Drake (1846-1874) was in Palestine in 1869, so this is the place and era he is writing about. Most of his account of Jerusalem isn't the sort of thing that you wouldn't read in a hundred other books of that era. In a couple of paragraphs he really laces into the rabbis of Jerusalem (accusing them, among other things, of parading poor people in special "almshouses" for a visit by Montefiore, after which they were summarily ejected. The idea is that these houses were built by Montefiore, but were actually being used by friends and askanim of the rabbis). This isn't so interesting as a footnote where he assures that "I must here remark that I have received all the above account from the mouths of Jews."
One thing which is sort of nice is how he clearly doesn't really understand exactly what he is writing. Yet what he reports, we who do know, can see has some truth. So for example, he correctly writes that the Perushim don't believe in the גוטע יידן (i.e., the Chassidic rebbes):
Writing further about Chabad, he says that they resemble the Chasidim but "are more learned and pious," and are into hospitality, charity, and especially visiting the sick.
He also notes that the Sephardim will pray with the Chasidim or Chabad if they need to, but not the Perushim.
The book includes a phote of the late lamented Drake:
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