"We'll take no half-way measures with old Queen Bess." But somehow the spice of the adventure seemed to have gone out of it.
"It really would be dangerous now," said Grace.

"She would be certain to hear of it and make it worse for all of us." "Why not burn her," put in Nora, who was afraid of nothing and had often looked at the scolding teacher with such cold, laughing eyes, that even Miss Leece was disconcerted.
"Good!" cried several of the others.

"We will take her down below the bridge and burn her as a witch." No one objected to this, since the ashes of the effigy would tell no tales.

Once more they started singing: "Merrily we roll along!" as they marched out of the village, crossed the bridge over the little river and finally paused on the bank below.
"Plant the pole in deep," said David, "so she won't topple, and fix her up to suit yourselves, girls, while we get the fagots." The boys began to search about for dried sticks and twigs, while the girls were arranging the figure for her funeral pyre.
Suddenly, there was a wild war whoop.

A crowd of boys dashed out of a thicket near by, each one carrying a lighted Jack-o'-lantern on top of a pole, and surrounded the effigy of the teacher.
"Help!" cried the girls, trying to defend the absurd thing from the attack, but they were too late.