and heard the sound of singing that came over the water. And then it seemed to him that as in his dream in the house of Bombadil, the grey rain-curtain turned all to silver glass and was rolled back, and he beheld white shores and beyond them a far green country under a swift sunrise."


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TIME - September 30
Today in Middle-earth

September 30, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. There is excitement in the Elvenking's palace.
(determined from text)
..."In the meanwhile the Wood-elves had gone back up the Forest River with their cargoes, and there was great excitement in the king's palace... "


September 30, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Crickhollow and the Inn at Bree are raided in the early hours.
(from the appendices)
..."Fatty Bolger opened the door cautiously and peered out... ...As he stared out into the gloom, a black shadow moved under the trees... ...Terror seized him. He shrank back, and for a moment he stood trembling in the hall. Then he shut and locked the door...
......Outside the gate... ...three black figures entered, like shades of night creeping across the ground. One went to the door, one to the corner of the house on either side...
...'...Open, in the name of Mordor!' said a voice thin and menacing...
......the door yielded and fell back, with timbers burst and lock broken. The black figures passed swiftly in.
...At that moment, among the trees nearby, a horn rang out. It rent the night like fire on a hill-top.

AWAKE! FEAR! FIRE! FOES! AWAKE!

...Fatty Bolger had not been idle... ...he knew that he must run for it, or perish. And run he did... ...he reached the nearest house, more than a mile away, he collapsed on the doorstep. 'No, no, no!' he was crying.... ...At last they got the idea that enemies were in Buckland, some strange invasion from the Old Forest. And then they lost no more time.

FEAR! FIRE! FOES!

...The Brandybucks were blowing the Horn-call of Buckland, that had not sounded for a hundred years, not since the white wolves came in the Fell Winter, when the Brandywine was frozen over.

FEAR! FIRE! FOES!

...Far-away answering horns were heard. The alarm was spreading.
...The black figures fled from the house. One of them let fall a hobbit-cloak on the step, as he ran. In the lane the noise of hoofs broke out, and gathering to a gallop, went hammering away into the darkness. All about Crickhollow there was the sound of horns blowing, and voices crying and feet running. But the Black Riders rode like a gale to the North Gate. Let the little people blow! Sauron would deal with them later...

......In the early night Frodo woke from deep sleep, suddenly, as if some sound or presence had disturbed him. He saw that Strider was sitting alert in his chair: his eyes gleamed in the light of the fire... ...Frodo soon went to sleep again; but his dreams were again troubled with the noise of wind and of galloping hoofs...
......As soon as Strider had roused them all, he led the way to their bedrooms. When they saw them they were glad that they had taken his advice: the windows had been forced open and were swinging, and the curtains were flapping; the beds were tossed about, and the bolsters slashed and flung upon the floor... '...We will leave at once,' said Strider. 'Never mind about breakfast: a drink and a bite standing will have to do. We shall be packed in a few minutes....'
......The ponies had vanished! The stable-doors had all been opened in the night, and they were gone... ...Strider sat silent for a while, looking at the hobbits, as if he was weighing up their strength and courage. 'Ponies would not help us to escape horsemen,' he said at last, thoughtfully, as if he guessed what Frodo had in mind. 'We should not go much slower on foot, not on the roads that I mean to take. I was going to walk in any case. It is the food and stores that trouble me.... ...How much are you prepared to carry on your backs?'
...'As much as we must,' said Pippin with a sinking heart, but trying to show that he was tougher than he looked (or felt). 'I can carry enough for two,' said Sam defiantly...'
......No horse or pony was to be got for love or money in the neighbourhood—except one: Bill Ferny had one that he might possibly sell. 'A poor old half-starved creature it is,' said Bob; 'but he won't part with it for less than thrice its worth, seeing how you're placed, not if I knows Bill Ferny...'"

2. Frodo leaves Bree.
(from the appendices)
... "...They said goodbye to Nob and Bob, and took leave of Mr. Butterbur with many thanks... ...Sam was chewing an apple thoughtfully. He had a pocket full of them... '...Apples for walking, and a pipe for sitting,' he said. 'But I reckon I'll miss them both before long...' ...Over the hedge another man was staring boldly... '...Morning, Longshanks!' he said. 'Off early? Found some friends at last?' Strider nodded, but did not answer.
...'Morning, my little friends!' he said to the others. 'I suppose you know who you've taken up with? That's Stick-at-nought Strider, that is! Though I've heard other names not so pretty. Watch out tonight! And you, Sammie, don't go ill-treating my poor old pony! Pah!' He spat again.
...Sam turned quickly. 'And you, Ferny,' he said, 'put your ugly face out of sight, or it will get hurt.' With a sudden flick, quick as lightning, an apple left his hand and hit Bill square on the nose. He ducked too late, and curses came from behind the hedge. 'Waste of a good apple,' said Sam regretfully, and strode on."

3. Gandalf comes to Crickhollow, and reaches Bree at night.
(from the appendices)
... "'...I came to Buckland and found it in uproar, as busy as a hive of ants that has been stirred with a stick. I came to the house at Crickhollow, and it was broken open and empty; but on the threshold there lay a cloak that had been Frodo's. Then for a while hope left me, and I did not wait to gather news, or I might have been comforted; but I rode on the trail of the Riders. It was hard to follow, for it went many ways... ...But it seemed to me that one or two had ridden towards Bree; and that way I went, for I thought of words that might be said to the innkeeper.' "Butterbur they call him," thought I. "If this delay was his fault, I will melt all the butter in him. I will roast the old fool over a slow fire." He expected no less, and when he saw my face he fell down flat and began to melt on the spot...'
...'…So overjoyed was I by the news that I got out of him, when he stopped quaking, that I embraced the old fellow... ...I learned that you had gone off that morning with Strider....' '"Ass! Fool! Thrice worthy and beloved Barliman!" said I. "It's the best news I have had since midsummer: it's worth a gold piece at the least. May your beer be laid under an enchantment of surpassing excellence for seven years!"'"


