Mystery quotation: the flesh

by Dan Phillips

It's been a good long while, so...how about another round of Mystery Quotation? This one goes well with our recent talk of sarkicophobia.

Remember, no tricks—

1. Use your memory (or guessing) alone
2. No electronic tools
3. No Googling
4. No murmuring about the "no tricks" rule
5. No murmuring about the "no murmuring" rule
   

And so, without further eloquence, here is your Mystery Quotation:

A young man, who had been "in fellowship with the brethren," wished to join the church at [omitted]. I knew that they would not grant him a transfer to us, so I wrote to ask if there was anything in his moral character which should prevent us from receiving him. The reply they sent was laconic, but not particularly lucid:—"The man _____ has too much of the flesh." When he called to hear the result of his application, I sent for a yard or two of string, and asked one of our friends to take my measure, and then to take his. As I found that I had much more ‘flesh’ than he had, and as his former associates had nothing else to allege against him, I proposed him for church-membership, and he was in due course accepted.

Have at it.

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