Matt: Again, thanks for the response. I'm glad I posted.
The rag joint at the front may be incorrect, I didn't have anything to guide me.
The shaft coupler is secured by two carriage bolts run through a stamped steel "flange" shown in the Parts Lookup exploded view of the drive line. The carriage bolts exit toward the rear and are secured by lock nuts.
The rag joint is fastened to the engine itself by means of two bolts which pass through both rag joints into the crank shaft of the motor. These bolts each have close fitting washers stolen from the MTD deck.
The only thing that worries me about this setup is that there is really nothing to keep the bolts that run into the engine from backing out. I'm using blue locktite, but its not really a good solution. I've also tried using bolts that are long enough to bottom out, but I don't like that either, since they don't really tighten up the rag joint.
Finally, the holes in the flex joint for the engine bolts are (1) located closer in to the center (as they need to be), and (2) are larger in diameter than they need to be for the bolts. I suppose they are larger to allow for the rubber to "fold over" when the bolts are tightened, but I'm not sure.
As an aside, the reason I have nothing to guide me is that the previous owner, when he installed the Briggs & Stratton 16 HP motor, modified the drive shaft and threw away the flange. He also experienced a drive shaft that "let loose" inside the tunnel and beat up the steering column pretty badly. See below.