The writer suggests that the morning was grey and depressing with the imagery "an affair of slatternly* rags soaking in a dishwater sky". The word "affair" suggests that there was something secret or illicit or wrong about the morning. The word "dishwater" implies that the morning was dirty, cloudy and unclean like water after the washing up has been done.
The writer also implies that the morning is full of noise with the alliterative imagery of "cocks crowed and other birds welcomed the dawn more melodiously". The harsh "c" sound in the alliterative term "cocks crowed" suggests that the noise they made was unpleasant and difficult to listen to, which adds to the sense of something bad happening. However the term "melodiously" suggests that the other birds were making a more tuneful and pleasant singing noise, which brings a small sense of normality to the scene.
Later in the extract the writer shows that something unusual is happening as he describes a long list of animals such as "its horses, cows and sheep; its pigs, its poultry" and says that they all "lay still" which suggests that they are all sleeping at the same time. The building of the long list of animal types adds tension and builds the idea that something very unusual is happening. The word "still" suggests no movement. He also describes the "chiming of the church clock" showing that the noise of the church clock was breaking through the silence and again the harsh consonant sound of the alliteration suggests that the chiming clock was really loud and stood out.
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