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TIME - October 1
Today in Middle-earth

October 1, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. It was nearing time to leave.
(determined from text-no text)
...Bilbo was finally over his cold. While Thorin and the Dwarves seemed in no rush to get underway, he grew restless to finally leave for the Lonely Mountain forever looming in the distance. He longed for the comfort of his hole under the hill and familiar surroundings.


October 1, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf leaves Bree.
(from the appendices)
..."'So I stayed there that night, wondering much what had become of the Riders; for only of two had there yet been any news in Bree, it seemed. But in the night we heard more. Five at least came from the west, and they threw down the gates and passed through Bree like a howling wind; and the Bree-folk are still shivering and expecting the end of the world. I got up before dawn and went after them....
......it seems clear to me that this is what happened. Their Captain remained in secret away south of Bree, while two rode ahead through the village, and four more invaded the Shire. But when these were foiled in Bree and at Crickhollow, they returned to their Captain with tidings, and so left the Road unguarded for a while except by their spies. The Captain sent some eastward straight across country, and he himself with the rest rode along the Road in great wrath.'"

2. But where's he leadin' us? [Aragorn makes for Weathertop]
(not from the appendices)
..."Whether because of Strider's skill or for some other reason, they saw no sign and heard no sound of any other living thing... ...they began to steer a steady course eastwards; and still all was quiet and peaceful."


October 1, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The hobbits rest with Bilbo in Rivendell.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...Bilbo never tired of watching the hobbits' awe with every new discovery as he guided them to another garden or workshop. Sam was delighted to finally learn how to make elven rope.


October 1, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. The Hobbits ride home from the Havens.
(not from the appendices)
..."...they rode slowly homewards and spoke very little; but each took great comfort in his friends on the long grey road."


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TIME - October 2
Today in Middle-earth

October 2, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. The hobbits and Strider leave Chetwood.
(not from the appendices)
..."...they came out of the Chetwood. The land had been falling steadily, ever since they turned aside from the Road, and they now entered a wide flat expanse of country, much more difficult to manage. They were far beyond the borders of the Bree-land, out in the pathless wilderness, and drawing near to the Midgewater Marshes.
...The ground now became damp, and in places boggy... ...and wide stretches of reeds and rushes filled with the warbling of little hidden birds. They had to pick their way carefully to keep both dry-footed and on their proper course. At first they made fair progress, but as they went on, their passage became slower and more dangerous. The marshes were bewildering and treacherous, and there was no permanent trail even for Rangers to find through their shifting quagmires. The flies began to torment them, and the air was full of clouds of tiny midges that crept up their sleeves and breeches and into their hair.
...'I am being eaten alive!' cried Pippin. 'Midgewater! There are more midges than water!'
...'What do they live on when they can't get hobbit?' asked Sam, scratching his neck."


October 2, 3020 (S.R. 1420)
1. Sam enjoys being home in his Shire.
(not from the appendices)
..."All things now went well, with hope always of becoming still better; and Sam was as busy and as full of delight as even a hobbit could wish. Nothing for him marred that whole year, except for some vague anxiety about his master."


October 2, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. Sam's long ride home from the Havens.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...Sam's mind wandered as he rode silently next to Pippin. He thought of the time that had passed since their return from Rivendell. Frodo seemed healed and at peace during their long stay with Bilbo in Imladris, but since they left that realm, Sam knew he suffered from unrest. Why would Frodo hide from him the depth of his wounds? There must have been something he could have done to ease his burden.


October 2, 1980
Tolkien's Unfinished Tales first published.
[40th Anniversary of publication in 2020]



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TIME - October 3
Today in Middle-earth

October 3, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Into the wild...and into the marshes.
(not from the appendices)
..."...They spent a miserable day in this lonely and unpleasant country. Their camping-place was damp, cold, and uncomfortable; and the biting insects would not let them sleep. There were also abominable creatures haunting the reeds and tussocks that from the sound of them were evil relatives of the cricket (wetas?). There were thousands of them, and they squeaked all round, neek-breek, breek-neek, unceasingly all the night, until the hobbits were nearly frantic....

......Though the neekerbreekers had been left behind, the midges still pursued them. As Frodo lay tired but unable to close his eyes, it seemed to him that far away there came a light in the eastern sky: it flashed and faded many times. It was not the dawn, for that was still some hours off.
...'What is the light?' he said to Strider, who had risen, and was standing, gazing ahead into the night.
...'I do not know,' Strider answered. 'It is too distant to make out... ...like lightning that leaps up from the hilltops.'
...Frodo lay down again, but for a long while he could still see the white flashes, and against them the tall dark figure of Strider, standing silent and watchful. At last he passed into uneasy sleep."

2. He (Gandalf) is attacked at night on Weathertop.
(from the appendices)
..."'I galloped to Weathertop like a gale, and I reached it before sundown on my second day from Bree—and they were there before me. They drew away from me, for they felt the coming of my anger and they dared not face it while the Sun was in the sky. But they closed round at night, and I was besieged on the hill-top, in the old ring of Amon Sûl. I was hard put to it indeed: such light and flame cannot have been seen on Weathertop since the war-beacons of old.'"

[He left clues:]
..."'...I should say,' answered Strider, 'that [the marks] stood for G3, and were a sign that Gandalf was here on October the third... ...It would also show that he was in a hurry and danger was at hand, so that he had no time or did not dare to write anything longer or plainer. If that is so, we must be wary.'
...'I wish we could feel sure that he made the marks, whatever they may mean,' said Frodo. 'It would be a great comfort to know that he was on the way, in front of us or behind us.'"


