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Originally Posted by Kath
I suppose Bilbo's immediate reluctance to tell the true story about how he got out of the tunnels could be a sign of the power of the Ring, that it has already begun to exert an influence over him. However, it could also be that he felt deep down that he had got it from Gollum by unfair means because, once he realised that he was holding the very thing this creature wanted, he kept it.
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My sense is that his motivation was as immediate as his reluctance. He had just snuck under the nose of Balin, and his vanity kept him from admitting that he'd done it with a magic ring. He wanted the Dwarves' approval, and now had a means of getting it; underhanded, mind you, but he was a thief, after all.