The White Council

Re: Tea time

Tolkien and Inklings Discussion

: At the start of LotR it mentions that Frodo was having a cup of tea to calm his nerves after dealing with all the hobbits collecting the stuff Bilbo had left them as well as the Sackville-Bagginses trying to bully him into selling Bag End at a knock-down price. Personally, I think I might have had something stronger from Lobelia's desription but that's beside the point. I was wondering where Frodo got the tea from what with it being a tropical plant. : The nearest it could have come from I suppose would be South-West Gondor which probably had a 'Mediterranean' climate and might possibly be warm enough. The problem with that, however, is that there doesn't seem to be much trade going through Enedwaith; the road is in total disrepair and nobody in Gondor seems to know where this fabled land of the Halflings is. It's not until Saruman takes an interest in the Shire that there's any goods being transported (albeit the other way.) : Alternatively, there might be plantations in Dorwinion where we know there are vines. It might be quite hot there during the summer as it's far from the sea but equally it would be pretty cold during the winter. If they did manage to grow the stuff I suppose the men in Esgaroth or Dale might buy it and then sell some on to the Dwarfs (or Dwarves; I can never remember which is the 'normal' and which is the 'Tolkien' plural) in Erebor who might then trade it with the hobbits or their friends in the Blue Mountains. If this were the case, I suppose it would be quite a luxury, as it was in Europe 200 years ago, and only posh hobbits like Frodo would be able to afford it. : Alternatively it might not be the tea plant which we know, in the same way that Tolkien called the stuff the hobbits smoked 'pipeweed' and not 'tobacco.' If that were the case, it could be grown in the South Farthing though what with Tolkien's 'sensisitivity' to words I'm surprised he didn't call it something else, like 'cupweed.' ;-) If so, does anybody think that Saruman developed a clandestine tea drinking habit to go with his smoking? Perhaps he couldn't take the caffiene and it was that which tipped him over the edge. : : Or is this like the umbrella/clock debate with Frodo drinking tea simply to reinforce the 'familiarity' of the Shire? : Any ideas? : Voronwe

Maybe the West had trade routes with benign tribes of Easterlings?