The British Government at once brought before the consideration of the Porte the condition of the Jews “already settled, or who might afterwards settle themselves in Palestine.” This was evidently a direct encouragement towards the colonization of Palestine by the Jews, made officially by the British Government. In April, 1841, Lord Palmerston forwarded a circular to his agents in the Levant and Syria, which began by stating that, as far as documents could avail, the law of Turkey had by that time become as favourable as might reasonably be expected to the Jews, but that there remained the difficulty of enforcing an honest administration of that law. The Porte, however, being at that time entirely under the beneficial influence of British diplomacy, had declared its determination that the law should be righteously administered, and had even promised Her Majesty’s Ambassador that “it will attend to any representations which may be made to it by the Embassy of any act of oppression practised against Jews.” The Consul was therefore to investigate diligently all cases of oppression of the Jews that might come to his knowledge, and report to the Embassy, and although he might only act officially on behalf of persons actually by right under British protection, he was on every suitable occasion to make it known to the local authorities that “the British Government felt an interest in the welfare of Jews in general, and was anxious that they should be protected from oppression.” He was also to make known the offer of the Porte to attend to cases of persecution that might be reported to the Embassy. In 1842 a bad case was represented as occurring at _Hebron_ through acts of violence on the part of Shaiki Baddo and others. In 1847 again it seemed probable that Christian fanatics were about to reproduce the horrors which occurred at Rhodes and Damascus in 1840. The British Consul, James Finn (1806‒1872), then interfered and protected the Jews. In the same year he was again obliged to interfere on behalf of the Jews. In consequence of various occurrences of this kind in _Jerusalem_, another instruction was issued by the Foreign Office, to the effect that whenever any Austrian, French, or other European Jew was suffering from persecution or injustice, and was repudiated by his own Consul, the English Consul might take up the case, unless the repudiating Consul, when applied to, should assign some strong and sufficient reason for his objection. The spirit underlying this instruction, notwithstanding the establishment, since 1839, of other European Consulates, was in conformity with the rule laid down in that year, “to afford protection to Jews generally.”¹ ¹ _Ibid._, _p._ 112. One out of many tokens of gratitude from the people so benefited will be found in an address in _Hebrew_ to Her Majesty Queen Victoria (1819‒1901), received from _Jerusalem_ in July, 1849 (Appendix lxii).