This is entirely in keeping with the account of the kinds of damage Chrysophylax Dives does as he moves across the Middle Kingdom:
• ‘He did a deal of damage in a short while, smashing and burning, and devouring sheep, cattle, and horses’ (FGH, page 25)
• ‘On the night of New Year’s Day people could see a blaze in the distance. The dragon had settled in a wood about ten miles away, and it was burning merrily. He was a hot dragon when he felt in the mood’ (page 28)
• ‘[In] the neighbouring village of Quercetum [Oakley] . . . [h]e ate not only sheep and cows and one or two persons of tender age, but . . . the parson too. Rather rashly the parson had sought to dissuade him from his evil ways . . .’ (page 30)
• ‘[A]ll too soon they . . . came to parts that the dragon had visited. There were broken trees, burned hedges and blackened grass, and a nasty uncanny silence.’ (pages 39–40)
Even closer is the description of the area around Chrysophylax’s lair:
. . . dragon-marks were now obvious and numerous.
They had come, indeed, to the places where Chrysophylax often roamed, or alighted after taking his daily exercise in the air. The lower hills, and the slopes on either side of the path, had a scorched and trampled look. There was little grass, and the twisted stumps of heather and gorse stood up black amid wide patches of ash and burned earth. The region had been a dragons’ playground for many a year.
—Farmer Giles of Ham, page 58.11
Finally, we have one dragon-haunted region which is never described directly but which links the dragons of The Silmarillion with those of The Hobbit. For it seems likely that the Withered Heath,12 from whence Smaug came, was originally none other than the ruined land known by many names in the various Silmarillion texts, including the Blasted Plain (‘The Lay of the Children of Húrin’, HME III.49 & 55), Dor-na-Fauglith (‘the Land of Thirst’; ibid.), the Black Plain (‘The First “Silmarillion” Map’; HME IV.220 and the colour plate ff), and ultimately the Anfauglith (translated as ‘The Gasping Dust’; cf. ‘The Grey Annals’ and ‘The Wanderings of Húrin’, HME XI). Not only does the Withered Heath lie in a similar geographical position, north of the Grey Mountains just as the Land of Thirst had lain north of the highlands of Hithlum and Taur-na-Fuin (which, as we have seen elsewhere, is associated with Mirkwood; see page 20), but Tolkien actually describes Dor-na-Fauglith as ‘withered’ and ‘the heath’ (‘The Lay of the Children of Húrin’, lines 1054 and 1068 respectively; HME III.41 & 42). Close comparison of the respective locations of Taur-na-Fuin and the Thirsty Plain on the earliest Silmarillion map (HME IV) with the Wild Wood and Withered Heath on Fimbulfambi’s Map (Frontispiece, plate one) reveals just how close the two were in initial conception. Moreover, whereas in the earliest versions of the tale this seems to be simply an arid volcanic region (cf. the Túrin poem and also the 1926 ‘Sketch’), starting with the 1930 Quenta (written about the same time Tolkien began writing The Hobbit) it is definitely depicted as a destroyed land, once fair and green13 but now scorched bare, blackened and lifeless (‘burnt and desolate’, ‘burned . . . to a desolate waste’; HME IV.101 & 105).
As we have seen, by its very name, the Withered Heath must be a similarly destroyed land – and we have no less an authority than Jacob Grimm for associating heaths with dragons; he notes in Teutonic Mythology (Stallybrass translation, vol. II page 689) that one of the old names for a dragon was lyngormr (lyng-ormr, that is ‘ling-worm’ or heath-dragon, ling being another name for heather). Furthermore, we are told that dragons first arose inside Morgoth’s fortress of Angband beneath Thangorodrim in the Iron Mountains just to the north of the burned plain of Bladorion, and Gandalf the dwarf is quite definite that the Withered Heath is where dragons come from: ‘Over here is the Wild Wood and far beyond to the North, only the edge of it is on the map, is the Withered Heath where the Great Dragons used to live’ (Pryftan Fragment, page 9). In the manuscript continuation of the Bladorthin Typescript (that is, the first few pages of the Second Phase), the link between ‘some dwarves [being] driven out of the far north’ and coming to the Lonely Mountain and the presence of dragons is already implicit:
There were lots of dragons in the North in those days, and gold was probably running short there with the dwarves flying south or getting killed, and all the general waste and destruction dragons make going from bad to worse.