October 3, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Sam and Frodo feel the call to leave Rivendell.
(not from the appendices)
..."'Well, Mr. Frodo, we've been far and seen a deal, and yet I don't think we've found a better place than this. There's something of everything here, if you understand me: the Shire and the Golden Wood and Gondor and Kings' houses and inns and meadows and mountains all mixed. And yet... ...I feel we ought to be going soon. I'm worried about my gaffer, to tell you the truth.'
...'Yes, something of everything, Sam, except the Sea,' Frodo had answered; and he repeated it now to himself: 'Except the Sea.'"


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TIME - October 4
Today in Middle-earth

October 4, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf leaves Weathertop and rides to Rivendell.
(from the appendices)
..."'At sunrise I escaped and fled towards the north. I could not hope to do more. It was impossible to find you... ...and it would have been folly to try with all the Nine at my heels. So I had to trust to Aragorn. But I hoped to draw some of them off, and yet reach Rivendell ahead of you and send out help. Four Riders did indeed follow me, but they turned back after a while and made for the Ford, it seems. That helped a little, for there were only five, not nine, when your camp was attacked.'"


October 4, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The hobbits reach the end of their rest in Rivendell.
(not from the appendices)
..."When nearly a fortnight had passed Frodo looked out of his window... ...suddenly he knew that he must go, and say good-bye to Bilbo.... ...He had a feeling that it was time he went back to the Shire. Sam shared it....
...In the evening they went to say good-bye to Bilbo. 'Well, if you must go... ...I am sorry, I shall miss you. It is nice just to know that you are about the place. But I am getting very sleepy.' Then he gave Frodo his mithril-coat and Sting, forgetting that he had already done so; and he gave him also three books of lore that he had made at various times, written in his spidery hand, and labelled on their red backs: Translations from the Elvish, by B. B.
...To Sam he gave a little bag of gold. 'Almost the last drop of the Smaug vintage... ...May come in useful, if you think of getting married, Sam.' Sam blushed.
...'I have nothing much to give to you young fellows,' he said to Merry and Pippin, 'except good advice.' And when he had given them a fair sample of this, he added a last item in Shire-fashion: 'Don't let your heads get too big for your hats... ...you are going to find hats and clothes expensive.'
...'But if you want to beat the Old Took,' said Pippin, 'I don't see why we shouldn't try and beat the Bullroarer.'
...Bilbo laughed, and he produced out a pocket two beautiful pipes with pearl mouth-pieces and bound with fine-wrought silver. 'Think of me when you smoke them... ...The Elves made them for me, but I don't smoke now.' And suddenly he nodded and went to sleep for a little; and when he woke up again he said: 'Now where were we? Yes, of course, giving presents. Which reminds me: what's become of my ring, Frodo, that you took away?'
...'I have lost it, Bilbo dear,' said Frodo. 'I got rid of it, you know.'
...'What a pity!' said Bilbo. 'I should have liked to see it again. But no, how silly of me! That's what you went for, wasn't it: to get rid of it? But it is all so confusing...'"


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TIME - October 5
Today in Middle-earth

October 5, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The Elven King suspected the Dwarves' intentions.
(determined from text)
..."[Thranduil] knew now the dwarves' errand, or thought he did, and he said to himself:
..... "Very well! We'll see! No treasure will come back through Mirkwood without my having something to say in the matter. But I expect they will all come to a bad end, and serve them right!" He... ...did not believe in the dwarves fighting and killing dragons like Smaug, and he strongly suspected attempted burglary or something like it—which shows he was a wise elf and wiser than the men of the town, though not quite right... ...He sent out his spies about the shores of the lake and as far northward towards the Mountains as they would go, and waited."


October 5, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf draws the Nazgûl away from Weathertop.
(not from the appendices)
..."'I hoped to draw some of them off... ...Four Riders did indeed follow me...'"

2. Day six in the Wild
(not from the appendices)
..."'...they left the last straggling pools and reed-beds of the marshes behind them... ...Away in the distance eastward they could now see a line of hills. The highest of them was at the right of the line and a little separated from the others. It had a conical top, slightly flattened at the summit.
...'That is Weathertop,' said Strider. 'The Old Road, which we have left far away on our right, runs to the south of it and passes not far from its foot. We might reach it by noon tomorrow, if we go straight towards it. I suppose we had better do so.'
...'What do you mean?' asked Frodo.
...'I mean: when we do get there, it is not certain what we shall find. It is close to the Road.'
...'But surely we were hoping to find Gandalf there?'
...'Yes; but the hope is faint... ...it is not safe for him or for us to wait there long... ...there are many birds and beasts in the country that could see us, as we stand here, from that hilltop. Not all the birds are to be trusted, and there are other spies more evil than they are.'
...The hobbits looked anxiously at the distant hills. Sam looked up into the pale sky, fearing to see hawks or eagles hovering over them with bright unfriendly eyes. 'You do make me feel uncomfortable and lonesome, Strider!' he said."


October 5, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The hobbits' last visit with Bilbo (continued)
(not from the appendices)
... "The evening deepened in the room, and the firelight burned brighter; and they looked at Bilbo as he slept and saw that his face was smiling. For some time they sat in silence… …then Sam looking round at the room… …said softly:
... 'I don't think, Mr. Frodo, that he's done much writing while we've been away. He won't ever write our story now.'
... At that Bilbo opened an eye, almost as if he had heard… …'You see, I am getting so sleepy,' he said. 'And when I have time to write, I only really like writing poetry. I wonder, Frodo my dear fellow, if you would very much mind tidying things up a bit before you go? Collect all my notes and papers, and my diary too, and take them with you… …Get Sam to help, and when you've knocked things into shape, come back, and I'll run over it. I won't be too critical.'
... 'Of course I'll do it!' said Frodo. 'And of course I'll come back soon: it won't be dangerous any more. There is a real king now, and he will soon put the roads in order.'
... 'Thank you, my dear fellow!' said Bilbo. 'That really is a very great relief to my mind.' And with that he fell fast asleep again."


