Beneath the coal seam

An original fiction passage set in the nineteenth century.

Mr Fenner gripped the rail as the cage descended into the mine. Although the other men stood easily, he kept both hands fixed upon the iron and stared at the square of daylight shrinking above them. When the cage stopped, his face was colourless. One miner smiled and asked whether the gentleman inspector required a chair.

Fenner ignored him and followed the mine manager along the passage. He avoided the deepest puddles and flinched whenever a tool struck stone. The manager talked proudly of the day’s output, but Fenner’s lamp moved slowly over the roof. Beneath one timber support lay a fresh scattering of grit. Another support had bent slightly in the middle.

‘Bring the men out,’ Fenner said.

The manager laughed. Closing that part of the mine would lose half a day’s work, and the owner expected a full wagon by evening. Fenner’s voice shook when he repeated the order. A cracking sound travelled through the passage. Several miners hesitated, looking first at the manager and then at Fenner.

Fenner positioned himself beside the entrance to the working area and counted each man as he passed. He did not join the first group returning to the cage. Nor did he join the second. Only when the mine manager emerged behind the final worker did Fenner follow them towards the shaft.

They had risen halfway to the surface when the sound came from below. The cage trembled, and a cloud of dust climbed the shaft after them. At the top, the miners gathered around Fenner. He sat on the ground because his legs would no longer hold him. Without looking at the manager, he opened his notebook and began to record the names of the men who had come out.

“Mr Fenner is presented as a coward.”

Evaluate how successfully the writer presents this idea. Support your judgement with detailed references to the passage.