The large family had gathered at the old farm house for a reunion. Long after supper, the celebration moved indoors. Only the father of the clan ventured out to wander the vast acres in the dark. On his walk the old man fell into a ditch and found himself sitting waist-deep in slimy mud--very uncomfortable, but in no immediate danger. Without moving, he shouted, “Fire! Fire!”

Since fire is one of the most dreaded rural disasters, the celebrating family poured out into the night, frantic with fear. On finding the mired old man, one of his sons said, “Pa, you scared us to death. Why on earth did you yell `Fire’?”

“Well, now,” replied the patriarch, “if I’d ‘a yelled `Mud!’ I’d ‘a been here till spring planting.” (1)

At age 17 Jennie Todd found fault with everything about the church--from …