Alan Sisto

And so he just assumes, well, I know I wouldn't be interested in these people for their own sake.

So clearly Gandalf can't be interested.

Clearly I cannot choose the Hobbit in front of you.

Anyway.

I definitely do.

It was a strange chance that, being angered by his insolence, Gandalf chose this way of showing to Sodom and his suspicion that desire to possess them had begun to enter into his policies and his study of the lore of the rings, and of warning him that they would elude him.

For it cannot be doubted that Gandalf had as yet no thought that the halflings, and still less their smoking, had any connection with the rings."

If he had had any such thought, then certainly he would not have done then what he did.

Yet later, when the halflings did indeed become involved in this greatest matter, Sodom could believe only that Gandalf had known or foreknown this and had concealed the knowledge from him and from the council for just such a purpose as Sodom would conceive, to gain possession and to forestall him.

We then move to Christopher's comments on this, which conclude the chapter.

In the Tale of Years, the entry for 2851 refers to the meeting of the White Council in that year, when Gandalf urged an attack on Dol Guldur, but was overruled by Saruman.

And a footnote to the entry reads, It afterwards became clear that Saruman had then begun to desire to possess the One Ring himself, and hoped that it might reveal itself, seeking its master, if Sauron were let be for a time.

And of course, he read that passage earlier.

The foregoing story, Christopher explains, shows that Gandalf himself suspected Soderman of this at the time of the Council of 2851, though my father afterwards commented that it appears from Gandalf's story to the Council of Elrond of his meeting with Radagast that he did not seriously suspect Soderman of treachery or of desiring the ring for himself until he was imprisoned in Orthanc.

And we'll get to that.

There's something very interesting there.

Like, yeah, if Gandalf suspected him in 2851, why was he heading over there in 3018?

But we'll talk about that.

It's still interesting to talk about.

I mean, obviously he published it, so we're going to do that.