" THE STORY OF MY HEART." 291 



their physical life, by care, exercise, and in 

 every possible way. 



" I believe all manner of asceticism to be 

 the vilest blasphemy blasphemy towards the 

 whole of the human race. I believe in the flesh 

 and the body, which is worthy of worship 

 to see a perfect human body unveiled causes a 

 sense of worship. The ascetics are the only 

 persons who are impure. Increase of physical 

 beauty is attended by increase of soul beauty. 

 The soul is the higher even by gazing on 

 beauty. Let me be fleshly perfect." 



Do not misunderstand him. This intense 

 craving after physical perfection, this yearning 

 after beauty, is not a sensual craving. It is 

 not the Greek's love of perfect form, though 

 Jefferies had this love, as well. It is far more 

 than this ; it means, in the mind of this man, 

 that without perfection of the body there can 

 be no perfect life of the soul. 



In that letter where the Apostle Paul speaks 

 at length of Death and the Resurrection, he con- 

 cludes with the assurance he writes for his 

 own consolation, I think, as well as that of his 



192 



