The Peoples of Middle-earth (50 page)

But in this case, at any rate, the loss of the draft typescript would have done little more than distort the textual development in some details; it would have deprived this history only of the Dwarvish name Zigilnad of the Silverlode (cf. Zirak-zigil 'Silvertine', VII.174-5, note 22) - in itself surprising, in view of Kibil-nala in The Lord of the Rings (see note 1).

The draft typescript, however, became rough manuscript, though still closely approaching the final form (RK pp. 356-7), with the story of the great burning of the dead at the end of the Battle of Azanulbizar, and the departure of Thrain and Thorin Oakenshield to Dunland and afterwards to a new home in exile in the Blue Mountains, where they prospered, though forced to work with iron. This section ends, as in the published text, 'But, as Thror had said, the Ring needed gold to breed gold, and of that or any other precious metal they had little or none.' My father drew a line here, as if the text were completed; but the mention of the Ring of Thrain led him to say something further about it. From this point the manuscript becomes rougher, and as it proceeded he wrote so fast that it is only barely legible and with much difficulty; and from this point also the published text soon departs from it altogether.

This Ring was the last of the Seven. It may well be that this was known to Sauron, and that the singular misfortunes of his House were due to that. For the days were passed when it would bring profit, but demanded payment rather, and its possession brought only the hate of Sauron. For the Dwarves had proved hard to tame. They were too tough, being made of a purpose to resist such onslaughts of evil will and power, and though they could be slain or broken they could not be made into shadows or slaves of any other will; and for like reason their lives were little affected, to live either longer or shorter because of the Ring.(7) The more did Sauron hate them. Nonetheless each possessor kept his ring as a secret unless he surrendered it; and though those about him doubtless guessed it, none knew for certain that Thrain had the Ring.

Partly by the very power of the Ring therefore Thrain after some years became restless and discontented. He could not put the thought of gold and gems out of his mind. Therefore at last when he could bear it no longer his heart turned again to Erebor and he resolved to return. He said little to Thorin of what was in his heart. But with Balin and Dwalin and a few others he arose and said farewell and departed (2841).

Little indeed is known of what happened to him afterwards.

It would seem (from afterknowledge) that no sooner was he abroad with few companions (and certainly after he came at length back into Rhovanion) he was hunted by the emissaries of Sauron. Wolves pursued him, orcs waylaid him, evil birds shadowed his path, and the more he tried to go north the more he was driven back. One dark night, south of Gladden and the eaves of Mirkwood, he vanished out of their camp, and after long search in vain his companions gave up hope (and returned to Thorin). Only long after was it known that he had been taken alive and brought to the pits of Dol Guldur (2845). There he was tormented and the Ring taken from him; and there at last (2850) he died.(8)

So it would seem that Moria had ended and the line of Durin.

After the sack of Erebor Thorin Oakenshield was but 24 (and not yet war-worthy according to Dwarf-custom); but he was 53

at Nanduhirion, and there fought in the van of the assault. But as has been told the first assault was thrown back, and Thrain and Thorin were driven for refuge in a thicket that grew in the valley not far from Kheledzaram before the great burning.

There Frerin Thrain's son fell and Fundin his cousin and many others, and both Thrain and Thorin were wounded. Thorin's shield was cloven and he cast it away, and hewing with an axe a branch of an oak tree he held it in his left hand to ward off the strokes of his foes or to wield as a club. Thus he got his name, or also because in memory of this he bore ever after at his back a shield made of oak wood without colour or device, and vowed to do so until he was hailed again as king.(9)

When Thrain went away Thorin was 95, a great dwarf of proud bearing and full manhood. Maybe because rid of the Ring, Thorin long remained in Ered Luin, labouring and journeying and gathering such wealth as he could, until his people had fair houses in the hills, and were not [? ill content], though in their songs they spoke ever of the Lonely Mountain and the wealth and bliss of the Great Hall and the light of the Arken-stone. But the years lengthened, and the embers of his heart began to grow hot as Thorin brooded on the wrongs of his house and people. Remembering too that Thror had lain upon him the vengeance due to Smaug.

But Erebor was far away and his people only few; and he had little hope that Dain Ironfoot would help in any attempt upon the dragon. For Thorin thought ever after the manner of his kingly forefathers, counting forces and weapons and the chances of war, as his hammer fell on the red iron in his forge.

It was at this point that Mithrandir entered the story of the House of Durin. He had before troubled himself little with Dwarves. He was a friend to those of good will, and liked well the exiles of Durin's Folk that dwelt in the west. But on a time it happened that Mithrandir was passing west through Eriador (journeying to see Cirdan, maybe, or to visit the Shire which he had not entered for some years) when he fell in with Thorin Oakenshield going the same way, and they spoke much together on the road, and at Bree where they rested.

In the morning Mithrandir said to Thorin: 'I have thought much in the night. Now if that seems good to you I will come home with you for a while and we will talk further in greater privacy.' From this meeting there came many events of great moment in the matter of the War of the Ring. Indeed it led to the finding of the Ring and to the involvement of the Shire-folk and the means whereby the Ring was at last destroyed. Wherefore many have supposed that all this Mithrandir purposed and foresaw. But we believe that is not so. For Frodo wrote this passage in the first copy of the Red Book, which because of its length was not included in the tale of the War: Those were glad days when after the crowning we dwelt in the fair house in Minas Tirith with Gandalf ...