Some two decades later Tolkien made it explicit with the story of the cold-drake killing Thror’s father and younger brother (‘Durin’s Folk’, LotR.1109): ‘there were dragons in the waste beyond [the Grey Mountains]; and after many years they became strong again and multiplied, and they made war on the Dwarves, and plundered their works’.
The name ‘Withered Heath’ dates back to the very earliest stage of the story, appearing on Fimbulfambi’s Map in the Pryftan Fragment, immediately to the north of the Wild Wood (Mirkwood); the Grey Mountains seem not to have arisen yet. By contrast, on Thror’s Map I (which seems to have accompanied the original submission of the story to Allen & Unwin) it is off the map to the north, as indicated by an arrow next to the words ‘To the North lie the Grey Mountains beyond which is the Withered Heath’. In short, it has become one of the four framing features, along with the Iron Hills to the east, Long Lake to the south, and Mirkwood the Great to the west, all surrounding the central area that was once the dwarf-kingdom (‘Here of old was the land of Thrain14 King under the Mountain’) but is now the dragon’s realm (‘Here is the Desolation of Smaug’). Thror’s Map II, the final version published in the book, is even more explicit in its linkage of the dragons and Heath: ‘Far to the North are the Grey Mountains & the Withered Heath whence came the Great Worms’ (italics mine). On the final version of the Wilderland Map used in the published book, the label ‘Withered Heath’ is inserted into a long narrow valley between the two eastern arms of the Grey Mountains, this vale being marked with similar hatching to that used to indicate the Desolation of Smaug. We should note, however, that this was a late change; on the version of the Wilderland Map that had accompanied Tolkien’s original turnover to Allen & Unwin (Plate I [bottom]), ‘Withered Heath’ is simply the land north of the low line of hills which are the Grey Mountains, with no indication of how far into the distance off the map it might extend – a depiction in keeping with the original conception.
Finally, we should note one curious feature of the Desolation of Smaug which the earlier Wilderland Map calls attention to, also prominent in Tolkien’s picture of the Front Gate (DAA.256; H-S#130): the curious fact of Running River arising in the dragon’s lair. In one sense this could merely be verisimilitude – most caverns are carved by underground rivers, after all, and its presence suggests that the dwarves expanded upon caves that were already there to create their underground kingdom, just as Gimli later does early in the Fourth Age at Aglarond (LotR.1118). However, it is worth noting that throughout world mythology dragons are associated with water – specifically, with springs, wells, and similar spots where streams and rivers begin (cf. Simpson, British Dragons, pages 48–50).
(ii)
The Thrush
There on the grey stone in the grass was a large thrush, nearly coal black, its pale yellow breast freckled with dark spots . . . it had caught a snail and was knocking it on the stone . . . The old thrush, which had been watching from a high perch with beady eyes & head cocked on one side, gave a sudden trill (pp. 475–6).
. . . The old thrush was sitting on a rock nearby with his head cocked on one side . . . (page 513).
. . . [T]here was the old thrush, perched on a stone; and as soon as they looked towards him he flapped his wings and sang; then he cocked his head on one side as if to listen, and again he sang, and again he listened.
‘I believe he is trying to tell us something’ said Thorin . . . (page 618).
It is entirely characteristic of Tolkien that, even though he nowhere identifies the specific type of thrush that Bilbo, Bard, and the dwarves encounter, nonetheless he pro
vides enough details of its appearance and behavior to make that identification certain. Out of the many thrush species native to England, the Lonely Mountain thrush is clearly a song thrush (T. philomelos),15 a species particularly noted for its diet of snails and its habit of crushing their shells on a rock. Many song thrushes in fact choose a favorite rock as their ‘snail anvil’ and return to it again and again, making the clue on Thror’s Map a plausible application of real-world avian behavior to the fantasy story. Song thrushes are also, as the name suggests, noted singers, whose voices can carry a half-mile, and often hold their head to one side as if listening (possibly in fact listening for prey such as earthworms beneath the soil).