October 5, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. The Grey Havens are left behind, the Shire lies ahead.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...The hobbits were in familiar lands now coming to their last evening of travel. While Pippin and Merry prepared camp for the night, Sam wandered down to a nearby stream. He was still troubled and thought a splash of cold water would clear his mind. As he washed his face and the back of his neck, he raised up and caught his reflection on the water's surface. Lingering, he found himself studying the small scar near his hairline. It stirred thoughts of Frodo stabbed with a poisoned blade by the Nazgul riding long through the Wild; lying stricken for days in Rivendell; lying lifeless from a poisonous sting; bound and whipped in a darkened filthy room high in the tower; struggling through Mordor's brutal lands under the torment of the Eye and the Ring. Sam understood that there was nothing he could do to change what had happened or what was happening. He realized Frodo's choice was the only one left for him.
...He stood for a moment and sighed while looking at the glowing image of the moon and stars reflected on the calm water. Then he turned and walked back to join the others.


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TIME - October 6
Today in Middle-earth

October 6, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Thorin requests supplies
(determined from text)
..."At the end of a fortnight Thorin began to think of departure. While the enthusiasm still lasted in the town was the time to get help. It would not do to let everything cool down with delay. So he spoke to the Master... ...and said that soon he and his company must go on towards the Mountain.
...Then for the first time the Master was surprised and a little frightened; and he wondered if Thorin was after all really a descendant of the old kings. He had never thought that the dwarves would actually dare to approach Smaug... ...He was wrong. Thorin, of course, was really the grandson of the King under the Mountain, and there is no knowing what a dwarf will not dare and do for revenge or the recovery of his own.
...But the Master was not sorry at all to let them go. They were expensive to keep, and their arrival had turned things into a long holiday in which business was at a standstill. "Let them go and bother Smaug, and see how he welcomes them!" he thought. "Certainly, O Thorin Thráin 's son Thrór's son..! ...You must claim your own. The hour is at hand, spoken of old. What help we can offer shall be yours, and we trust to your gratitude when your kingdom is regained.""


October 6, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Gandalf heads for Rivendell after escaping Weathertop.
(not from the appendices)
..."I hoped to draw some of them off, and yet reach Rivendell ahead of you and send out help. Four Riders did indeed follow me, but they turned back after a while and made for the Ford, it seems. That helped a little, for there were only five, not nine, when your camp was attacked.'

2. The camp under Weathertop attacked at night. Frodo is wounded.
(from the appendices)
..."Well, here we are!' said Merry. 'And very cheerless and uninviting it looks! There is no water and no shelter. And no sign of Gandalf. But I don't blame him for not waiting—if he ever came here....'
... ...They stood for a while silent on the hill-top, near its southward edge. In that lonely place Frodo for the first time fully realized his homelessness and danger. He wished bitterly that his fortune had left him in the quiet and beloved Shire. He stared down at the hateful Road, leading back westward—to his home. Suddenly he was aware that two black specks were moving slowly along it... ...and looking again he saw that three others were creeping eastward to meet them. He gave a cry and clutched Strider's arm.
...'Look,' he said, pointing downwards.
...At once Strider flung himself on the ground behind the ruined circle, pulling Frodo down beside him. Merry threw himself alongside.
...'What is it?' he whispered.
...'I do not know, but I fear the worst,' answered Strider... "

[later]

... "...Sam and Merry got up and walked away from the fire. Frodo and Pippin remained seated in silence. Strider was watching the moonlight on the hill intently. All seemed quiet and still, but Frodo felt a cold dread creeping over his heart, now that Strider was no longer speaking. He huddled closed to the fire... ...Sam came running back from the edge of the dell.
...'I don't know what it is,' he said, 'but I suddenly felt afraid. I durstn't go outside this dell for any money; I felt that something was creeping up the slope....'
...'Keep close to the fire, with your faces outward!' cried Strider. 'Get some of the longer sticks ready in your hands..!'
......Over the lip of the little dell, on the side away from the hill, they felt, rather than saw, a shadow rise... ...Soon there could be no doubt: three or four tall black figures were standing there on the slope, looking down on them. So black were they that they seemed like black holes in the deep shade behind them... ...Then the shapes slowly advanced.
...Terror overcame Pippin and Merry, and they threw themselves flat on the ground. Sam shrank to Frodo's side. Frodo was hardly less terrified than his companions; he was quaking as if he was bitter cold, but his terror was swallowed up in a sudden temptation to put on the Ring. The desire to do this laid hold of him, and he could think of nothing else... ...He could not speak. He felt Sam looking at him, as if he knew that his master was in some great trouble, but he could not turn towards him. He shut his eyes and struggled for a while; but resistance became unbearable, and at last he slowly drew out the chain, and slipped the Ring on the forefinger of his left hand.
...Immediately, though everything else remained as before, dim and dark, the shapes became terribly clear. He was able to see beneath their black wrappings. There were five tall figures; two standing on the lip of the dell, three advancing... ...Their eyes fell on him and pierced him, as they rushed towards him. Desperate, he drew his own sword, and it seemed to him that it flickered red, as if it was a firebrand. Two of the figures halted. The third was taller than the others: his hair was long and gleaming and on his helm was a crown. In one hand he held a long sword, and in the other a knife; both the knife and the hand that held it glowed with a pale light. He sprang forward and bore down on Frodo.
...At that moment Frodo threw himself forward on the ground, and he heard himself crying aloud: O Elbereth! Gilthoniel! At the same time he struck at the feet of his enemy. A shrill cry rang out in the night; and he felt a pain like a dart of poisoned ice pierce his left shoulder. Even as he swooned he caught... ...a glimpse of Strider leaping out of the darkness with a flaming brand of wood in either hand. With a last effort, dropping his sword, Frodo slipped the Ring from his finger and closed his right hand tight upon it.
...When Frodo came to himself he was still clutching the Ring desperately. He was lying by the fire, which was now piled high and burning brightly. His three companions were bending over him.
...'What has happened? Where is the pale king?' he asked wildly....

