[Theron Bugtussle]

I have a funny question about the fingers lost: Was Sauron's the middle finger? I recall Frodo losing his "third" finger, which I understood to be the traditional ring finger (the one between the middle and the pinky). Do the British use third finger to mean the middle? How do they count fingers? In the US, we say thumb, pointer, middle, ring (or third), and pinky.

Anyway, unless I am mistaken, I think they lost non-corresponding fingers.

Lyta, nice post (I mean, your first one above). But to reply to your other post...

This, of course, begs the question of whether Sauron knew of and felt a connection to Frodo through the Ring. He couldn't pinpoint it, but somehow there must have been backflow.

I would say so, but primarily when the bearer "put on the ring."

I'd say Sauron's "Eye" was closed to this, though, as it would probably have seemed like a puny bit of interference....

I think there is something in the LotR somewhere about the use of the ring by someone other than Sauron that made me think that you would have to have an already developed strength or power to be able to do any great feats with it. (Maybe I am recalling discussion of the use of the palantir.)

Sauron was more tuned to himself than others, to the Ring rather than to Frodo, whose influence would be too weak to make the Dark Lord take notice, viz. his position smack in the middle of the struggle between Gandalf and Sauron at Amon Hen. The great powers vied, and this left Frodo free for an instant.

I wonder if you are mischaracterizing the Amon Hen experience. I thought it was more like the following.

Frodo was checking things out that he could only see while wearing the ring (great distances, for one). He was being quite lackadaisical. Then suddenly he sensed the Eye of Sauron turning eagerly in his direction. Frodo began freaking out, and wanting to take off the ring before it was too late. Didn't he feel powerless to do so?

Then Gandalf sensed Frodo with the ring on, perceived what was about to happen between Sauron and Frodo, and jumped--figuratively--to Frodo's defense, intercepting Sauron's searching and dominating mind/thought just as it was about to latch on to Frodo--and probably turn his mind into jelly. That was what enabled Frodo to escape Sauron for the time--and that was without a direct pinpoint of Frodo by Sauron.