[Lily Bracegirdle]

There's also the fact that Denethor wants the Ring himself. Faramir may be the son of the Steward, but he's not actually second-in-command in Gondor. He's just a regular Captain (more like a general) in the army of Gondor. If any other captain came to Denethor and said "Some suspicious guys were trying to get into Mordor with the Ring of Power, so I helped them, *in defiance of your standing order*" he'd be in a lot of trouble! (Shorter by about a head.)Denethor is the kind of "fair" man who won't be lenient just because the perpetrator is his own son. If anything, he'd be *more* harsh on Faramir than on another captain. <P>Tar-Palantir, you've put lemon juice into the paper cut that is Osgiliath. So many things about that scene make no sense whatsoever! I've ranted about it before, so I'll spare you now, but I agree completely.<P>-Lily