Chapter 22 of Treasure Island simmers with tension as the aftermath of the pirates’ brutal attack leaves the stockade battered and the loyalists scrambling to recover.

With no further gunfire from the woods, Captain Smollett and his crew take a moment to catch their breath, tending to their wounded and dealing with the task of burying the fallen pirates.

But the lull is deceptive, and young Jim Hawkins refuses to sit idly by. With Dr. Livesey departing on a mysterious errand—later revealed to be a search for Ben Gunn—Jim hatches his own plan.

Determined to cripple the mutineers’ escape, he slips out of the block-house to locate Ben Gunn’s hidden boat, nestled near the white rock.

“I had quite made up my mind that the mutineers, after their repulse of the morning, had nothing nearer their hearts than to up anchor and away to sea…”

As night falls, the pirates’ drunken carousing around a great fire provides the perfect cover. Jim carefully launches the small boat into the shallows, his heart pounding as he paddles toward the Hispaniola. His goal is bold, almost reckless: to cut the ship’s anchor and set it adrift, leaving the pirates stranded on the island.

The darkness cloaks him, but danger lurks in every shadow. Can Jim carry out his audacious plan without being spotted, or will this act of defiance put him directly in the pirates’ crosshairs?

Chapter 22 crackles with suspense, as Jim steps into the unknown, risking everything for the chance to turn the tide against the mutineers.

TREAT A WOUND

“My accidental cut across the knuckles was a flea-bite. Dr. Livesey patched it up with plaster…” In the 1700s, at the time of Treasure Island, treating wounds lacked sterilization and knowledge of germs, so infections were common and often deadly. Basic cloth bandages and alcohol or vinegar were used to clean wounds, but there were no antibiotics. We’re going to practice treating a wound like Dr. Livesey.

TERMS TO KNOW

Apoplectic fit – a sudden and intense burst of anger or rage that causes someone to lose control.

Girt on a cutlass – to fasten a cutlass—a short, curved sword typically used by sailors—around the waist.

Patched it up with plaster – to mend a wound with a bandage.

“I sat grilling, with my clothes stuck to the hot resin” – sitting in the intense heat, as if being cooked. “Hot resin” refers to the sticky, melted sap from the ship’s wood.

French leave – leaving secretly without permission or notice.

Grinding of boughs – the sound of the ship’s wood rubbing or scraping against each other, likely due to strong winds.

The anchorage, under lee of Skeleton Island – a sheltered area where the ship can anchor safely, protected from strong winds by the island. “Under lee” is the side sheltered from the wind.

“In that unbroken mirror” – reflected clearly in the still, calm water, which looks like an “unbroken mirror.”

Stern bulwarks – the protective barriers or walls at the back (stern) of the ship.

Stride-legs upon the palisade – standing with legs apart, confidently positioned against the barricade.

“There was one thwart set as low as possible, a kind of stretcher in the bows” – a rowing seat (thwart) positioned very low in the front (bows) of the boat.

Coracle – a small, lightweight, round boat made with a frame of wood and covered with animal hide or other waterproof material.

Truantry – behavior associated with shirking responsibilities. It conveys a sense of disobedience, laziness, or avoidance of duty.

Carousing – drinking heavily and engaging in loud, boisterous behavior.

“The ebb had already run some time” – tidal movement where the water level is receding after high tide. The tide has been lowering for a while, exposing more of the shoreline.

Keel downwards – a boat or ship flipped over or capsized.