Chapter 17 · Treasure Island

Copywork

The gig was no longer to be feared; the little point had already concealed it from our eyes. The ebb-tide, which had so cruelly delayed us, was now making reparation and delaying our assailants. The one source of danger was the gun.

The tide that "so cruelly delayed" the boat is now "making reparation". Why does the doctor talk about the sea as if it owed him a debt, and what does the short last sentence do after two long ones?

Discussion

Narration Tell what happens from the overloaded boat leaving the ship to the party wading ashore.

The doctor asks the captain to pull harder, and he answers, “Not without swamping the boat.” Is that good judgment, or too much caution? Character
Gray speaks up twice: once about the current, once about Israel Hands. What does each remark give the party? Moral reasoning
The captain jokes, “Carpet bowls! My lady's maid couldn't miss.” Why might he joke while the gun is turned on them? Tone
The doctor says the man the squire shot “was not dead.” Why might he tell us that? Author's choice
The party ends the chapter wading ashore without the boat and “a good half of all our powder and provisions.” Is that a loss, or a narrow escape? Plot structure

Make a Connection Tell about a time a plan changed because you forgot something that suddenly mattered.

Vocabulary

reparation: was now making reparation and delaying our assailants. making amends for a wrong
assailants: and delaying our assailants. attackers
overloaded: a danger to our overloaded craft, carrying too much
trim: The captain made us trim the boat, balance a boat by shifting the weight
bombardment: he was thinking of a bombardment of the fort. an attack with heavy guns
contrived: all was so nicely contrived that we did not ship a drop. cleverly arranged
slewed: They had the gun, by this time, slewed round upon the swivel, swung round
exposed: was in consequence the most exposed. unprotected; open to attack
disclosed: the ebb had already disclosed a narrow belt of sand uncovered; revealed
bandoleer: carried his over his shoulder by a bandoleer, a shoulder belt for carrying a gun or cartridges

Critical thinking

The doctor thinks the captain means a bombardment of the fort, but he means the ship's gun. Using two pieces of evidence, what does the doctor's mistake show?
The doctor sees the gun, one gig and, he guesses, a party on shore against them. Using two pieces of evidence, how well do the pirates work together?
The doctor calls Hunter “steady” but Joyce “a doubtful case.” Using two pieces of evidence, how far should we trust his judgment of them?