Who is the cook on the 'Hispaniola' in Robert Louis Stevenson's novel 'Treasure Island'?

In 'Treasure Island' by Robert Louis Stevenson (1859-1894), Captain Smollet hires a crew to sail the 'Hispaniola'. The ship's cook is a one legged man called Long John Silver, whom everyone initially admires. He is charismatic, and his physical and mental strength are impressive, but he has an ulterior motive for being on the ship. Silver is the secret leader of a band of pirates.

'Treasure Island' was published in 1883. It tells a story about pirates and a treasure hunt on a tropical isle. It is narrated by Jim Hawkins, a boy who is eager to go to sea and hunt for treasure. He initially trusts Long John Silver, until he overhears Silver and other pirates plotting to kill the rest of the crew.

Stevenson loosely based Long John Silver on his friend and mentor William Ernest Henley (1849-1903). Henley was a poet, best remembered for his 1875 poem 'Invictus'. When he was 12, Henley suffered from tuberculosis of the bone, resulting in the amputation of his left leg below the knee. In a letter to Henley in 1883, Stevenson wrote, "I will now make a confession: It was the sight of your maimed strength and masterfulness that begot Long John Silver".

As of 2021, there have been over 50 film and television adaptations of 'Treasure Island'. Long John Silver has been played by Charles Ogle (1920), Wallace Beery (1934), Orson Welles (1972), Charlton Heston (1990) and Tim Curry (1996).