| Harriet Monroe, ed. (1860–1936). Poetry: A Magazine of Verse. 1912–22. | | | | Fantasy | | By Helen C. Russmann |
| | | HIGH in the cloudy skies, | |
| Along the barren hills, | |
| Where short brown grass grows sparingly and spots of orange earth shine forth, | |
| Where trees of sombre brown uprise, | |
| Fantastic horses roam. | 5 |
| |
| Cropping the scanty grass, | |
| Their full white tails blown outward by the wind, | |
| They move about majestically with slow and tranquil step. | |
| |
| Their necks are strangely thin and beautiful. | |
| Their fiery eyes, fixed steadily on the ground, | 10 |
| Seem to be contemplating inward wonders. | |
| With their unshod hoofs they leave no mark on the bare hard earth. | |
| |
| Slowly they move, | |
| With their heads bent downward | |
| Munching the short spare grass, | 15 |
| While the passing clouds, grey with incipient storm, | |
| Hang low over the hills. | |
| |
| They know no day nor night, | |
| Those pale fantastic horses; | |
| For daylight on the hills is but a cloud-grey shadow, | 20 |
| And night is faintly luminous with livid mist. | |
| |
| Slowly they roam, | |
| With their unsleeping eyes fixed inward, | |
| Treading with easy step the inaccessible heights, | |
| Moving in tranquil peace | 25 |
| Along the cloudy hills. | | | | |
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