In the same way Mr Baggins feels compelled to journey over the Misty Mountains through much death and misery with the dwarves and Gandalf; the same goes for Tolkien's military days over the war. He loved tea, comfort and writing, and could often be found with Edith throwing sugar lumps into the hats of passers-by from the balconies of Birmingham teashops. He even had a secret society with his three friends named the T.C.B.S (Tea Club and Barrovian Society). In 1914, when the United Kingdom entered the First World War, his family were shocked when he didn't immediately go forth to fight. He recalled it was "a nasty cleft to be in for a young man with too much imagination and little physical courage" and that hints were "becoming outspoken from relatives"; leading him to join the British Army as a Second Lieutenant in the Lancashire Fusiliers - all the time wishing he was with Edith, drinking tea.
