"GL1" - читать интересную книгу автора (vol06)

in chorus. 'My dear Bagginses,' he went on, standing now on his
chair, so that the light of the lanterns that illuminated the enor-
mous pavilion flashed upon the gold buttons of his embroidered
waistcoat for all to see. 'And my dear Tooks, and Grubbs,
and Chubbs, and Burroweses, and Boffinses, and Proudfoots.'(2)
'Proudfeet' shouted an elderly hobbit from the back. His name of
course was Proudfoot, and merited; his feet were large, exception-
ally furry, and both were on the table. 'Also my dear Sackville-
Bagginses that I welcome back at last to Bag-end,' Bilbo con-
tinued. 'Today is my seventieth birthday.' 'Hurray hurray and
many happy returns! ' they shouted. That was the sort of stuff they
liked: short, obvious, uncontroversial.
'I hope you are all enjoying yourselves as much as I am.'
Deafening cheers, cries of yes (and no), and noises of trumpets
and whistles. There were a great many junior hobbits present, as
hobbits were indulgent to their children, especially if there was a
chance of an extra meal. Hundreds of musical crackers had been
pulled. Most of them were labelled 'Made in Dale'. What that
meant only Bilbo and a few of his Took-nephews knew; but they
were very marvellous crackers. 'I have called you all together,'
Bilbo went on when the last cheer died away, and something in his
voice made a few of the Tooks prick up their ears. 'First of all to
tell you that I am immensely fond of you, and that seventy years is
too short a time to live among such excellent and charming hobbits'
- 'hear hear!''I don't know half of you half as well as I should like,
and less than half of you half as well as you deserve.' No cheers, a few
claps - most of them were trying to work it out. 'Secondly to
celebrate my birthday and the twentieth year of my return' - an
uncomfortable rustle. 'Lastly to make an Announcement.' He said
this very loud and everybody sat up who could. 'Goodbye! I am
going away after dinner. Also I am going to get married.'

He sat down. The silence was flabbergastation. It was broken
only by Mr Proudfoot, who kicked over the table; Mrs Proudfoot
choked in the middle of a drink.

That's that. It merely serves to explain that Bilbo Baggins got
married and had many children, because I am going to tell you a
story about one of his descendants, and if you had only read his
memoirs up to the date of Balin's visit - ten years at least before
this birthday party - you might have been puzzled.(3)
As a matter of fact Bilbo Baggins disappeared silently and
unnoticed - the ring was in his hand even while he made his speech
- in the middle of the confused outburst of talk that followed the
flabbergasted silence. He was never seen in Hobbiton again.
When the carriages came for the guests there was no one to say
good-bye to. The carriages rolled away, one after another, filled
with full but oddly unsatisfied hobbits. Gardeners came (by
appointment) and cleared away in wheelbarrows those that had
inadvertently remained. Night settled down and passed. The sun