As he walked along the streets, looking at this and
that holy spot, insolent and contemptuous Turks looked on and mocked
him, and his spirit grew bitter within him, and his hand clutched
itself convulsively as if longing for a sword.
8. Burning with a sense of injuries sustained by the Christians, and
the desecration of the sacred places, he sought the counsel of Simeon,
the Greek patriarch of Jerusalem. In reply to Peter's questions, he
explained that nothing was to be expected from the Greek Empire in
behalf of the Holy Land, the court of Constantinople was so dissolute
and corrupt, and that the only hope was that the Latin princes might
be persuaded to form a league for the grand purpose entertained by
Gregory VII. "Write," Peter said to the patriarch, "to the pope and to
all Latin Christians, and seal your letters with the signet of your
office as patriarch of Jerusalem. As a penance for my sins, I will
travel over Europe, I will describe everywhere the desolate condition
of the Holy City, and exhort princes and people to wrest it from the
profane hands of the infidels."
[Illustration: _Mosque of Achmet, Constantinople_]
9. The letters were accordingly written, and the hermit set sail with
them from Joppa. Arriving in Italy he presented the documents to the
pope, Urban II, a pupil and _protege_ of Gregory VII, urging his
holiness to use his authority, as the head of Christendom, to set in
motion a scheme for regaining the birthplace of Christ.
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