The size and coloration (not to mention longevity) of the Lonely Mountain thrush indicates that he is an exceptional individual, but then Thorin does identify him as a member of ‘a long lived and magical breed’ (page 513). It seems very likely that Thror and Thrain set this particular thrush, one of those who ‘came tame to the hands of my father and grandfather’, the duty of watching the secret door so that others could use the instructions on the Map to find the secret door, should neither Thror nor Thrain return (as indeed through ill fortune proves to be the case). While there is a widespread tradition of helpful birds in folk and fairy tale, mythology and medieval romance, here Tolkien seems to be drawing on Celtic legendry, particularly the Welsh tale Culhwch and Olwen (the oldest surviving Arthurian story, found in The Mabinogion, and a tale with which we know Tolkien was familiar; see page 194), which depicts a bird performing the same innocuous action over and over for vast lengths of time – perhaps significantly, an ouzel or blackbird, depending on the translation16 (each being another member of the thrush family, T. torquatus and T. merula respectively).
Initially the thrush existed merely to indicate the correct spot from which to find and open the secret door, but Tolkien later expanded his role in two crucial respects, first to bring the all-important information to Bard of Smaug’s weak spot (in interpolations to Chapters XII and XIII), and then to introduce the dwarves to Roäc and so bring them news of Smaug’s downfall (Chapter XVa). Somewhat curiously, the thrush disappears from the story after this point; presumably he either withdraws from the ensuing chaos of claims and counter-claims or else aligns himself with Bard, just as the ravens align themselves with Thorin and the dwarves, and hence is absent from our point-of-view character’s perspective for the remainder of the Lonely Mountain chapters. In any case, he remains an extremely minor character without whom the major events of the story could not occur – a perfect example of the ‘small hands turning the wheels of the world’, as Tolkien put it.17
Plot Notes C
As noted on page 361, these two pages (1/1/10:3–4) form a single sheet which replaced the original third and fourth pages (1/1/25:1–2) of Plot Notes B, which had begun with the same four words (the fifth and final page, describing the end of the story, was left in place; see page 366). Significantly, Bladorthin ‘(Blad.)’ is still the wizard’s name, suggesting that this outline was written during the composition of Chapter XI (which had used Bladorthin for the wizard’s name early in the chapter but shifted to using Gandalf by the chapter’s end). For discussion of significant developments and variations from the Plot Notes it replaced, see the commentary following the transcription.
[page] 3
Bilbo earns his reward: – the dwarves say now he must go in, if he is to fulfil his contract. They won’t go with him, only Balin Yellow-beard comes part of the way, in case he calls for help.
Hobbit creeps into dark mountain. Easier than he thought. Absol.TN1 straight tunnel going gently down for a great way. Begins to see a light at end, getting redder and redder. A bubbling snoring sound. It gets v. warm. Vapours float up.
B. peeps into the great bottomost dungeon at Mountain’s root nearly dark, save for glow from Smaug. The great red dragon is fast asleep upon a vast pile of precious things. He is partly on one side: B. can see he is crusted underneath with gems.
B. steals a cup to show he has been there.TN2 [Describe some of things dimly seen especially swords and spears]
Dwarves pat him on the back. Wrath of Dragon, who comes out to hunt the thief, and settles flaming on the Mount. Then flies all round it roaring.
Terror of dwarves, hiding under rocks. They dig holes.
Bilbo goes back again. The D. is only pretending to be asleep. Bilbo catches glint in his eye and stays at mouth of tunnel. [added: slips on his ring. D. asks where he has gone to.] [added in margin: B. does not say who he is but says he came over the water in a barrel, D thinks he is one of LongLake men] (Riddling?).TN3 D. tries to poison his mind with half-truths ag.TN4 the dwarves. Says they don’t worry about him or paying him. Supposing they could get treasure how cd. they carry it off? They
B. says they have not only come for treasure but revenge.
D. laughs.
B. flatters him, and says he cert. never imagined Smaug was so tremendous.
D says no warrior could kill him now. He is armoured with gems underneath. B. asks him to show – and sees a patch.TN5 Then he escapes but D. sends fiery spurts after him.
