through completely, trying to get its meaning. Regard the lines in
italic as a kind of chorus, and study the meaning of the other stanzas
first. Who are the galloping legions? A _stirrup-cup_ was a draught of
wine, taken just before a rider began his journey; it was usually drunk
to some one's health. Is _dolour_ a common word? Is it good here? Try to
put into your own words the ideas in the "land of no name," and "the
infinite dark," remembering what is said above about the general meaning
of the poem. What picture and what idea do you get from "like sparks
from the anvil"? Now go back to the lines in italic, and look for their
meaning.

What do you notice about the length of the words in this poem? Why has
the author used this kind of words? Notice carefully how the sound and
the sense are made harmonious. Look for the rhyme. How does the poem
differ from most short poems?

Bead the verses aloud, trying to make your reading suggest "the hoofs of
invisible horses."


OTHER POEMS TO READ

A Troop of the Guard Hermann Hagedorn
How They Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix Robert Browning
Through the Metidja to Abd-el-Kadr " "
Reveille Bret Harte
A Song of the Road Richard Watson Gilder
The House and the Road J.P. Peabody
The Mystic Cale Young Rice
(In _The Little Book of Modern Verse_, Ed. by J.B. Rittenhouse.)