Q: Who Attacked the Inn and Slashed the Bolsters in Bree?
ANSWER: Based on all available evidence from the book, it was Bill Ferny and his Southerner associate. But this seems to be one of the great unanswerable questions in Tolkien fandom, not so much because it cannot be shown who the (most likely) attackers were, but because many readers have made up their minds and are not really interested in hearing why their choices may not be the best.
We can agree that there is no definitive statement from J.R.R. Tolkien about who, exactly, invaded the Prancing Pony and slashed bolsters. Both Ralph Bakshi and Peter Jackson, however, depict the Nazgûl as doing the deed of attacking innocent, defenseless bolsters that have absolutely no Rings of Power hidden amongst them. The movies alone settle the question for some people.
The incident where someone invades the inn at night and visits the wrong room (that is, the room with the pillows/bolsters) goes all the way back to J.R.R. Tolkien’s initial plot notes for The Lord of the Rings (written usually a chapter or two in advance of wherever he was in the story). Even in the notes he does not suggest who attacks the room, and we know that early on in the story the full nature and power of the Ringwraiths had not yet emerged. But it is, I think, significant that the essential event remains intact from original conception to publication: someone attempts to break into the room where Frodo and his companions are staying, finds only pillows/bolsters, and then does something to the pillows in frustration.
In the published book Aragorn shows the damage to Butterbur:
As soon as Strider had roused them all, he led the way to their bedrooms. When they saw them they were glad that they had taken his advice: the windows had been forced open and were swinging, and the curtains were flapping; the beds were tossed about, and the bolsters slashed and flung upon the floor; the brown mat was torn to pieces. Strider immediately went to fetch the landlord. Poor Mr. Butterbur looked sleepy and frightened. He had hardly closed his eyes all night (so he said), but he had never heard a sound.
So Butterbur had been awake but he never noticed anything — despite the fact that every time a Nazgûl comes around the dogs start barking and the hair on the back of people’s necks stands up. One should think this passage alone would persuade most people to accept that the Nazgûl were not involved in the attack. Still, prior to the attack Merry (who has just encountered a Black Rider and been overwhelmed but its presence) puts the question squarely to Aragorn:
‘What will happen?’ said Merry. ‘Will they attack the inn?’ ‘No, I think not,’ said Strider. ‘They are not all here yet. And in any case that is not their way. In dark and loneliness they are strongest; they will not openly attack a house where there are lights and many people — not until they are desperate, not while all the long leagues of Eriador still lie before us. But their power is in terror, and already some in Bree are in their clutch. They will drive these wretches to some evil work: Ferny, and some of the strangers, and, maybe, the gatekeeper too. They had words with Harry at West-gate on Monday. I was watching them. He was white and shaking when they left him.’
While this is not confirmation that Bill Ferny and his squint-eyed companion are the culprits, Aragorn clearly regards them as both capable and likely of doing something ill-intentioned in the night. Men would not set the dogs to barking nor have a terror-inspiring presence.
On every occasion when the Nazgûl are near in the story, the Hobbits and other people sense their presence before they see anything. This happens time and time again in the Shire, in Bree (Aragorn and Gandalf both share anecdotes about the effect of the Nazgûl’s presence upon the Bree-folk), at the attack on Weathertop, and throughout the Ringbearer’s journey. It took only 1 Nazgûl to set the horns ablowing in the Buckland. There were only 2 Nazgûl in Bree the night Frodo stayed there. When 5 came through the night Gandalf arrived, the whole village went nuts. And these Nazgûl didn’t mind talking to people while they casually went around the countryside looking for the One Ring.
So one must ask why it should be that in this one incident the power of the Nazgûl fails them? Some readers suggest that the Nazgûl could mask that power and dampen the terror they cause, although acting at night makes the fear they wield even worse. However, the fact that the Nazgûl can sense the Ring and follow it very closely and resolutely in several places conflicts with the notion that one or more of them would go to the trouble of invading the Prancing Pony by night, find the wrong room, and then leave without at least attempting one more room. This kind of behavior is also uncharacteristic of Nazgûl who have been sent to seize the One Ring and bring its bearer back to Mordor.
Bill Ferny, on the other hand, has absolutely no knowledge of the Ring of Power or what the stakes are. Nor would the Nazgûl have disclosed to Ferny and the Southerner what they were seeking. Ferny’s intention may have been simple murder or theft, thinking he’d obtain a reward thereby. Ferny was incapable of sensing the Ring (and knowing it for what it was) and can therefore be excused of choosing the wrong room. It is a logical fallacy, however, to argue that the Nazgûl would have gone to the wrong room and, discovering their mistake, simply withdrawn after slashing the bolsters in frustration. They should have sensed the Ring’s presence once within the inn. They could have accomplished their mission quickly. It’s not like the Bree-folk would have been capable of withstanding them.
All the evidence strongly supports the conclusion that Bill Ferny and his companion slashed the bolsters, but if after reading this far you still want the attackers to be inexplicably incompetent Nazgûl, well, you’re in good company with Ralph Bakshi and Peter Jackson.
See also
Could The One Right Have Influenced Bill Ferny In Bree?
Why Did the Bree-land Survive the Decline of Eriador?
How Deserted Was Eriador in the Late Third Age?
Where Did the Refugees in Bree Come From?
Who Are the Foes Who Live Within a Day’s March of Bree?
Strange As News From Bree (Classic Essay)
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