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Originally Posted by FerniesApple
sorry I cant agree. Denethor lost his wits trying to fence with Sauron, he was mortal, even Aragorn wouldnt risk it.
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I can't agree with this. Denethor lost his wits when he thought Faramir was dealt a mortal blow.
According to Aragorn himself, he did use the Stone and revealed himself to Sauron before they took the Paths of the Dead.
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Originally Posted by RotK; The Passing of the Grey Company
I am the lawful master of the Stone, and I had both the right and the strength to use it, or so I judged. The right cannot be doubted. The strength was enough - barely. It was a bitter struggle, and the weariness is slow to pass. I spoke no word to him, and in the end I wrenched the Stone to my own will. That alone he will find hard to endure. And he beheld me. <...> when I mastered the Stone, I learned many things. A grave peril I saw coming unlooked for upon Gondor from the South that will draw off great strength from the defense of Minas Tirith.
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The Stones were used for communication in the realm of the Dúnedain, but Sauron "used a Stone for the transference of his superior will, dominating the weaker surveyor and forcing him to reveal hidden thought and to submit to commands." [The Palantíri, Note #5]
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Originally Posted by Unfinished Tales; The Palantíri
the Stones were originally "innocent," serving no evil purpose. It was Sauron who made them sinister, and instruments of domination and deceit.
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Denethor also had a right to the Stone as warden of the Kings. However, Gandalf had his doubts about Denethor, that perhaps he too, like Saruman, had surrendered to Sauron. Take note of what is said concerning those who had a right to use the Stones.
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Originally Posted by The Palantíri
In the case of Denethor, the Steward was strengthened, even against Sauron himself, by the fact the Stones were far more amenable to legitimate users: most of all to true "Heirs of Elendil" (as Aragorn), but also to one with inherited authority (as Denethor), as compared to Saruman, or Sauron.
<...>
Denethor was a man of great strength of will, and maintained the integrity of his personality until the final blow of the (apparently) mortal wound of his only surviving son. <...> the Arnor stone was his by right, and nothing but expediency was against his use of it in his grave anxieties. He must have guessed that the Ithil-stone was in evil hands, and risked contact with it, trusting his strength. His trust was not entirely unjustified. Sauron failed to dominate him and could only influence him by deceits.
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He never dominated Denethor and therefore could not force him to reveal his thought to him. It is said that Sauron may have tried to mess with Denethor but he was ever able to wrench the Stone from Sauron. So I would say that the only information Sauron got was not from Denethor, but from scrying the Stone and looking upon the land of Gondor, as the Dúnedain used to do when they watched their borders with the Stones and kept and eye on their enemies.