Gandalf’s Possible Inaccuracy in the chapter “The Shadow of the Past”

[William Cloud Hicklin]

If we assume that Frodo is not supposed have been able to recall in exact detail what Gandalf said, we might imagine Gandalf’s words as something like: “A Ring of Power held by a mortal looks after itself, Frodo” instead of “A Ring of Power looks after itself, Frodo.”

Except Dwarves are mortal as well.

I think really that the original supposition is correct: dormitat Homerus. Ch 2 was written long before Tolkien had considered where the story was going generally, much less in detai. I seriously doubt that at the time he had thought up (a) Thror passing his ring to Thrain, which appeared first in 'The Quest of Erebor' ca. 1954, or (b) Gandalf as a ringbearer, first realized on paper during the writing of the last chapter, and how he got it from Cirdan written even later in 'Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age.'

Of course, we can ret-con to our taste, and I think Belegorn's post covers it pretty well.