Summary: The Treasure Hunt
The story is an excerpt from the book Treasure Island. Jim Hawkins has found a
map that leads to treasure. He teams up with a group of pirates, Captain Long
John Silver (a one-legged pirate with a pet parrot) and his crew, to find the
treasure. However, as the story begins, Jim Hawkins has overheard Captain
Silver’s plans to betray everyone and run off with the treasure once they find
it. Now they have reached Skeleton Island, where the treasure is buried,
according to the map. Captain Silver talks to Jim privately and tells him that
both of them need to stick together. After that, Captain Silver addresses his
crew and motivates them to find the treasure soon. He also tells them that Jim
has been kind to them and deserves his share.
After that, the crew sets out to look for the treasure. They follow the map and
reach a tall tree. From that point, they start climbing towards the trees on top
of a hill. Soon, they come upon a sailor’s skeleton that is used as a pointer to
show them which direction to head towards. This leads them to three tall trees
on top of a slope. Silver refers to his compass and finds out under which tree’s
shadow the treasure is buried. The whole crew starts moving faster towards
the buried treasure. Jim, however, is extremely worried as he knows that the
Captain might kill them all as soon as they find the treasure.
However, when they reach the exact spot of the buried treasure, they find out
that the treasure has already been dug up by someone else! Now, there is only
a large empty pit there, and all seven hundred thousand pounds is gone. The
rest of the story can be read in the book Treasure Island.
The Treasure Hunt is an adventure story based on pirates and treasurehunting. Pirates are robbers who attack ship in the sea. In old days, some of
the pirates were infamous, and were the subject of several adventure stories
like Treasure Island. Captain John Long silver is a very interesting character.
He is a pirate who plans to betray his crew. But at the same time, he is fond of
Jim, and takes care of him through the voyage. He is disabled but commands
terror and respect among his crew members.
UNIT 5: THE TREASURE HUNT
Embedded questions
1. Silver speaks to Jim separately first because of one of these two reasons. Either he genuinely trusts
Jim and wants them to help each other out, or he has realised that Jim knew his real plans, and
wants to make sure he does not tell anyone else.
2. (Free response.)
Comprehension
A. 1. Before starting out, Silver told his men that they must get back on the sea with their ship and the
treasure as soon as possible, in order to be safe. He also discussed giving Jim his fair share of the
treasure.
2. Jim was worried about Silver because he had overheard Silver’s plan of betraying his own crew
and keeping the entire treasure for himself. No, Jim did not trust him.
3. The pirates made ‘a strange sight’ because they were all dirty from having been on the sea for a
long time. They were all carrying weapons, except Jim. Besides, Silver had his pet parrot sitting on
his shoulder.
4. At the foot of the large tree, they found a sailor’s skeleton. The skeleton’s arms were raised above
its head, pointing in a particular direction. Silver and his crew walked ahead in that direction.
5. No, the pirates did not find the treasure. When they reached the spot, they discovered that the
spot had already been dug up. Someone had already stolen the treasure.
B. 1. a. Captain Long John silver says these words to his crew.
b. The speaker probably says that to build more trust in his men towards himself.
c. The crew members probably agreed with him, as they looked cheerful and excited after
his speech. However, Jim, also one of the listeners, did not agree. He knew Silver’s plans of
betraying his own crew.
2. a. The ‘I’ here refers to Jim Hawkins.
b. Jim noticed Silver’s excitement at being close to discovering the treasure. He knew that Silver
planned to get the treasure and kill all his crew members. This made him scared.
c. ‘The other treasure-hunters’ were the crew members of the Hispaniola.
3. Jim is quite an interesting character. He is a young boy who has become part of this gang of
pirates, because of the treasure map he owns. He is intelligent enough not to let Silver know that
he suspects him. He is worried about the other crew members because he knows that Silver plans
to kill them all. But it’s clear that he too wants to discover the treasure. That is why he is sticking
with such a dangerous bunch of people.
C. 1. (Suggested answer. Accept all logical answers.)
Captain Long John Silver is a pirate. His crew seems to trust him. He makes sure he speaks to all his
crew members before heading for the treasure hunt. He leads them to the exact spot. The crew
members seem to like him and trust him. Silver even tries to talk to Jim and get him to trust him.
However, Jim knows that Silver is not true to the crew. Silver is liked by his men because he is a
good and confident leader. But Jim, who knows the truth, does not trust him.
2. (Suggested answer. Accept all logical answers.)
The treasure must have been stolen by another gang of pirates, and buried in Skeleton Island. That
is why there is a detailed map leading to the treasure, so that the crew could come back for the
treasure. The original group must have got lost or killed, hence the treasure remained buried, until
Jim found the map leading to it.
3. (Suggested answer. Accept all logical answers.)
After Jim, Silver and the crew figure out that the treasure is missing, they start searching the island.
Silver finds footsteps on the other side of the island. He realises that there is another group of
pirates on the island. The group had stolen the treasure, but couldn’t return home, because their
ship was destroyed. Jim, who knows one of the people in the other group, joins them instead. He
escapes with the other group in the night. He leads them to the Hispaniola, and they all sail away.