......Sam plainly was beginning to have doubts again about Strider; but while they were talking he returned, appearing suddenly out of the shadows. They started, and Sam drew his sword and stood over Frodo; but Strider knelt down swiftly by his side.
...'I am not a Black Rider, Sam,' he said gently, 'nor in league with them. I have been trying to discover something of their movements… …I have found nothing. I cannot think why they have gone and do not attack again. But there is no feeling of their presence anywhere at hand.'
...When he heard what Frodo had to tell, he became full of concern, and shook his head and sighed... ...he got up and walked away, and called Sam to him. 'I think I understand things better now,' he said in a low voice. 'There seem only to have been five of the enemy. Why they were not all here, I don't know; but I don't think they expected to be resisted... ...They will come again another night, if we cannot escape. They are only waiting, because they think that their purpose is almost accomplished, and that the Ring cannot fly much further. I fear, Sam, that they believe your master has a deadly wound that will subdue him to their will. We shall see!'
...Sam choked with tears. 'Don't despair!' said Strider. 'You must trust me now. Your Frodo is made of sterner stuff than I had guessed, though Gandalf hinted that it might prove so. He is not slain, and I think he will resist the evil power of the wound longer than his enemies will expect. I will do all I can to help and heal him. Guard him well, while I am away!' He hurried off and disappeared again into the darkness.'"


October 6, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Gandalf and the Hobbits leave Rivendell – They cross the Ford of Bruinen.
(from the appendices)
... "Gandalf and the hobbits took leave of Bilbo in his room, for it was cold out of doors; and then they said farewell to Elrond and all his household.
... As Frodo stood upon the threshold, Elrond wished him a fair journey, and blessed him...
... 'I think, Frodo, that maybe you will not need to come back, unless you come very soon. For about this time of the year, when the leaves are gold before they fall, look for Bilbo in the woods of the Shire. I shall be with him.'
... These words no one else heard, and Frodo kept them to himself.
... At last the hobbits had their faces turned towards home. They were eager now to see the Shire again; but at first they rode only slowly, for Frodo had been ill at ease...'"

... "…When they came to the Ford of Bruinen, [Frodo] had halted, and seemed loth to ride into the stream; and they noted that for a while his eyes appeared not to see them or things about him. All that day he was silent. It was the sixth of October.
... 'Are you in pain, Frodo?' said Gandalf quietly as he rode by Frodo's side.
... 'Well, yes I am... ...It is my shoulder. The wound aches, and the memory of darkness is heavy on me. It was a year ago today.'
... 'Alas! there are some wounds that cannot be wholly cured,' said Gandalf.
... 'I fear it may be so with mine,' said Frodo. 'There is no real going back. Though I may come to the Shire, it will not seem the same; for I shall not be the same. I am wounded with knife, sting, and tooth, and a long burden. Where shall I find rest?'
... Gandalf did not answer."


October 6, 3020 (S.R. 1420)
1. Frodo is again ill.
(from the appendices)
..."One evening Sam came into the study and found his master looking very strange. He was very pale and his eyes seemed to see things far away.
...'What's the matter, Mr. Frodo?' said Sam.
...'I am wounded,' he answered, 'wounded; it will never really heal.'"


October 6, 3021 (S.R. 1421)
1. Samwise returns to Bag End.
(from the appendices)
..."At last they rode over the downs and took the East Road, and then Merry and Pippin rode on to Buckland; and already they were singing again as they went. But Sam turned to Bywater, and so came back up the Hill, as day was ending once more... ...there was yellow light, and fire within; and the evening meal was ready, and he was expected. And Rose drew him in, and set him in his chair, and put little Elanor upon his lap.
...He drew a deep breath. 'Well, I'm back,' he said."'


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TIME - October 7
Today in Middle-earth

October 7, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. The Company flees Amon Sûl.
(not from the appendices)
..."As soon as the daylight was full, they had some hurried food and packed. It was impossible for Frodo to walk, so they divided the greater part of their baggage among the four of them, and put Frodo on the pony... ...the poor beast had improved wonderfully; it already seemed fatter and stronger, and had begun to show an affection for its new masters, especially for Sam. Bill Ferny's treatment must have been very hard for the journey in the wild to seem so much better than its former life.
...They started off in a southerly direction. This would mean crossing the Road… … it was the quickest way to more wooded country. And they needed fuel; for Strider said that Frodo must be kept warm, especially at night, while fire would be some protection for them all. It was also his plan to shorten their journey by cutting across another great loop of the Road...
......There was no sign of the Riders. But even as they were hurrying across they heard far away two cries: a cold voice calling and a cold voice answering. Trembling they sprang forward, and made for the thickets that lay ahead…
......It was a cheerless land, and their journey was slow and gloomy. They spoke little as they trudged along. Frodo's heart was grieved as he watched them walking beside him with their heads down, and their backs bowed under their burdens. Even Strider seemed tired and heavy-hearted.
...Before the first day's march was over Frodo's pain began to grow again, but he did not speak of it for a long time."


October 7, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The hobbits head for home, leaving Rivendell behind.
(not from the appendices)
..."By the end of the next day the pain and unease had passed, and Frodo was merry again, as merry as if he did not remember the blackness of the day before."


