How has Robert Bridges, through the use of vivid imagery, described the magical scene of "London Snow"?

Through the use of vivid imagery, Robert Bridges paints a magical scene of London snow that is subtly superimposed over a scene of corrupted London. He does this by juxtaposing images of sparkling, drifting, magical snow with contrasting images of broken, unwelcoming, dirty city. Bridges' snow imagery emphasizes snow's lightness and cleanness and its sparkling qualities: "softly drifting and sailing," "uncompacted lightness," "dazzling whiteness." The imagery of the city, which he subtly incorporates into the snow's path and settling "down and down," emphasizes its brokenness, its noise, its discoloration and its unfriendliness: "unevenness," "crevices," "Deadening, muffling, stifling," "city brown," "Stealthily."

In large white flakes falling on the city brown,
Stealthily and perpetually settling and loosely lying,
      Hushing the latest traffic of the drowsy town;
Deadening, muffling, stifling its murmurs failing;
Lazily and incessantly floating down and down:
      Silently sifting and veiling road, roof and railing;
Hiding difference, making unevenness even,...

Bridges slowly introduces the march of humanity over the now perfect nature landscape. Boys play and marvel at the "white-mossed wonder" trees: "'O look at the trees!' they cried, 'O look at the trees!'" Even while the sun stands by St. Paul's Cathedral dome, "sun, in pale display / Standing by Paul’s high dome," businessmen trudge out on their familiar "long brown paths." They are diverted from the business of their words, "the daily word is unspoken," as they are filled with awe at the "sight of the beauty that greets them."

The paradoxical ending image shows that the awed businessmen are the ones guilty of marring the snow-whitened city scene: "for the charm they have broken." Other city dwellers, boys and men in carts that "creak and blunder," don't mar the "white-mossed wonder," but as soon as the businessmen, "trains of sombre men," step out their doors, "war is waged with the snow." They "[t]read long brown paths" before they see and wonder and, then, even they feel their burdens lifted: "even for them awhile no cares encumber." The magic of Bridges' imagery first hides, then points to the decayed nature of London, suddenly washed clean by snowfall for a moment—London decked out in a night-time snow "full inches seven," yet under an unreachable, unattainable, "high and frosty" image of heaven.

Hiding difference, making unevenness even,
Into angles and crevices softly drifting and sailing.
      All night it fell, and when full inches seven
It lay in the depth of its uncompacted lightness,
The clouds blew off from a high and frosty heaven;...