Chapter 26 A Fond Farewell.
We Make Our Way Home.
We spent the next days carrying our vast treasure into the boats and then onto the Hispaniola.
As I was too young to do the work of the stronger men, I was given the task of filling canvas sacks with the treasure so that the others could carry it away.
One by one.
I filled each bag with the precious stuff, sealing them at the top with a large sailor's needle and thread.
It was long, hard work, but worth the effort.
We worried about the three remaining pirates, but thankfully heard little of them.
The treasure was a collection of coins from around the world.
Until that moment, I had had no idea that money came in such a variety of forms and styles.
Along with the French and English coins I had seen before, there were piles of Spanish doubloons and Venetian ducats.
Even stranger were the square coins with holes in the middle from far away China that perhaps Marco Polo had come across on his journeys.
I sifted through them, letting them fall like autumn leaves through my fingers.
One night we heard the raving of the mutineers.
For our part, Silver had been treated civilly, but kept at a distance, like a dog leashed to a post.
No man would hear him out, for although he played kind, we knew he was not to be trusted.
We decided we must maroon the mutineers.
There was no point in bringing them home to hang.
So we loaded Ben's cave with a good stock of sail, as well as tools, food, and other supplies.
Then we readied our ship.
As we were leaving, we passed by the three men in the shallows we could still make out ashore, begging us to take them along.
We hailed them, and the doctor told them of the small stores of food we had left.
Still they begged, and when it was clear we would not stop, they fired on us and just missed Silver himself.
Soon the craggy peaks were fading from view and I felt a great joy to be leaving Treasure Island behind me.
We were short of men, and each had to do his part.
The captain still needed rest and was giving his orders from a cot on deck.
In time, we reached Spanish America and greeted the people there with great joy.
We tasted their fruits and vegetables, and the captain found another English shipmaster with whom he was invited to spend the evening telling of our adventures.
When we returned to the Hispaniola, we found Ben Gunn alone on deck, telling us that Silver had taken a small craft and some sacks of treasure and had made off.
I think we all felt relieved when we knew he had gone for good.
To make a long story short, we got a few good hands on board there and made our way home just before a search party was sent to rescue us.
We all got a fair share of the treasure and spent it in various ways.
Gray saved his money, gained an education, and got married.
He is now a part owner of a full-rigged ship.
Ben Gunn lost his one thousand pounds within three weeks and was back begging on the fourth.
Our good captain retired.
Of silver we heard no more.
I imagine he located his wife and is still living with his parrot, Captain Flint.
As for me, though there may still be gold on Treasure Island, I shall never return.
When I have bad dreams, they are of the booming surf and of the sharp voice of Captain Flint ringing in my ears.
Pieces of eight, pieces of eight.