Narrator: Night falls on the blood-soaked pirate island. But Jim Hawkins cannot sleep.In the distance on the beach the pirates are drinking and singing round theirfire. In the stockade all is quiet, aside from the heavy breathing of poor,wounded Captain Smollett. Jim decides something needs to be done. Hedoesn’t know what - but he’s a boy who acts on impulse and thinks later.
So out of the stockade and into the night he slips. He heads down to the sea
- and now he knows what he’s up to. He remembers that Ben Gunn talkedof a boat that he’d made, hidden in a cave. If he can find it…Jim does find it -and soon he’s rowing out to the Hispaniola, which rocks on the tide.
The pirates have left just a skeleton crew - O’Brien and Hands - two of thenastiest. As Jim approaches he can hear them arguing, then drunkenlyfighting. He ties his little boat to the Hispaniola - then cuts through the ship’sanchor rope. Suddenly the ship’s drifting, and he’s drifting with it. There’snothing he can do, but lie back in the little boat and sleep.
When he wakes in the morning, the ship is lying still in a small bay at thefar end of the island. There’s not a sound on board. He pulls the little boatclose, and hauls himself up on deck. A terrible sight awaits him. O’Brien liesdead: a spike driven through him. And Hands sits, mortally wounded, leaningagainst the mast. Last night’s argument has gone badly for both of them. Jimapproaches:
Jim: Permission to come aboard, Mr Hands?
Narrator: Hands wakes; mutters…
Hands: Drink, get me drink.
Narrator: …and falls back. Jim smiles to himself: he’s in command of his first ship! Andhe’s seen enough to know that with a bit of luck he might just be able to sailthe Hispaniola back toward the stockade and save the others.
He doesn’t waste any time. Soon he’s raised enough sail to catch the wind,he’s lashed the tiller and the Hispaniola’s heading in - roughly - the rightdirection. It’s all Jim can do to steer a course towards Treasure Island.Hands watches him constantly.
Hands: Drink! Get me drink! Wine - I need wine!
Narrator: This time Jim decides to get him some.
Jim: Red or white, sir?
Hands: Hrumph.
Narrator: Jim heads below and finds some wine, then hearing movement on deckhe slips through the galley and peers through a grating: what he sees ischilling. Hands has found a knife - and is slipping it inside his shirt. He’s notas wounded as he makes out. Jim grabs a pair of pistols and stows them inhis belt, then heads back up on deck where Hands continues his pretence.But there’s nothing Jim can do - he has to sail the ship to the shore and prayHands won’t try anything.
He nearly makes it - but just as they reach shallow water, Hands jumps him.Jim dives out of the way, pulls a pistol and fires - but the powder’s dampand the gun doesn’t go off! Hands laughs and rushes him - Jim races awayacross the deck. Now the two chase each other until Jim reaches a deadend - Hands raises the knife to throw it just as the ship runs aground. Theship leans over - the knife misses. Jim climbs the mast to get away. Handsrecovers and follows. Jim climbs as high as he can go - Hands closes onhim, knife between his teeth. There’s nowhere else to run. Jim raises hissecond pistol.
Jim: One more step, Mister Hands, and I’ll blow your brains out. Dead men don’tbite, you know.
Narrator: Hands stops and assesses the situation. Then, like lightning, he draws theknife from his mouth and hurls it straight at Jim. It strikes, tears into Jim’sarm, impaling him on the mast. Jim’s finger pulls on the trigger and the pistolfires. Hands is hit - he falls back away from the mast, crashing into the waterbelow. Jim’s killed him!
7. A fight and the Hispaniola captured
Jim cannot sleep. He knows something needs to be done, but he's not sure what.
He slips away in the night, making his way towards the shore. He finds an old boat that Ben Gunn had told him about and rows out to the Hispaniola. He can hear the two pirates left on board - O'Brien and Hands - arguing, so he ties up along the ship, cuts the anchor rope to set the ship adrift, and waits for morning.
When Jim climbs on board the next morning he finds that Hands has killed O'Brien during their argument the previous night and that Hands is also badly wounded.
Jim goes below deck to get Hands a drink. While he does so Hands conceals a knife in his coat pocket, ready for Jim's return.
When Jim comes up on deck once more Hands makes a lunge at him. Jim climbs the mast and Hands pursues him. Jim is carrying a gun and at the final moment Jim shoots and Hands falls from the mast to the sea. Jim has killed him.
Teacher Notes
This series can be used to increase pupils' familiarity with a broad range of texts and narratives, including myths, legends and traditional stories and to make connections between these and other stories they are familiar with.
It will also support a broad range of writing objectives.
This series is relevant for teaching English at KS2, in England and Wales and Northern Ireland, and at First and Second Level in Scotland.
8. The pirates parley and the black spot. video
Jim returns to the stockade to discover that it is now in the hands of the pirates
9. An empty pit and Ben Gunn's surprise. video
Silver and his crew follow the map inland...but someone has beaten them to the treasure
10. Silver escapes and the heroes return. video
The Hispaniola puts ashore during the voyage home...and Silver grasps his opportunity
