 However, as stated by Gloin at the Council of Elrond, the Dwarves of Erebor have surpassed their predecessors in mining and building before Smaug descended on the Lonely Mountain, but not in metal-work, smithing or the making of mail, as their predecessors' secrets have been long lost.Since they lived underground, Dwarves did not grow their own food supplies if they could help it, and usually obtained food through trade with Elves and Men.In the essay "Of Dwarves and Men" in "The Peoples of Middle-earth", Tolkien wrote that Dwarf and human communities often formed trade relations where the Men were the prime suppliers of food, farmers and herdsmen, while the Dwarves supplied tools and weapons, road-building and construction work.