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Treasure Island: Hands

The strong current had by this time parted the last strand of the hawser which I had left, and both coracle and ship were adrift; with a leap I caught at the jib-boom, and clung, panting, left without retreat on the Hispaniola. When I got aft I found the sailor dead, and Hands in a sad condition. He was friendly enough while helpless, but as he grew stronger he asserted himself and issued orders, which I obeyed until the ship was round in a low wooded north inlet.

The excitement of the last maneuvers had interfered with my watch upon the coxswain, but something caused me to turn my head, when I saw the fellow half-way toward me, his dirk in his hand; he chased me around the deck, trying to corner me; quick as thought I sprang into the mizzen shrouds and rattled up hand over hand into the cross-trees; none too soon, the dirk had struck not a foot below me as I climbed.

Now I primed my pistols and reloaded, and Hands, seeing this, knew that the dice were against him; in spite of this he started up after me. "One more step, Mr. Hands," said I, "and I'll blow your brains out!" I saw his right hand go up over his shoulder, something sang like an arrow through the air, and I was pinned to the mast; both my pistols went off and escaped from my hands, but they did not fall alone; with a choking cry the coxswain loosed his grasp and plunged down head first, and I saw him through the clear water lying on the sand beneath.

I found that I was held simply by the skin of my arm, and, pulling myself free, I finally got ashore and with difficulty reached my friends. They had had some fierce battling with the mutineers, but in the end a flag of truce appeared and Silver came forward to bargain. The doctor, much to the surprise of all, gave him the chart; but this was explained later, for when they dug for the treasure and reached the bottom of the cache, nothing was found but a broken pick and a board with the word "Walrus" burnt into it--the name of Flint's ship!

Ben Gunn was the real hero. Early in his stay on the island he had come upon the treasure, and with great difficulty transported it to a cave and hidden it; seven hundred thousand pounds in minted money of all nations, besides heavy bars of gold.

The doctor had wormed the secret out of Ben Gunn and then arranged to give the chart to Silver, knowing that the cache was empty.

We piled the treasure aboard the ship, set sail, and finally reached a port on the Mexican coast, where we added to our crew.

After a good voyage we reached home just as friends of the squire were about starting out in search of the Hispaniola.