"The greatest danger was fire. Mi- chael Chevalier, a Frenchman who traveled in the West, was amazed at the carelessness he saw. "The Americans show a singular indifference in regard to fires," he wrote. "They smoke without the least concern in the midst of half-open cotton-bales, with which a boat is loaded; they ship gunpowder with no more precaution than if it were so much maize or salt pork, and leave objects packed in straw right in the torrent of sparks that issue from the chimneys." Chevalier added that the important thing seemed to be not the safety of people but to have steam- boats moving as fast as possible and at the least expense (Steamboats on the Mississippi)."