I will now offer a few remarks upon the condition of the different religious sects, premising that they entertain the bitterest feelings one towards another, and are only restrained from greater excesses by the fear that the Turks will profit by their quarrels, and listen to the highest bidder. The Consuls of the different nations have hard work to keep the peace, finding themselves of but little power in allaying strifes; not for want of will and moral courage, but because their authority only extends to small matters, and they are not properly seconded by the spiritual heads of the communities, who rather stir up the disputants and increase the difficulty of restoring peace. The most wealthy and powerful, and, in times past (and sometimes even now), the most distinguished in these contentions are the Latins, Greeks, and Armenians; and the Turks are never sorry to see them at strife, as they reap a harvest from both the losers and the winners. Scarcely had the tempest of war caused by the Crusades passed away, when these communities began to struggle at the court of the Sublime Porte for the possession of the Holy Places. Each produced _firmans_ given by Mohammed, Omar, Saladin, or various Sultans; and the ministers at the court always decided in favour of the highest bidder, so that the same place was assigned by different _firmans_ to the Latins, the Greeks, or the Armenians. In consequence it has happened that one party, believing itself to be the true proprietor of a particular Sanctuary, has declared the other an impostor, until the sight of a _firman_ of older date has shown the vanity of its claims.