Meriadoc and the Halfling's Leaf
I have previously posted about Meriadoc Brandybuck and the Horn of Eorl. I have also posted about pipe-weed, and the crazy Saruman back-up plan to fund his evil wizard lifestyle by becoming the weed czar of Middle-earth. But although Merry adored horns, his first love, last love, and all love in-between, was reserved for pipe-weed.
Merry doesn't just love pipe-weed, he becomes the foremost scholar in Middle-earth about pipe-weed. His book was so widely regarded by the denizens of Middle-earth that it shows up as a spoiler in the introduction to Fellowship of the Ring. But how did he go from local expert to world-wide published author?
This is the subject of today's deep dive.
1
The beginning is the end. JRRT spoils the entirety of Merry's character arc by being unable to stop himself from mentioning Merry's canonical work about pipe-weed in THE ACTUAL INTRODUCTION to FOTR.
This means that when Merry blacks out somewhere on Pelennor Fields, readers might pause and think, "Wait, Meriadoc, wasn't he -- alive at the end of this because he published a book?" That's not the reader's fault, it's JRRT's for spoiling the plot. JRRT makes it very clear that Merry lives, becomes Master of Buckland, and writes the definitive book of lore about pipe-weed:
All that could be discovered about [pipe-weed] in antiquity was put together by Meriadoc Brandybuck (later Master of Buckland), and since he and the tobacco of the Southfarthing play a part in the history that follows, his remarks in the introduction to his Herblore of the Shire may be quoted.
There follows THREE LONG AND LOVING PARAGRAPHS ABOUT PIPE WEED, purported to be written by Merry himself. How did this get into the introductory part of the Red Book of Westmarch? Good question, but probably via Sam, amending Frodo's introduction before he himself sailed into the west -- or from Elanor Fairbairn, who inherited the book after Sam.
Anyway, we now know why Master Meriadoc Brandybuck, Nazgul's Bane, Knight of the Riddermark, and member of the King's Council of Arnor, is actually famous: it's for his deep and abiding love of weed.
2
Merry's relationship with pipe-weed and with Théoden grows at the same time. Although Merry enjoys pipe-weed, he doesn't reveal his enthusiasm for it until he encounters Théoden for the first time. Merry seems like an ordinary user of the weed, along with his fellow Hobbits, until a chance conversation with Théoden reveals the depth of his knowledge. His very first conversation with King Théoden, upon meeting him outside the broken gates of Isengard, is:
‘For one thing,’ said Théoden, ‘I had not heard that they spouted smoke from their mouths.’
‘That is not surprising,’ answered Merry; ‘for it is an art which we have not practised for more than a few generations. It was Tobold Hornblower, of Longbottom in the Southfarthing, who first grew the true pipe-weed in his gardens, about the year 1070 according to our reckoning. How old Toby came by the plant…’
And then Gandalf rudely interrupts, or we would have had the entire treatise from the introduction then and there.
3
When King Théoden dies, he tells Merry that he will lament not listening to Merry's herb-lore. This nearly functions as a deathbed geas, and feels like it might be the inciting incident for Merry's later impulse to write about herb-lore and tobacco:
The old king smiled. ‘Grieve not! It is forgiven. Great heart will not be denied. Live now in blessedness; and when you sit in peace with your pipe, think of me! For never now shall I sit with you in Meduseld, as I promised, or listen to your herb-lore.’
Merry is initially unable to fulfil this request because of his sorrow at the memory, but Aragorn (who is able to heal both physical and psychological illnesses as King of Gondor) gently redirects Merry's energy toward remembrance rather than mourning:
‘Good!’ said Merry. ‘Then I would like supper first, and after that a pipe.’ At that his face clouded. ‘No, not a pipe. I don't think I'll smoke again.’
‘Why not?’ said Pippin.
‘Well,’ answered Merry slowly. ‘He is dead. It has brought it all back to me. He said he was sorry he had never had a chance of talking herb-lore with me. Almost the last thing he ever said. I shan't ever be able to smoke again without thinking of him, and that day, Pippin, when he rode up to Isengard and was so polite.’
‘Smoke then, and think of him!’ said Aragorn. ‘For he was a gentle heart and a great king and kept his oaths; and he rose out of the shadows to a last fair morning. Though your service to him was brief, it should be a memory glad and honourable to the end of your days.’
I'd love to know if the dedication page of Merry's book is to Théoden King.
4
Merry was the first person to notice the very suspicious presence of Longbottom Leaf in Isengard, and speculate upon how it got there:
‘It is good!’ said Merry. ‘My dear Gimli, it is Longbottom Leaf! There were the Hornblower brandmarks on the barrels, as plain as plain. How it came here, I can't imagine. For Saruman's private use, I fancy. I never knew that it went so far abroad. But it comes in handy now.’
This ties into the deeper tale of pipe-weed and Saruman's plot to own the weed production pipeline for all of Middle-earth.
But out of all of the Hobbits, Merry is the one who says "enough" and wrests the means of production back out of the hands of the evil overlord. Not content to simply hide and plot, Merry uses all his newfound skills from his long journey to immediately raise the Shire to overthrow Saruman and his minions.
‘No!’ said Merry. ‘It's no good “getting under cover.” That is just what people have been doing, and just what these ruffians like. They will simply come down on us in force, corner us, and then drive us out, or burn us in. No, we have got to do something at once.’
‘Do what?’ said Pippin.
‘Raise the Shire!’ said Merry. ‘Now! Wake all our people! They hate all this, you can see: all of them except perhaps one or two rascals, and a few fools that want to be important, but don't at all understand what is really going on. But Shire-folk have been so comfortable so long they don't know what to do. They just want a match, though, and they'll go up in fire. The Chief's Men must know that. They'll try to stamp on us and put us out quick. We've only got a very short time.
‘Sam, you can make a dash for Cotton's farm, if you like. He's the chief person round here, and the sturdiest. Come on! I am going to blow the horn of Rohan, and give them all some music they have never heard before.’
They rode back to the middle of the village. There Sam turned aside and galloped off down the lane that led south to Cotton's. He had not gone far when he heard a sudden clear horn-call go up ringing into the sky. Far over hill and field it echoed; and so compelling was that call that Sam himself almost turned and dashed back. His pony reared and neighed.
‘On, lad! On!’ he cried. ‘We'll be going back soon.’
Then he heard Merry change the note, and up went the Horn-cry of Buckland, shaking the air.
Awake! Awake! Fear, Fire, Foes! Awake!
Fire, Foes! Awake!
5
And that is how Merry led the battle for the Shire, and then settled down into a long and productive life as preeminent weed historian of Middle-earth.
