A clergyman came upon a group of boys, about ten years old, gathered around a stray dog. Concerned they might be mistreating the animal, he approached and asked what they were doing.
One boy explained, "This is an old neighborhood stray. We sometimes take him home, but only one of us can each day. So we're having a contest: whoever tells the biggest lie gets to take him home today."
The Reverend was shocked. "You boys shouldn't be having a contest telling lies!" he exclaimed. He then launched into a ten-minute sermon against lying, concluding with, "Why, when I was your age, I never told a lie."
There was a minute of complete silence. As the Reverend smiled, satisfied he had gotten through to them, the smallest boy sighed deeply and said, "All right, give him the dog."