He had been traveling along the Road when he saw four hobbits with Tom Bombadil. He overheard them talking, in particular Frodo reminding them not to use the name Baggins. Strider had followed them to Bree and slipped over the wall and into the inn. Frodo was not pleased at the notion of being spied on and followed and asked why Strider was so interested. "'But the explanation is simple: I was looking for a Hobbit called Frodo Baggins. I wanted to find him quickly. I had learned that he was carrying out of the Shire, well, a secret that concerned me and my friends'" (p. 176, The Fellowship of the Ring). Frodo and Sam jumped up but Strider assured them that he would be more careful with the secret than they especially with Black Riders abroad. Frodo wondered aloud if the Black Riders had missed him and were far off. "'You must not count on that!' said Strider sharply. 'They will return. And more are coming. There are others. I know their number. I knew these Riders.' He paused, and his eyes were cold and hard." (p. 177, The Fellowship of the Ring).
Strider was sure Frodo's disappearing act would reach their ears for not all in Bree could be trusted. He sighted the men who left after Frodo had vanished. Strider now left his reward for information in Frodo's hands: he could take Strider for a guide for he knew all the wild lands of this area or he could go it alone knowing the Black Riders would be after him soon. Frodo though long and hard. Sam spoke up and said they should not take him; after all Strider was proposing to lead them into the wild far from help. Frodo finally spoke and disagreed with Sam thinking Strider was not how he chose to look. Still, he was not sure he should take Strider on blind trust. Strider agreed to tell his whole story just as a knock came at the door.
Barliman Butterbur stood at the door with Nob. The innkeeper began very apologetically for not remembering sooner, but he was a busy man after all. Apparently he had been asked to look out for Hobbits from the Shire (hence the vague look of remembrance when they appeared at The Prancing Pony) and in particular one by the name of Baggins. He gave a somewhat unflattering physical description of Frodo which made Pippin laugh. The disclaimer was he said it. Naturally, Frodo asked who this he was. "'Ah! That was Gandalf, if you know who I mean. A wizard they say he is, but he's a good friend of mine, whether or no. But now I don't know what he'll have to say to me, if I see him again: turn all my ale sour or me into a block of wood, I shouldn't wonder. He's a bit hasty. Still what's done can't be undone'" (p. 179, The Fellowship of the Ring). Gandalf had left a letter for Frodo with Barliman with instructions to send it out the next day. He could find no one to make the journey that day, or the next, or the one after that. And being a busy man he simply forgot about it. He handed the letter, addressed to Mr. Frodo Baggins, to Frodo and the hobbit recognized his friend's writing instantly.
Barliman apologized for forgetting about it. Gandalf had warned him to watch out for his friend, going by the name Underhill and if for some reason the wizard was not accompanying him to do all that he could to help out. Butterbur told Frodo how some black men (the Black Riders) had come by a few days earlier asking about Baggins. Furthermore Strider had demanded to see the hobbits when they first arrived at the inn before they came to the gathering room. At this Strider revealed himself saying much trouble would have been avoided had he been granted permission to speak with them. Barliman looked at the Ranger disapprovingly but showed no desire to leave Bree with Frodo or hold out against the Black Riders. "'They come from Mordor,' said Strider in a low voice. 'From Mordor, Barliman, if that means anything to you'" (p. 180, The Fellowship of the Ring). Butterbur turned pale.
