of Central European TurTcey. 247 



medy these evils, but they are of little avail, as the custom has 

 been so long continued. In Southern Turkey many places are 

 already devoid of wood ; and, where the country is hilly, the 

 water carries away the vegetable earth, and there only remain 

 bare rocks and dry beds of streams, as in so many parts of 

 France, which, from like causes, present the same barren ap- 

 pearance. The Servians and Bulgarians are accustomed, like 

 the Italians, to take a siesta during the hottest time of the day ; 

 but the climate almost renders it necessary, and they cannot 

 therefore be called lazy : indeed, the soil is so rich that they do 

 not require to work so hard as the Germans. 



The Commerce of Turkey is chiefly in the hands of the Ar- 

 menians, Jews, Greeks, and Bulgarians. All the various mer- 

 chants, with the exception of the Servian, have cox-respondents 

 in many of the commercial parts of Europe, and elsewhere ; 

 but the Servian is less inclined to commerce than to agricul- 

 ture ; and, if he does enter into trade, so soon as he has made 

 a little money in foreign countries, he returns to Southern 

 Hungary or Servia. The Armenians are worse than the Jews, 

 and hate the Greeks and Servians ; but the Turks reckon them 

 most faithful servants. It is well known in what way the Ar- 

 menian bankers in Constantinople dispose of the revenues of 

 the state, and keep the Pashas in a sort of dependence, which 

 is most injurious to the interests of the state and the happiness 

 of the people. If Sultan Mahmud succeed in effecting a change 

 in the financial part of his administration, he will have cut the 

 gordian knot, and will easily get the better of other difficul- 

 ties. 



It is astonishing to see the high interest at which Armenians 

 and Jews lend their money, by taking advantage of the misery 

 of the people, and their inability to pay the exactions of the 

 Turks, The very men who sometimes urge the Pashas to levy 

 an extraordinary tax are those who derive most benefit from it ; 

 and, from receiving in pledge the crops and other things, they 

 may with justice be called the leeches of Turkey. I conversed 

 with one very rich Jew at Monastir, who told me that he lent 

 money to the merchants at 25 per cent, per annum, and to the 

 Albanians at 9.5 per cent, per montli ! He mentioned that he 

 seldom lost money, and was never robbed on the high way ; a 



