J. R. R. Tolkien

Cold be hand and heart and bone,

and cold be sleep under stone:

never more to wake on stony bed,

never, till the Sun fails and the Moon is dead.

In the black wind the stars shall die,

and still on gold here let them lie,

till the dark lord lifts up his hand

over dead sea and withered land.

'Sam is an excellent fellow, and would jump down a dragon's throat to save you, if he did not trip over his own feet.'

It cannot be seen, cannot be felt,

Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt.

It lies behind stars and under hills,

And empty holes it fills.

It comes first and follows after,

Ends life, kills laughter.

The king is come unto his hall

Under the Mountain dark and tall.

The Worm of Dread is slain and dead,

And ever so our foes shall fall!

To say that Bilbo's breath was taken away is no description at all. There are no words left to express his staggerment, since Men changed the language that they learned of elves in the days when all the world was wonderful.

This thing all things devours:

Birds, beasts, trees, flowers;

Gnaws iron, bites steel;

Grinds hard stones to meal;

Slays king, ruins town,

And beats high mountain down.

...but things that are good to have and days that are good to spend are soon told about, and not much to listen to.

Thirty white horses on a red hill,

First they champ,

Then they stamp,

Then they stand still.

"Thief, thief, thief! Baggins! We hates it, we hates it, we hates it for ever!"

It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him. Dragons may not have much real use for all their wealth, but they know it to an ounce as a rule, especially after long possession; and Smaug was no exception.

"Never laugh at live dragons, Bilbo you fool!" he said to himself, and it became a favourite saying of his later, and passed into a proverb.

''What has roots as nobody sees,

Is taller than trees,

Up, up it goes,

And yet never grows?