LogFAQs > #897061655

In addition to what PO has mentioned, one of the other reasons why Gandalf wants the ring to stay with Frodo is because Hobbits make incredibly good ringbearers simply by dint of who they are.

All of the rings of power, including the One Ring, work by understanding what their bearer desires. For instance, humans - one of the few mortal races in LotR and easily one of the most short-lived - desire long life, so the human kings who received the rings of power had their lives stretched far beyond their natural lifespan and became the Nazgul. The dwarves' greatest desire was treasure - natch - so the rings allowed them to accumulate vast treasure hordes (which typically resulted in a sudden, violent death due to attracting dragons or unearthing balrogs or other similar calamities), but also had the side effect of making them extraordinarily greedy and self-centred. The elves desired a stop to the slow fading of their lands and so their rings preserved and sustained the elven realms (the elven rings are also a bit special given that Sauron did not have a hand in their creation; while they still draw power from The One Ring, Sauron can't use them to dominate their bearers the same way that he can with the other 17 rings).

The One Ring - whose power flows through the other 19 rings and is what makes them work - is an extension of Sauron's will and Sauron's "thing" is mind control and the domination of lesser beings. He worms his way into the hearts and minds of the ring bearers by playing on their greatest desires and, in doing so, has a highly effective way of subverting their freedom and bending them to his will. The One Ring, in essence, directly whispers to its bearer (and anyone else nearby) and promises them the power to do whatever they most desire. This is exactly why the various Gondor characters (Boromir, Denethor, Faramir) all believe the ring can bring them victory against Mordor - not because it can actually do that, but because the ring is corrupting their minds and telling them that it can. The greater the desire (and the weaker the mental fortitude of the afflicted), the faster this corruption takes place. Gandalf has a strong heart, but also a great desire to see the world saved, and given that he is weaker than Sauron he likely would not be able to withstand the corruption for long enough to properly dispose of the ring.

Which brings us to Hobbits, who are famously unconcerned with the goings on of the surrounding world and - per Bilbo's own observations - generally desire nothing more than a simple life: a hearty meal, a pint of strong ale, a pipe to smoke, and a field to till. This makes them remarkably resilient to the ring's temptations, because there is virtually nothing that they can be tempted with that they don't already have. It's not impossible to corrupt a Hobbit - Frodo, Bilbo, and Gollum all succumb to the ring, to varying degrees - but they are more resilient than virtually any other race of creatures in Middle Earth.
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