We sway along

We flash across the level.

We thunder thro' the bridges.

We bicker down the cuttings.

We sway along the ridges.

A rush of streaming hedges,

Of jostling lights and shadows,

Of hurtling, hurrying stations,

Of racing woods and meadows.

We charge the tunnels headlong --

The blackness roars and shatters.

We crash between embankments --

The open spins and scatters.

We shake off the miles like water,

We might carry a royal ransom;

And I think of her waiting, waiting,

And long for a common hansom.