Hehadnot been down that way under theHill for ages and ages, not sincehisfriend the OldTook died, in fact, and the hobbits hadalmostforgotten what he looked like.
To be sure, there are more than a few gaping holes in this argument, not the least of which is the fact that the financial crisis that tookdown asset prices around the globe is not even remotely the same as a natural disaster that hit a single area.