MERRY: (Clears throat) Is this thing on? I still don’t understand how this contraption works. Is it like a Palantir?
PIPPIN: Don’t say that name in here, Merry! You’ll frighten the Gaffer. Just speak into the horn. It’s for posterity, remember? The Fourth Age archives.
MERRY: Right. Welcome, everyone, to another evening at The Green Dragon. I’m Meriadoc Brandybuck.
PIPPIN: And I’m Peregrin Took, Knight of the City and... well, currently just a very tall Hobbit looking for a refill. Rosie! Another round of the 1420, if you please!
MERRY: You’ve had enough, Pip. We’re here to record our thoughts on... well, everything. It’s been two years since we came back. Since the Scouring.
PIPPIN: (Sighs) The Scouring. I still can’t believe what Saruman—Sharkey, I mean—did to the place. You leave for a year, fight in the greatest wars of the age, and come home to find the trees cut down and the beer turned sour.
MERRY: It was a shock. I think that was the hardest part. We expected the danger in Isengard or Mordor. We didn't expect to have to fight a war in Bywater. But you have to admit, the ruffians didn't know what hit them.
PIPPIN: (Laughs) They certainly didn't! They saw a couple of Halflings on ponies and thought they could bully us. They didn't account for the armor of Rohan and the livery of the Tower Guard. Do you remember the look on that ruffian's face when you drew your sword?
MERRY: I do. It wasn't just the swords, Pip. It was the height. That Ent-draught really did a number on us. I caught my reflection in the Brandywine yesterday; I look like a giant next to poor Fatty Bolger.
PIPPIN: I’ve had to raise the doorframe at the Great Smials. My father says I’m an unnatural mutation, but I tell him it’s just the superior nutrition of Fangorn Forest. Four-foot-five and still growing, I hope!
MERRY: (Thoughtful) It sets us apart, though. Doesn't it? We walk down the lane, and people stop and stare. 'The Travelers,' they call us. We aren't just Merry and Pippin anymore. We're the ones who rode with Kings.
PIPPIN: True. But the Shire is healing. Look at Sam. The way he used that soil from Lady Galadriel... the mallorn tree in the Party Field is already blooming. It’s the most beautiful thing in the Westfarthing.
MERRY: Sam is the best of us. He really is. He’s rebuilding the world, one garden at a time.
PIPPIN: (Quietly) I miss him, Merry. Frodo.
MERRY: (Pause) I know, Pip. I know. The Grey Havens... watching that ship disappear. It felt like the end of the story.
PIPPIN: But it wasn't, was it? It was just the end of his part. We're still here. We have duties. You're to be Master of Buckland one day, and I'm to be Thain.
MERRY: Indeed. We have to keep the Shire safe. So that no one here ever has to worry about Dark Lords or Rings again. They can just worry about whether the pumpkins will be ready for the harvest fair.
PIPPIN: And whether the Golden Perch has tapped a fresh barrel. Speaking of which...
MERRY: (Laughing) You are incorrigible, Peregrin Took.
PIPPIN: I’m a Took! It’s in my blood. To the King Elessar!
MERRY: To the King. And to Frodo.
PIPPIN: Now, are you going to finish those mushrooms, or do I have to liberate them?
Backgrounder Notes
As an expert researcher and library scientist, I have analyzed the provided dialogue between Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took. To enhance a reader’s understanding of the historical and cultural context of Middle-earth during the early Fourth Age, I have identified the following key concepts and provided brief backgrounders for each.
1. Palantír
A palantír is one of several ancient, indestructible crystal spheres used for long-distance communication and seeing events across space and time. In the context of the dialogue, Merry’s caution stems from the fact that these "Seeing-stones" were often manipulated by the Dark Lord Sauron to ensnare the minds of those who used them.
2. The Fourth Age
The Fourth Age is the historical period of Middle-earth that began after the destruction of the One Ring and the departure of the Ring-bearers from the Grey Havens. It marks the transition of the world from a time of magic and Elder Races (Elves, Dwarves, and Ents) to the "Dominion of Men" and the restoration of the United Kingdom under King Elessar.
3. The Scouring of the Shire
This refers to the brief but transformative conflict that occurred after the Hobbits returned home to find their land industrialistically oppressed by ruffians under the command of the fallen wizard Saruman (referred to by his minions as "Sharkey"). The event served as the final test for the Hobbits, proving they had gained the leadership and courage necessary to govern and protect themselves without outside help.
4. Ent-draught
Ent-draughts are potent, life-sustaining waters found in Fangorn Forest that are consumed by the Ents (tree-herds) to promote vigor and growth. Because Merry and Pippin drank these waters during their time with the Ent Treebeard, they became the tallest Hobbits in history, eventually reaching heights of nearly four-and-a-half feet.
5. The 1420 Vintage
The year 1420 (by Shire Reckoning) is legendary among Hobbits for its extraordinary weather and the resulting bounty of crops, particularly its high-quality ale and pipe-weed. The vintage is often attributed to the magical dust from the Lady Galadriel’s garden, which Samwise Gamgee used to heal the soil of the Shire after the Scouring.
6. Mallorn Tree
A mallorn is a majestic species of tree native to the Elven realm of Lothlórien, characterized by silver bark and golden flowers that bloom in the autumn. The mallorn tree in the Shire’s "Party Field" is unique, as it was the only one of its kind in Middle-earth outside of the Elven lands, grown from a seed gifted to Samwise Gamgee by Galadriel.
7. Thain and Master of Buckland
These are the two most significant hereditary titles in the Shire's social and political hierarchy. The Thain is the military authority and representative of the King in the Shire (a role Pippin eventually inherits), while the Master of Buckland is the head of the influential Brandybuck family and leader of the eastern marshlands (Merry’s eventual title).
8. King Elessar
King Elessar is the regal name of Aragorn II, the Chieftain of the Dúnedain and rightful heir to the thrones of Gondor and Arnor. His coronation at the end of the War of the Ring marked the return of the High Kingship and the beginning of a protective alliance between the human kingdoms and the Shire.