October 7, 3020 (S.R. 1420)
1. The day after Sam found Frodo stricken by his old wounds.
(not from the appendices)
... "[Frodo] got up, and the turn [pale and distant] seemed to pass, and he was quite himself the next day. It was not until afterwards that Sam recalled that the date was October the sixth. Two years before on that day it was dark in the dell under Weathertop."


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TIME - October 8
Today in Middle-earth

October 8, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. It's time to depart Lake-town.
(determined from text-no text)
...Bilbo and the Dwarves prepare to leave Lake-town and lay plans for their trip to the mountain.


October 8, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. The Company continues south through the wild.
(not from the appendices - no text)
...Frodo's tolerance of the pain drew all his strength. As his friends continued to follow Strider through the wild, they struggled to keep up with the pace he set. As the second day after leaving Amon Sûl dragged on, they labored to distance themselves from the last known location of the Nazgûl and reach the safety of Rivendell. The skill of this enigmatic Ranger and perceptive manner of the pony to carry Frodo were their only chance to elude the Black Riders.


October 8, 3083 (S.R. 1483)
1. Frodo and Sam in Valinor
(not from the appendices - no text - a drabble)
...Sam stood in the open doorway looking out at the pouring rain. The air smelled fresh, as if untouched by living breath. He marvelled at the flowers lining the path. Indescribable colours and scents filled his mind as he remembered a similar rain-washed day long ago.
... Suddenly, Frodo came jogging across the yard waving his arms above his head. Sam stepped back as he sprang through the door, stopping short next to his friend, smiling triumphantly with only a few drops of the sweet rain on his shoulders.
..."I'll never get used to that," said the gardener shaking his head.


October 8, 2006
...We get word that MGM wants Peter Jackson to film The Hobbit!!


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Oct 8, 1:50pm


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Love the drabble!
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Oct 9, 1:32pm


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HI! :D
and Thanks Smile


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TIME - October 9
Today in Middle-earth

October 9, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The company departs from Lake-town.
(not from the appendices)
..."...although autumn was now getting far on, and winds were cold, and leaves were falling fast, three large boats left Lake-town, laden with rowers, dwarves, Mr. Baggins, and many provisions. Horses and ponies had been sent round by circuitous paths to meet them at their appointed landing-place. The Master and his councillors bade them farewell from the great steps of the town-hall that went down to the lake. People sang on the quays and out of windows. The white oars dipped and splashed, and off they went north up the lake on the last stage of their long journey. The only person thoroughly unhappy was Bilbo."


October 9, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Glorfindel leaves Rivendell.
(from the appendices)
..."[Glorfindel speaks to the Company] 'Elrond received news that troubled him. Some of my kindred, journeying in your land beyond the Baranduin, learned that things were amiss and sent messages as swiftly as they could. They said that the Nine were abroad, and that you were astray bearing a great burden without guidance, for Gandalf had not returned. There are few even in Rivendell that can ride openly against the nine; but such as there were, Elrond sent out north, west, and south. It was thought that you might turn far aside to avoid pursuit, and become lost in the Wilderness.
... It was my lot to take the road…'"

2. The Company makes its way through the Wild.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...The freezing pain in Frodo's shoulder slowly grew and felt as if it was spreading, like roots stretching through soil; but he did not speak of it and sat bowed on the pony's back as the blur of the long days passed.


October 9-10, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Gandalf and the hobbits make their way home from Rivendell.
(not from the appendices)
..."...the days went quickly by; for they rode at leisure, and often they lingered in the fair woodlands where the leaves were red and yellow in the autumn sun..."


October 9, 2010
TORnsibbies and Friends Moot in NYC Radio City Music Hall for TT Symphony.


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TIME - October 10
Today in Middle-earth

October 10, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Row upstream against current. Camp for the night.
(not from the appendices)
..."In two days going they rowed right up the Long Lake and passed out into the River Running, and now they could all see the Lonely Mountain towering grim and tall before them. The stream was strong and their going slow."


October 10, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Strider presses them on.
(not from the appendices)
..."Four days passed, without the ground or the scene changing much, except that behind them Weathertop slowly sank, and before them the distant mountains loomed a little nearer.
...Yet since that far cry they had seen and heard no sign that the enemy had marked their flight or followed them. They dreaded the dark hours, and kept watch in pairs by night, expecting at any time to see black shapes stalking in the grey night... ...but they saw nothing, and heard no sound but the sigh of withered leaves and grass. Not once did they feel the sense of present evil that had assailed them before the attack in the dell. It seemed too much to hope that the Riders had already lost their trail again. Perhaps they were waiting to make some ambush in a narrow place?"


October 10, 2009
...TORnsibbies and Friends Moot in NYC Radio City Music Hall for FotR Symphony.


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TIME - October 11
Today in Middle-earth

October 11, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Third day in boats. Camp on west shore.
(not from the appendices)
..."At the end of the third day, some miles up the river, they drew in to the left or western bank and disembarked. Here they were joined by the horses with other provisions and necessaries and the ponies... ...that had been sent to meet them. They packed what they could on the ponies and the rest was made into a store under a tent, but none of the men of the town would stay with them even for the night so near the shadow of the Mountains.
..."Not... ...until the songs have come true!" said they. It was easier to believe in the Dragon and less easy to believe in Thorin in these wild parts. Indeed their stores had no need of any guard, for all the land was desolate and empty. So their escort left them, making off swiftly down the river... ...although the night was already drawing on.
...They spent a cold and lonely night and their spirits fell."


October 11, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Strider and the hobbits have travelled for five days since their attack at Weathertop.
(not from the appendices)
..."At the end of the fifth day the ground began once more to rise slowly out of the wide shallow valley into which they had descended. Strider now turned their course again north-eastwards."