B goes back and talks to dwarves. Warns them dragon knows of exit.
[page] 4
B. creeps in third time and waits in shadows till Dragon creeps out of hall
He steals a bright gem which fascinates him
The dragon returning finds theft: and is awful rage.TN7
He goes to war with the Lake Men. The people sees him coming and cut bridges to lake-dwelling. D. flies over them and set houses alight, but dare not settle right in lake. They quench fire with water and shoot darts at him. Glint of gems in dragon’s belly in light of fire. He settles at side of lake and tries to starve them out.
Dwarves see the steam from afar; and are bent on carrying out gold. B. watches them stagger out. But warns them D. will come back to entrance of tunnel? What can they do with gold.
Burglary is no good – a warrior in the end. But no one will go with him. Bilbo puts on ring and creeps into dungeon. and hides. Dragon comes back at last and sleeps exhausted by battle.
Bilbo [takes >] plunges in his little magic knife and it disappears. he cannot wield the swords or spears.
Throes of dragon. Smashes walls and entrance to tunnel. Bilbo floats
Discovers sources of Running River and floats out through Fro[nt] D[oor]. in a golden bowl.
Found by the scouts of the Lake-Men.
The dwarves dig through the tunnel and take possession of their old homes but the gold is mostly crushed, and they cannot use it because of the dragon’s body
The men of
Bilbo sorrowful meets Blad. in the
Blad rebukes the besiegers. And makes dwarves pay Bilbo.
A share of his
They escort Blad & B back through Mirkwood.
This entire page, from ‘B. creeps in third time’ to ‘back through Mirkwood’, was struck through with a single slash. At the same time that this page was cancelled, Tolkien wrote in the left margin of this page and underlined:
Dragon killed in the battle of the Lake
This change almost certainly dates from the same time as the two new pages that replace the canceled page were written, which was demonstrably after the next chapter (Chapter XII) had already been drafted, and probably most of the following chapter as well. I treat this new material separately as Plot Notes D and have placed it following the next chapter, beginning on page 568.
TEXT N
OTES
1 ‘Absol.’: Absolutely (see Plot Notes B, page 363).
2 That is, he steals the cup to prove to the dwarves that he reached the treasure-chamber, not to alert Smaug to his presence.
The following sentence is bracketed by Tolkien in the original, and the word spears underlined for emphasis. Compare the parallel passage in Plot Notes B: ‘He sees shields and spears’, where one of these spears had been projected to play a crucial role in the climax as the weapon with which Bilbo was to kill the sleeping dragon (see page 364). Interestingly enough, while its significance disappeared after this point, these spears survive as an element in Smaug’s horde and actually appear in the painting ‘Conversation with Smaug’ (Plate XI [top]), made some five years later after the book had been published.
3 ‘Riddling’ here indicates not a riddle-game such as Bilbo had played with Gollum but instead the first indication of the ‘riddling talk’ whereby Bilbo identifies himself while refusing to tell the dragon his actual name. The ‘barrel-rider’ motif first emerges here in the interpolated passage (although puzzlingly enough Bilbo claims to have ridden in a barrel, not on one – perhaps Tolkien here is thinking of Bilbo’s solitary escape in a barrel from Plot Notes A; see page 296), along with Smaug’s mistaken conclusion that the men of Lake Town are behind this intrusion.
4 ‘ag.’: i.e., against.
5 ‘a patch’: i.e., a bare patch.
6 ‘his sons arming’: since the apostrophe is missing in this very lightly punctuated passage, we cannot tell for certain whether the right form is sons or son’s. I have concluded that the former is more probable, since the manuscript of the next chapter (written from this outline) uses the plural – ‘which he paid for the arming of his sons, in coats of dwarf mail the like of which had never before been made’ – and is punctuated accordingly.
The History of the Hobbit Page 61
