Chapter 19 – The Last Meeting Of The White Council
An Emergency Meeting
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Gandalf asked Saruman to call an emergency meeting of the White Council.
Saruman didn't know what Gandalf wanted to say, but he could guess. Gandalf was going to announce that Sauron had found the Ring.
It wasn't really a surprise. When Sauron was in Dol Guldur, he lay dormant most of the time. He concealed his identity and ran away whenever he was confronted. But now that he was back in Mordor, he was openly rebuilding his tower and breeding orcs, apparently in preparation for war. Saruman could think of nothing else to explain his sudden increase in power.
Actually, Saruman had suspected it for several years now. He should have told the White Council as soon as he knew, but he hadn't because he was ashamed of how he found out.
Isildur's Bones
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When Saruman watched Sauron's people reenacting the Disaster at Gladden Fields, he thought he saw them discover the spot where Isildur fell. The Istari forced Sauron out of Dol Guldur soon after, so the servants of Sauron never had a chance to come back and investigate further. But Saruman did.
Saruman sent his agents to search the spot. They discovered Isildur's bones there, in shallow water among the reeds on the West Bank of the Anduin.
Saruman knew the bones were Isildur's because they were found with things that had belonged to him. Near his body, they discovered Isildur's crown with its famous jewel, the Elendimir. And on a chain around the skeleton's neck, they found the small gold case where Isildur kept the Ring.
The crown was an heirloom of unimaginable value, but in Saruman's mind, the case was the prize.
When it was delivered to him, Saruman couldn't open it right away because his hands were shaking too hard. He felt sick with fear and giddy with triumph, all at the same time. He hesitated, to make the moment last a little longer. Then he took a deep breath, opened the case, and looked inside.
It was empty.
Saruman dropped everything, and brought a team of laborers to the Gladden Fields to dig up the river bed from the site where Isildur's bones was found. The workers pulled cartloads of sand and gravel to shore.
Saruman watched closely as the sand and gravel from the river bottom was sifted through screen boxes. He worried that a small gold object could end up in a worker's pocket, so he stood beside them and watched everything they did. But even though they searched through tons of riverbed, he never saw the glint of gold or sensed the presence of a magical object.
Finally, when he realized the project was going nowhere, he decided to end it before the White Council noticed what he was doing. He went back to Orthanc, dejected. He feared that Sauron's people got there first and took the Ring but left the body and artifacts.
Later, it occurred to him that perhaps the Ring hadn't been in the little box when Isildur died. Perhaps the Ring had been on Isildur's hand, and became lost in the gravel beneath his bones. Saruman realized he'd given up too easily. He should have kept screening cartloads of sand until he found it. He resolved to go back and try again.
But then, he remembered how easily they drove Sauron from Dol Guldur. The White Council showed up, and he fled. It was too easy. Maybe Sauron was done searching the Gladden Fields because he'd found what he was looking for. Maybe it was on his hand right now.
Saruman hid Isildur's gold case and crown in the secret closet at Orthanc. He told no one. He couldn't bring himself to tell anyone he'd found Isildur's body either, so he burned the bones.
He knew he was covering up a bad act with a worse one, but he did it anyway. Isildur came from a culture that attached great importance to tombs and monuments. He didn't deserve to end up in a trash pit. Afterwards, Saruman felt a profound sense of shame.
Sauron Is Still Searching
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Saruman snapped out of his reverie when Gandalf stood to speak.
"The Nazgûl have reoccupied Dol Guldur and resumed searching the Gladden Fields." Gandalf said.
Saruman just about collapsed with relief. If Sauron was still searching for the Ring, then obviously he didn't have it.
Then he noticed that Gandalf, Elrond, and Galadriel were still wearing their Elven rings. They wouldn't be, if Sauron were wearing his. If Saruman had thought to look at their hands earlier, it would have saved him a lot of worry.
Gandalf was still speaking. "Meanwhile, his servants are looking for the Ring again, as though nothing had happened.
"They're making inquiries in villages all up and down the east bank of the Anduin, and in a few villages on the west bank as well. Some of the villages are hundreds of miles from the Gladden Fields. They're dredging the river and going through the gravel they bring up." said Gandalf.
Saruman cringed. He had never gotten around to telling the Council about his own search efforts. He decided it would be awkward to say anything now, especially since some of Gandalf's examples of Sauron's activities were actually Saruman's.
Washed Out To Sea
Saruman spoke next. "I don't think we need to worry. The Ring washed out to sea long ago."
Saruman didn't like the way Gandalf was looking at him.
He told Gandalf he'd made a study of the currents and tides between the Gladden Fields and the sea. A series of floods scoured the riverbed and swept most of the sand and gravel out to sea, taking the Ring with it.
"At this point, it can't be recovered." said Saruman.
"Marshlands don't get scoured away by floods. The reeds and water plants slow the current and hold the riverbed in place." said Radagast.
"Well, I also looked in the Palantir." said Saruman.
"Is that wise? The kings of Gondor stopped using the Ithil Stone after it was captured by the Nazgûl. If Sauron went to Minas Morgul after we drove him out, then there's something a lot worse than a Nazgûl in the Ithil Stone." said Elrond.
Saruman knew that. He was being extraordinarily careful.
You Want It For Yourself
As they were leaving, Gandalf pulled Saruman aside. "Washed out to sea? Really?" he said. "Or perhaps you've already found it yourself?"
"Don't be ridiculous." said Saruman.
And if I did find it, would that so terrible? The Ring isn't evil, it just magnifies the traits you already have. Maybe I'd become more skilled, or wise, Saruman thought.
"What do you think he'd do to you, if he thought you had it?" said Gandalf.
I'm not worried at all. I'd make him bow down and call me Lord, Saruman thought.