This reminds me strongly of Frost stopping by the woods on a snowy night. There is a similar almost-quietness, almost-darkness, about it. However, were it simply a regurgitation of that notable poem it would have little appeal.
Instead, it is almost as if Frost's narrator is being watched by Richardson's narrator. Except that she takes it a step beyond even that clever idea: these horses do not think it strange that something out of habit has occurred; rather, in their true, unfettered, nature, they wander (scatter) directionless, no harness, no reins, no fence, to guide them, but simply because night stretches out, and there is a road, and someone has opened a gate.
There is a rich lode to mine here, if one agrees to compare the two poems. Just as examples, consider the differing 'viewpoints' of Frost's horse and these horses, as suggested above; consider the impulse of the narrator of Frost's poem and the impulse of Richardson's horses.
I wonder if the poet meant for such a comparison to take place at the same time I see so much kinship between them.
I enjoy this poem.
Take care,
Joe
