[Galin]

Legate of Amon Lanc wrote: '... However, what you say is just one moment where the Orcs are mentioned; another is at Helm's Deep, and don't forget Treebeard's words - that's what I consider quite important.

Treebeard being a character in the tale indeed wonders here -- he questions what is going on but he doesn't know what Saruman has really done. He has guessed right in that Saruman has bred Orcs and Men, though the result need not be the Uruk-hai however.

We know that Saruman had 'many' Uruks in his service: 'Others also came down from the Misty Mountains, many being great Uruks in the service of Saruman, though it was long before that was suspected.' Appendix A

... The Uruks are mentioned as large here. However, I am pretty sure that "large" means just "big in comparison to the small mountain maggots who are all over the place". And the "huge orc-chieftain" is probably the biggest among them all, however, he is described as which means that even though he is huge, he is almost man-high. Note this, please, it will be useful later.

Right, almost man-high, arguably big for an Orc. That's my point though, the Isengarders are not necessarily that unusual in size to Aragorn. They are greater than the Northerners just as some Uruks of Mordor could be (in general). We don't get much in the way of detail in Moria, but the Uruks there are large, and the chieftain is 'huge' (for an Orc). It is the half-orcs that are said to be 'man-high' in any case.

Interestingly, "swart" is one of the words used especially for Uruk-hai of Saruman. In connection with them, the words "large, swart, slant-eyed Orcs with great bows and short broad-bladed swords" are used several times; probably to emphasise the fact that these were them who killed Boromir (as Uglúk also says, "we killed the great warrior"), but also it somewhat looks like specific sign. The speciality of Uruk-hai of Isengard is that they are "slant-eyed" - that's how you should recognise an Orc, or even a Man from Isengard: that there is something about his eyes.

JRRT describes Orcs in general (in a letter) with slant-eyes: '...they are (or were) squat, broad, flat-nosed, sallow-skinned, with wide mouths and slant eyes;...' JRRT Letters

In Flotsam and Jetsam, Merry says: (snip of quote). This concerns these "squint-eyed fellows" we all know. Note please, that these are not Orcs. Merry says that there were Orcs, wolf-riders, and then Men; which he divides into these cathegories.

These are described as 'half-orcs' however, Aragorn replies to Merry:

'Do you know, they reminded me at once of that Southerner at Bree; only he was not so obviously orc-like as most of these were.

'I thought of him too,' said Aragorn. 'We had many of these half-orcs to deal with at Helm's Deep.' Flotsam And Jetsam

And at Helm's Deep, Gamling says: 'But these creatures of Isengard, these half-orcs and goblin-men that the foul craft of Saruman has bred, they will not quail at the sun,' said Gamling.' Indeed Saruman has bred 'half-orcs', also called Men-orcs or Orc-men in my opinion (noting that these terms are half one thing, half the other. And translate 'goblin' if desired, in either term).

'... and in his lust for mastery commited this, his wickedest deed: the interbreeding of Orcs and Men, producing both Men-orcs large and cunning, and Orc-men treacherous and vile.' JRRT, Myths Transformed, Morgoth's Ring

However it's also clear that Treebeard spoke about Uglúk and his Uruk-hai when he spoke about crossbreeding Orcs and Men.

I disagree it is clear however. Some (or many) may think so, but Treebeard has no way of knowing what Saruman has done, and what he is wondering about can easily be 'half-orcs' instead of Uruk-hai or 'Orc-folk'. Or if he saw any of the Uruk-hai, he would not know why they did not seem to mind the Sun.

This implies what I said before, that the Uruk-hai of Saruman were still somewhat different, more Man-like than the Uruks of Sauron. The other thing is also that you never see these "goblin-faces" in Sauron's armies. Apart from Easterlings, Southrons and Variags of Khand there are no large groups of Men in his service; in Mordor there are just normal Orcs (i.e. Snaga and Uruks).

Yes Sauron doesn't seem to have had half-orcs at this time

Note Merry's statement that the Southerner at Bree was 'not so obviously orc-like as most of these were'. Generally speaking two 'kinds' of half-orcs could indeed be expected when breeding Orcs and Men, and the more orc-like result would not be as well suited to spying as the less orc-like result, though indeed there may have been some grey area here.

Tolkien uses two terms when he speaks of the result of Saruman's breeding program (though not Uruk-hai or 'Orc-folk' in any case)