The arrangements of the Elves (at least, the Elves of Mirkwood) in The Hobbit are even more puzzling.
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In ancient days they had had wars with some of the dwarves, whom they accused of stealing their treasure. It is only fair to say that the dwarves gave a different account, and said that they only took what was their due, for the elf-king had bargained with them to shape his raw gold and silver, and had afterwards refused to give them their pay. If the elf-king had a weakness it was for treasure, especially for silver and white gems; and though his hoard was rich, he was ever eager for more, since he had not yet as great a treasure as other elf-lords of old. His people neither mined nor worked metals or jewels, nor did they bother much with trade or with tilling the earth.
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I can only assume they lived entirely off magic. The Mirkwood elves also hunted the animals in the forest (those that weren't too corrupted by Sauron's magic to be edible), but you can't run a civilisation entirely off that.