A small moon won in a card game to a man named Higgins. It was considered a dubious winning, since the moon had no useful resources or agricultural promise. Still, Higgin's established himself and was justified a few years later when it was discovered that the abundant clay was rich in minerals. If chemically treated and fired, it created a ceramic that was ten times stronger than steal and a fraction of the weight. With this, they established their primary industry: mud.

Canton is the main company town, with over two thousand workers, largely slaves or indentured, known as "Mudders." Higgins descendent, the currant Magistrate rules through intimidation and fear, almost uniformly hated by the population. Crimes are dealt with three possible punishments; long-term hard-labot, imprisonment, or death by quartering.

The Mudders maintain hope even in the face or a momumentally dismal life: they sing songs of a hero who has twice defied the magistrate: Jayne Cobb. The Hero of Canton, it is believed, will one day come back to free them. Until then, they have one unlikely ally: the magistrate's son, Fess. Fess is currently working quietly to reverse or eliminate some of his father's regulations and procedures.