[The Squatter of Amon Rûdh]

I've read very few books of any kind that went into the sewerage arrangements in any sort of detail. Apart from Burrahobbit's blog, the only example I can think of is that of the journals of Jean Hérouard, personal physician to Louis XIII of France, in which - inter alia - His Majesty's bowel movements are faithfully recorded. I don't recall seeing that particular work on a best seller list, but I may simply not have been paying attention. I contend that this is no coincidence, since most people grow out of their infantile interest in excreta by the time they leave primary school, rapidly relegating the process to the same category as breathing or blinking: things which are parts of everyday life, but not worthy of note unless they betray emotion. I suppose it's possible that the Mouth of Sauron needed a change of underwear after returning from his parley with Gandalf, Aragorn et al, but his fear was adequately expressed in other ways, so there was no need to mention it.

As a subject to use in mockery of Tolkien discussion fora, of course, this one is ideal, since it can be used to demonstrate that we'll devote thousands of words to discussing night soil. If I were irretrievably idiotic and juvenile, this is the topic that I would probably use to make that point.