2. He (Glorfindel) drives the Riders off the Bridge of Mitheithel.
(from the appendices)
..."'It was my lot to take the road, and I came to the Bridge of Mitheithel, and left a token there... ...Three of the servants of Sauron were upon the Bridge, but they withdrew and I pursued them westward. I came also upon two others, but they turned away southward. Since then I have searched for your trail.'"


October 11, 1999
1. Principal photography begins for The Lord of the Rings in New Zealand a la Peter Jackson.
...*So it begins…*




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TIME - October 12
Today in Middle-earth

October 12, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. They leave the river and ride to the Lonely Mountain.
(not from the appendices)
..."The next day they set out again. Balin and Bilbo rode behind, each leading another pony heavily laden beside him; the others were... ...picking out a slow road, for there were no paths. They made north-west, slanting away from the River Running, and drawing ever nearer... ...to a great spur of the Mountain that was flung out southwards towards them.
...It was a weary journey, and a quiet and stealthy one. There was no laughter or song or sound of harps... ...the singing of old songs by the lake died away to a plodding gloom. They knew that they were drawing near to the end of their journey, and that it might be a very horrible end. The land about them grew bleak and barren, though once, as Thorin told them, it had been green and fair. There was little grass, and before long there was neither bush nor tree, and only broken and blackened stumps to speak of one long vanished. They were come at the waning of the year...
... ...They made their first camp on the western side of the great southern spur, which ended in a height called Ravenhill."


October 12, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Strider and the hobbits make their way to Rivendell.
(not from the appendices)
..."I am afraid we must go back to the Road here for a while,' said Strider. 'We have now come to the River Hoarwell... ...It flows down out of the Ettenmoors, the troll-fells north of Rivendell, and joins the Loudwater away in the South. Some call it the Greyflood after that. It is a great water before it finds the Sea. There is no way over it below its sources in the Ettenmoors, except by the Last Bridge on which the Road crosses.'
...'What is that other river we can see far away there?' asked Merry.
...'That is Loudwater, the Bruinen of Rivendell... ...The Road runs along the edge of the hills for many miles from the Bridge to the Ford of Bruinen. But I have not yet thought how we shall cross the water. One river at a time! We shall be fortunate indeed if we do not find the Last Bridge held against us.'"

2. Glorfindel pursues the enemy.
(not from the appendices - no text - a drabble)
...Glorfindel raced behind three of the Black Riders. Asfaloth's speed could easily have overtaken the enemy as they fled before the force they felt pursuing them, but the Elf sensed the urgency to return to his search for the Company. He felt the distressing call to go back; that time was running out. Asfaloth tossed his head and whinnied in protest as Glorfindel eased him back and turned aside, loathe to break from the chase. He sped back toward the bridge leading to Rivendell. Then carefully he made his way along the road, earnestly searching the ground for a sign.

3. Gandalf makes his way to Rivendell.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...It was six days since the Black Riders broke off their pursuit of the Wizard. Gandalf made straight for Rivendell.


October 12, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The remaining Fellowship moves on.
(not from the appendices-no text)
...Gandalf and the hobbits make their way to Bree. King Éomer and King Elessar guide their respective cities and their inhabitants through the aftermath of the War. Legolas and Gimli travel the lands after visiting Fangorn Forest. Saruman is busy remodelling the Shire.


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TIME - October 13
Today in Middle-earth

October 13, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Bilbo, Fili, Kili and Balin scout up to River Running and go part way toward the Front Gate.
(determined from text – referencing Karen Wynn Fonstad, The Atlas of Middle-earth)
..."Before setting out to search the western spurs of the Mountain for the hidden door, on which all their hopes rested, Thorin sent out a scouting expedition to spy out the land to the South where the Front Gate stood. For this purpose he chose Balin and Fili and Kili, and with them went Bilbo. They marched under the grey and silent cliffs to the feet of Ravenhill. There the river, after winding a wide loop over the valley of Dale, turned from the Mountain on its road to the Lake, flowing swift and noisily.... ...they could see in the wide valley shadowed by the Mountain's arms the grey ruins of ancient houses, towers, and walls.
..."There lies all that is left of Dale," said Balin. "The mountain's sides were green with woods and all the sheltered valley rich and pleasant in the days when the bells rang in that town." He looked... ...grim as he said this: he had been one of Thorin's companions on the day the Dragon came.
...They did not dare to follow the river much further towards the Gate; but they went on beyond the end of the southern spur, until lying hidden behind a rock they could look out and see the dark cavernous opening in a great cliff wall between the arms of the Mountain. Out of it the waters of the Running River sprang; and out of it too there came a stream and a dark smoke. Nothing moved in the waste, save vapour and the water.... ...The only sound was the sound of the stony water, and every now and again the harsh croak of a bird. Balin shuddered.
..."Let us return!" he said. "We can do no good here! And I don't like these dark birds, they look like spies of evil."
..."The dragon is still alive and in the halls under the Mountain then---or I imagine so from the smoke," said the hobbit.
..."That does not prove it," said Balin, "though I don't doubt you are right. But he might be gone away some time, or he might be lying out on the mountain-side keeping watch, and still I expect smokes and steams would come out of the gates... ...the halls within must be filled with his foul reek."
...With such gloomy thoughts, followed ever by croaking crows above them, they made their weary way back to the camp."


