Those who wished to work stood with their lamps, barefooted, with shovel or pick beneath their arms; while the others, still in their sabots, with their overcoats on their shoulders because of the great cold, were barring the shaft; and the captains were growing hoarse in the effort to restore order, begging them to be reasonable and not to prevent those who wanted from going down.
Ceux qui voulaient travailler, tenaient leur lampe, pieds nus, la pelle ou la rivelaine sous le bras; tandis que les autres, encore en sabots, le paletot sur les épaules a cause du grand froid, barraient le puits; et les porions s'étaient enroués a vouloir mettre de l'ordre, a les supplier d'etre raisonnables, de ne pas empecher de descendre ceux qui en avaient la bonne volonté.