Bill Ferny
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Bill Ferny is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.
Ferny spied on Frodo in Bree. He was noticed relaying details of the hobbits' adventures at the Prancing Pony to one of the Nazgūl, this event witnessed by Meriadoc Brandybuck.
After the Hobbits were nearly murdered in their sleep at the raid of the Prancing Pony inn, they had to buy a pony, since during the raid all the ponies and donkeys were let loose from the stable. Bill sold an old, bad tempered pony to the Hobbits and Strider for 12 silver pennies (apparently a most unfair price). The Hobbits then left Bree with Strider, taking the main street. Bill Ferny jeered at Strider, who merely nodded in response. Sam, however, was not so reticent, hitting Ferny in the face with a quickly-thrown apple. Sam, who took a liking to the pony, later named it Bill.
When the four hobbits returned to the Shire in The Return of the King, Bill Ferny was among the men guarding the locked gate at the Brandywine.