In the Land of Dreams [poem by Mary Hannay Foott, 1890]

[Editor: A poem by Mary Hannay Foott.]

In the Land of Dreams.

A bridle-path in the tangled mallee,
With blossoms unnamed and unknown bespread —
And two who ride through its leafy alley —
But never the sound of a horse’s tread.

And one by one, whilst the foremost rider
Puts back the boughs which have grown apace,
And side by side where the track is wider
Together they come to the olden place.

To the leaf-dyed pool whence the mallards fluttered,
Or ever the horses had paused to drink ;
Where the word was said and the vow was uttered
That brighten for ever its weedy brink.

And Memory closes her sad recital —
In Fate’s cold eyes there are kindly gleams —
While for one brief moment of blest requital
The parted have met — in the land of Dreams.

13th June, 1882.

Source:
Mary Hannay Foott. Morna Lee and Other Poems, Gordon & Gotch, Brisbane, 1890, page 11

Previously published in:
Mary Hannay Foott. Where the Pelican Builds and Other Poems, Gordon & Gotch, Brisbane, 1885
The Morning Bulletin (Rockhampton, Qld.) Monday 20 July 1885, page 3