The Sound of the Mountain

Though august had only begun, autumn insects were already singing.
He thought he could detect a dripping of dew from leaf to leaf.
Then he heard the sound of the mountain.
It was a windless night. the moon was near full, but in the moist, sultry air the fringe of trees that outlined the mountain was blurred . They were motionless, however.
Not a leaf on the fern by the veranda was stirring.