October 13, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Frodo crosses the bridge.
(from the appendices)
..."...Next day, early in the morning, they came down again to the borders of the Road. Sam and Strider went forward, but they found no sign of any travellers or riders. Here under the shadow of the hills there had been some rain. Strider judged that it had fallen two days before, and had washed away all footprints. No horseman had passed since then...
......They hurried along with all the speed they could make, and after a mile or two they saw the Last Bridge ahead, at the bottom of a short steep slope. They dreaded to see black figures waiting there, but they saw none. Strider made them take cover in a thicket at the side of the Road, while he went forward to explore.
...Before long he came hurrying back. 'I can see no sign of the enemy... ...and I wonder very much what that means. But I have found something very strange.'
...He held out his hand, and showed a single pale-green jewel. 'I found it in the mud in the middle of the Bridge,' he said. 'It is a beryl, an elf-stone. Whether it was set there, or let fall by chance... ...it brings hope to me. I will take it as a sign that we may pass the Bridge; but beyond that I dare not keep to the Road, without some clearer token.'
...At once they went on again... ...Strider turned aside, and soon they were lost in a sombre country of dark trees winding among the feet of sullen hills... ...As they went forward the hills about them steadily rose... ...they caught glimpses of ancient walls of stone, and the ruins of towers: they had an ominous look. Frodo, who was not walking, had time to gaze ahead and to think. He recalled Bilbo's account of his journey and the threatening towers on the hills north of the Road, in the country near the Troll's wood where his first serious adventure had happened. Frodo guessed that they were now in the same region...."

2. Glorfindel backtracks from his pursuit of the Black Riders searching for the Company.
(not from the appendices-no text)

3. Gandalf makes his way to Rivendell.
(not from the appendices-no text)


October 13, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Gandalf and the hobbits make their way to Bree.
(not from the appendices - no text - a drabble)
... Gandalf found a soft nest of moss under the tree he rested against. He sat quietly smoking in the evening's camp and delighted in the humorous banter between Merry and Pippin as they debated whatever topic would appear. He marvelled at Sam's intuitive care for preparing the camp and meal while keeping a subtle eye on Frodo who sat wrapped in a blanket quietly watching the campfire. Softly blown smoke rings rode the night air as he pondered Sam's devotion to Frodo. He shook his head to himself.
..."Their return to the Shire will decide much. Who can know what will follow?"


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TIME - October 14
Today in Middle-earth

October 14, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The camp is moved to the western valley.
(determined from text – referencing Karen Wynn Fonstad, The Atlas of Middle-earth)
..."Now strange to say Mr. Baggins had more [spirit] than the others. He would often borrow Thorin's map and gaze at it, pondering over the runes and the message of the moon-letters Elrond had read. It was he that made the dwarves begin the dangerous search on the western slopes for the secret door. They moved their camp then to a long valley... ...and walled with lower spurs of the Mountain. Two of these here thrust forward west from the main mass in long steep-sided ridges that fell ever downwards towards the plain. On this western side there were fewer signs of the dragon's marauding feet, and there was some grass for their ponies."


October 14, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Strider and the hobbits continue through the wild of the Trollshaws Forest.
(not from the appendices)
..."'Who lives in this land?' Frodo asked. 'And who built these towers? Is this troll-country?'
...'No!' said Strider. 'Trolls do not build. No one lives in this land. Men once dwelt here, ages ago; but none remain now. They became an evil people, as legends tell, for they fell under the shadow of Angmar. But all were destroyed in the war that brought the North Kingdom to its end... ...though a shadow still lies on the land.'
...'Where did you learn such tales, if all the land is empty and forgetful?' asked Peregrin. 'The birds and beasts do not tell tales of that sort.'
...'The heirs of Elendil do not forget all things past,' said Strider; 'and many more things than I can tell are remembered in Rivendell.'
...'Have you often been to Rivendell?' asked Frodo.
...'I have,' said Strider. 'I dwelt there once, and still I return when I may. There my heart is; but it is not my fate to sit in peace, even in the fair house of Elrond.'"


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TIME - October 15
Today in Middle-earth

October 15, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The Company continues to search the western valley.
(determined from text – referencing Karen Wynn Fonstad, The Atlas of Middle-earth)
..."From this western camp, shadowed all day by cliff and wall until the sun began to sink towards the forest, day by day they toiled in parties searching for paths of the mountain-side….”


October 15, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Strider and the Hobbits struggle on through the Wild.
(not from the appendices)
..."They had been two days in this country (near the Troll's woods) when the weather turned wet. The wind began to blow steadily out of the West and pour the water of the distant seas on the dark heads of the hills in fine drenching rain. By nightfall they were all soaked, and their camp was cheerless, for they could not get any fire to burn."


October 15, 2010
... The Hobbit films finally get the green light with Peter Jackson directing (2-pts) – release dates Dec 2012 & 2013. Eventually, a third film was added to the series for 2014:
December 14, 2012 – US release / premier of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
December 13, 2013 – US release of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
December 17, 2014 – US release of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies


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TIME - October 16
Today in Middle-earth

October 16, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Strider and the hobbits make their way through the wild.
(not from the appendices)
..."...the hills rose still higher and steeper before them, and they were forced to turn away northwards out of their course. Strider seemed to be getting anxious: they were nearly ten days out from Weathertop, and their stock of provisions was beginning to run low. It went on raining.
...That night they camped on a stony shelf with a rockwall behind them, in which there was a shallow cave... ...Frodo was restless. The cold and wet had made his wound more painful than ever, and the ache and sense of deadly chill took away all sleep. He lay tossing and turning and listening fearfully to the stealthy night-noises... ...He felt that black shapes were advancing to smother him; but when he sat up he saw nothing but the back of Strider sitting hunched up, smoking his pipe, and watching. He lay down again and passed into an uneasy dream, in which he walked on the grass in his garden in the Shire, but it seemed faint and dim, less clear than the tall black shadows that stood looking over the hedge."

2. Glorfindel marks where Strider and the hobbits returned to the road.
(not from the appendices)
..."...I have searched for your trail... ...I found it, and followed it over the Bridge...""


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