of the
Indians, he could not resist the temptations of alcohol, and was during
the latter part of his life very intemperate. When Red Jacket was
sober, he was the proudest chief that ever walked, and never would
communicate even with the highest of the American authorities but
through his interpreter; but when intoxicated, he would speak English
and French fluently, and then the proud Indian warrior, the most
eloquent of his race, the last chief of the six nations, would demean
himself by begging for a sixpence to buy more rum.

I must now revert to the singular causes by which, independent of
others, such as locality, etcetera, Buffalo was so rapidly brought to a
state of perfection--not like many other towns which, commencing with
wooden houses, gradually supersede them by brick and stone. The person
who was the cause of this unusual rise was a Mr Rathbun, who now lies
incarcerated in a gaol of his own building. It was he who built all the
hotels, churches, and other public edifices; in fact, every structure
worthy of observation in the whole town was projected, contracted for,
and executed by Mr Rathbun. His history is singular. Of quiet,
unassuming manners, Quaker in his dress, moderate in all his expenses,
(except in charity, wherein, assisted by an amiable wife, he was very
liberal) he concealed under this apparent simplicity and goodness a mind
capable of the vastest conceptions, united with the greatest powers of
execution. He undertook contracts, and embarked in building
speculations, to an amount almost incredible. Rathbun undertook every
thing, and every thing undertaken by Rathbun was well done. Not only at
Buffalo, but at Niagara and other places, he was engaged in raising vast
buildings, when the great crash occurred, and Rathbun, with others, was
unable to meet his liabilities. Then, for the first time, it was
discovered that for more than five years he had been conniving at a
system of forgery, to the amount of two millions of dollars: the forgery
consisted in putting to his bills the names of responsible parties as
indorsers, that they might be more current. It does not appear that he
ever intended to defraud, for he took up all his notes as fast as they
became due; and it was this extreme regularity on his part which
prevented the discovery of his fraud for so unusually long a period. It
is surmised, that had not the general failure taken place, he would have
eventually withdrawn all these f