Frodo asked the innkeeper if he was still willing to help. "'I am,' said Mr. Butterbur. 'More than ever'" (p. 181, The Fellowship of the Ring). Strider instructed him to never again acknowledge the name of Baggins and he promised, for one night anyway, to bar the inn from Black Riders. Frodo asked for a early wake-up call the next morning and the innkeeper left. He turned his attention to Gandalf's letter. And this is what it said: "'Dear Frodo, Bad news has reached me here. I must go off at once. You had better leave Bag End soon, and get out of the Shire before the end of the July at latest. I will return as soon as I can; and I will follow you, if I find that you are gone. Leave a message for me here, if you pass through Bree. You can trust the landlord (Butterbur). You may meet a friend of mine on the Road: A Man, lean, dark, tall, by some called Strider. He knows our business and will help you. Make for Rivendell. There I hope we may meet again. If I do not come, Elrond will advise you. Yours in haste Gandalf. PS. Do NOT use It again, not for any reason whatever! Do not travel by night! PPS. Make sure that it is the real Strider, There are many strange men on the roads. His true name is Aragorn. All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crown less again shall be king. PPPS I hope Butterbur sends this promptly. A worthy man, but his memory is like a lumber-room: things wanted always buried. If he forgets I shall roast him. Fare Well!" (p. 182, The Fellowship of the Ring).
Frodo saw the mess Butterbur had made. Frodo questioned Strider as to why he did not say he was a friend of Gandalf. Strider did not know of the letter and was seeking to persuade them on his own, and being a hunted man he added, he hoped they would be his friends for friendship sakes. Sam was still unconvinced asking how they knew this man didn't kill the real Strider and take his things. Strider responded: "'...my only answer to you, Sam Gamgee, is this. If I had killed the real Strider, I could kill you. And I should have killed you already without so much talk. If I was after the Ring I could have it--NOW!'" (p. 183, The Fellowship of the Ring). Strider stood tall and opposing revealing his sword hilt and all the hobbits were speechless. "'But I am the real Strider, fortunately,' he said, looking down at them with his face softened by a sudden smile. 'I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn; and if by life or death I can save you, I will'" (p. 183, The Fellowship of the Ring).
The words of Gandalf's letter now made more sense to Frodo. Indeed, Aragorn removed the sword from its sheath and revealed a broken blade. "But the time is near when it shall be forged anew'" (p. 184, The Fellowship of the Ring). Aragorn revealed they would go to Weathertop, which commanded the view of the surrounding lands, and from their to Rivendell. He was sure that Gandalf would also make for Weathertop. He told them he'd last seen Gandalf in May as Aragorn had often watched the borders of the Shires over the years; in fact Gandal seldom left the Shire unguarded. Still, Aragorn was plainly troubled that Gandalf had disappeared and that was known across the lands. He knew of this and of Frodo's journey from the lips of Gildor. Aragorn assured them that Gandalf was far more powerful than any in the Shire knew and only the Enemy himself would stop the wizard. "'But this business of ours will be his greatest task'" (p. 185, The Fellowship of the Ring).
Suddenly there was a noise down the hall and a breathless Merry came storming in. Clearly frightened he declared he had seen Black Riders in Bree. He had gone out for fresh air while the others went to the gathering room and saw a deeper darkness on the Road and felt a terrible cold but it slipped away; so he followed it. "Strider looked at Merry with wonder. 'You have a stout heart,' he said; 'but it was foolish'" (p. 185, The Fellowship of the Ring). Merry said as he ran down the Road he heard voices talking but he dared not go closer shaking with fear until something came over him and he remembered no more. Nob, who had come with Merry, picked up the story for Butterbur had sent him to look for Merry. It was near the house of Bill Ferny (one of the three Men who left quickly when Frodo disappeared) and he saw two men stooping over something. When he called out they ran and there he found Merry who ran straight back to the inn when aroused.
Strider was concerned that an attack may happen that very night. He proposed they all stay in the parlor and not the hobbit rooms. For he was certain the Black Riders would be able to find those easily enough. Strider was sure Ferny, the southern stranger, and Harry the Gatekeeper had informed the Black Riders of what happened (he had seen the Riders talking to Harry a few days before). Nob and Strider brought the hobbits gear to the parlor and set up the beds in the inn rooms to looks as if they were filled, complete with a brown mat to represent Frodo's hair. The door to the parlor was shut and barred and the candles snuffed out and the fire burned low. Merry was brought up on all the details and all, save Aragorn, drifted into slumber.
Middle-earth timeline: Third Age, 3018, September 28th
Today's reading comes from: The Fellowship of the Ring, pages 175-187
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