D. (Free response.)
Grammar
A. 1. Does Ramya clean (clean) her bicycle every week?
2. Rajit does not like chocolates.
3. Do you run every morning?
4. These two puzzle pieces do not fit together.
5. Does your sister go to the same school as you?
6. Mala and Rameez agree with my plan.
B. 1. I had a pet rabbit when I was a child.
2. They dug a hole and planted the seeds.
3. Sumit did not want a big party on his birthday.
4. Did you study for your exams?
5. Did they invite you to play with them?
6. Mahesh and Saina did not hear the bell ringing.
Vocabulary
1. a. quiet 2. a. the price 3. a. in touch 4. b. a visit 5. b. a compliment
6. a. in mind
Listening
1. Madhu goes to a doctor because she has a stomach ache.
2. Madhu had a dosa with coconut chutney for breakfast.
3. The doctor is happy with Madhu’s diet.
4. Madhu had eight slices of chocolate cake after lunch.
5. Madhu had cake after lunch because it was her friend’s birthday that day.
6. Madhu has to take the syrup twice a day, once after breakfast and once after dinner.
Writing
(Suggested answer. Accept all logical answers.)
All those months spent on the sea, travelling to Skeleton Island were finally going to be worth it. I was
filled with emotions. I could not wait to get my hands on the treasure. It was lucky that Jim had found
that map and brought it to us. I liked the young boy. So, I went and spoke to him first. I tried to hint
that he and I should become partners, and help each other against the rest of the crew.
My plan was to kill all the crew members and take the treasure home. I had waited all my life to find a
treasure like this. I had risked my life so often for this. If I could have it all to myself, I would never have
to work again. I would never have to go on dangerous treasure hunts.
That day, as we marched to the beach, following the map, I had an uneasy feeling. I was excited
about the treasure we were going to find, but something didn’t quite seem right. My instincts were
right! The treasure had already been stolen! I couldn’t believe it. All those months of travelling, all the
scheming and planning, it was all for nothing. I wanted to scream at everyone but I had to devise a
plan first.
Listening Text
Doctor: Hello Madhu, what’s the problem?
Madhu: Hello doctor, I have a stomach ache.
Doctor: What did you eat for breakfast today?
Madhu: I had a dosa with coconut chutney.
Doctor: And what did you have for lunch today?
Madhu: I had some rice, dal and vegetable salad.
Doctor: That’s a good diet. Anything else?
Madhu: Oh yes, it was my friend’s birthday today. I also had a few slices of cake after lunch.
Doctor: Hmm. How many slices did you have?
Madhu: About eight slices, I think. It was chocolate cake, my favourite!
Doctor: My goodness! Eight slices of cake! No wonder you have a stomach ache. Here, take this
syrup twice a day, once after breakfast and once after dinner. You will feel better in a couple
of days.
Madhu: Thank you, Doctor.
THE TREASURE HUNT
A. Answer in brief.
1. Who is the narrator of the story The Treasure Hunt and where is he? Who were with him?
Ans: The narrator of this story is Jim Hawkins and he is on a ship named Hispaniola with a group
of pirates—Captain Long John Silver and his crew.
2. What did Jim hear the captain tell a young sailor one night and what did Jim feel about the
captain after that?
Ans: One night, Jim heard the captain tell a young sailor that he planned to find the treasure and
keep the gold for himself. After that, Jim did not trust the captain.
B. Answer in detail.
Where did Jim and the pirates expect to find the gold and what did the pirates find instead?
Ans: They expected the gold to be buried under the shadow of the tree that rose nearly two
hundred feet into the sky. But when the pirates reached there, they saw a very large pit. Someone
had dug it up a long time ago and removed the treasure. All seven hundred thousand pounds of
gold was gone.
C. Read the lines and answer the questions.
1. “We should go hunt for this treasure. You and I must stick together and we’ll save each other if needed.”
a. Who are the we here?
b. Why do you think the speaker wanted to ‘stick’ to Jim?
c. Did Jim believe him? Why or why not?
Ans: a. Captain Silver said this to Jim.
b. He wanted to stick to Jim as Jim had the map of the treasure.
c. No, because he knew that the captain wanted to kill his crew and keep the gold for
himself.
2. “Look,” said Silver, “the bones point towards that part of Skeleton Island!”
a. Whose bones were these?
b. Where were they found?
c. Where did they point?
Ans: a. The bones were those of a sailor who probably had come looking for the treasure too.
b. They were found at the foot of a large tree.
c. They pointed towards the pine trees that grew on a hill on the skeleton island.
D. Answer in brief. (Think and answer)
1. Do you think Captain Silver should have got the treasure? Justify your answer.
Ans: Captain Silver did not deserve the treasure as he was a greedy man and a liar who wanted to
cheat Jim and the others of their fair share of the treasure.
2. Do you think the pirates knew about the evil ideas of their captain? How do you know?
Ans: They did not know about Silver’s evil ideas. Otherwise they would not have followed him
cheerfully in search of the treasure.
E. Answer in detail. (Think and answer)
What have you learned from this lesson?
Ans: We have learned that honesty pays but dishonesty does not. Captain Silver promised to share
the treasure with others, but he never intended to keep his promise. We must always keep our word.
We should think before making promises, and make an effort to do what we have promised.
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