I have given the text thus far in order to make clearer than I did, or indeed was able to do, in the section The Quest of Erebor in Unfinished Tales how my father originally introduced the story of Gandalf and Thorin, and the taking of Bilbo on the journey to the Lonely Mountain, into the appendix on Durin's Folk. At that time I was unaware of this text, and have only recently put it together from its dismembered parts, not having realised what they were. I assumed that the manuscript which I called A in Unfinished Tales was the original text; but the story that follows from the point where I have left it above was my father's first expression of the idea, and A was a (moderately) fair copy, much rewritten if not essentially changed.(10)

He did a great deal of work on this story before 'it had to go', as he said years later (Unfinished Tales p. 11). From the manuscript A he developed the typescript B (of which long extracts were given in Unfinished Tales), and B was clearly designed to fit into the text of Durin's Folk as it existed by then (see Unfinished Tales pp. 327-8).(11) I shall not follow here the evolution in expression and structure through the texts, but I give two notes that belong with the original manuscript, the first of which shows my father's initial thoughts on the story before he wrote it.

From 2842 onwards Thorin lives in exile, but a good many of Durin's Folk gather to him in Ered Luin. They are reduced to poverty (since mines are poor) and travel about as metal-workers. Thorin begins to think of vengeance on Smaug and recovery of his wealth, but he can only envisage this in terms of war - a gathering of all his people and an attempt to slay Smaug. But it is difficult to do. The Iron Hills are a long way away and elsewhere Durin's Folk are widely scattered.

Gandalf now takes a hand. (Since his action led ultimately to the finding of the Ring, and the successful part played by the Hobbits in its destruction, many suppose that all this was in his conscious purpose. Probably not. He himself would say he was

'directed', or that he was 'meant' to take this course, or was

'chosen'.(12) Gandalf was incarnate, in [?real] flesh, and therefore his vision was obscured: he had for the most part (at any rate before his 'death') to act as ordinary people on reason, and principles of right and wrong.) His immediate conscious purposes were probably various. Largely strategic. He knows it is Sauron in Dol Guldur.(13) Knowing the situation in Gondor he may very well have feared the reoccupation of Mordor (but not yet). At present he is concerned with Lorien and Rivendell - Sauron will certainly proceed to war. The presence of Smaug and the depres-sion of Men in the North makes an attack that way toward Angmar and against Rivendell likely. Also he knew and approved of Durin's Folk. Also he was very fond of the Shire-folk and appreciated ..... Bilbo. He wished the Shire-folk to be 'educated' (14) before evil days came, and chose Bilbo (un-attached) as an instrument.

In the second passage he was revolving questions arising from Gandalf's finding of Thrain dying in Dol Guldur.

'Your plan is grandiose and belongs to an earlier day. If you wish to regain your wealth or any part of it, you will have to go yourself - with a small band of your most faithful kinsfolk and following.' [Struck out: He then reveals to Thorin that] Why did he not then (or much earlier) reveal to Thorin that he had met Thrain in Dol Guldur? Two answers. He had not met him

[Thorin] and did not even know where he was. From 2850 on his chief concern had been with Dol Guldur (Saruman) and the Council. He had not been west for a long time (Hobbit pp.

13-14. The Old Took died in 2920, so Gandalf had not in 2942

been in the Shire for 22 years and then probably only briefly).(15) He was probably unaware who the Dwarf was in Dol Guldur, since the 7th Ring would be no clue (Dwarves kept the possession of Rings very secret), and Thrain did not know his own name (Hobbit p. 35). It was probably only from Thorin's conversation that he guessed - and produced the evidence characteristically at a suitable chance.

In the earliest version of the story (and also in the second text A) Gandalf made no mention of his finding Thrain in Dol Guldur until the very end of the text, in response to a question from Merry about the map and the key; and my father clearly introduced it when the problem discussed in this note presented itself.

'But about that map and key,' said Merry. 'They proved useful, but you never said anything to Thorin about this before-hand. Why, you must have kept them by your own account 100

years without a word!'

'I did,' said Gandalf, 'very nearly. 91 to be exact. But I assure you I could have done little else. Thrain did not know his own name when I found him; and I certainly did not know his. By what toughness of resistance he had kept the key and map hidden in his torments I don't know. Maybe having got the Ring Sauron troubled no further, but left him to rave and die. But of course the map told me the key had something to do with Erebor. But it was far from my concerns at the time. And for long after I was concerned with other matters, with Saruman and his strange reluctance to disturb Sauron in Dol Goldur.

It was not until my meeting with Thorin and conversation that I suddenly guessed who the dying Dwarf must have been. Well, well, after that I kept the things back to the last moment. They just turned the scale, and began to make Thorin accept the idea.'(16)

Among other material for Durin's Folk are many versions of the genealogical table, beginning with one associated with the draft typescript in which the original form (see pp. 276 - 8) was still retained, with only five generations between Durin VI (formerly Durin III) and Thror. The addition of (the first) Oin and Nain II arose when my father formulated a specific pattern of aging and life-span on a page headed 'Notes on Chronology of Durin's Line', from which I cite some extracts, very slightly edited for clarity.

Dwarves of different 'breeds' vary in their longevity. Durin's race were originally long-lived (especially those named Durin), but like most other peoples they had become less so during the Third Age. Their average age (unless they met a violent death) was about 250 years, which they seldom fell far short of, but could occasionally far exceed (up to 300).(17) A Dwarf of 300 was about as rare and aged as a Man of 100.

Dwarves remained young - e.g. regarded as too tender for really hard work or for fighting - until they were 30 or nearly that (Dain II was very young in 2799 (32) and his slaying of Azog was a great feat). After that they hardened and took on the appearance of age (by human standards) very quickly. By forty all Dwarves looked much alike in age, until they reached what they regarded as old age, about 240. They then began to age and wrinkle and go white quickly (baldness being unknown among them), unless they were going to be long-lived, in which case the process was delayed. Almost the only physical disorder they suffered from (they were singularly immune from diseases such as affected Men, and Halflings) was corpulence. If in prosper-ous circumstances, many grew very fat at or before 200, and could not do much (save eat) afterwards. Otherwise 'old age'