Fox hunting in the Virginia of that day was a widely followed sport.  It was brought over from England and perhaps its greatest devotee was old Lord Fairfax, with whom Washington hunted when still in his teens.  Fairfax, whose seat was at Greenway Court in the Shenandoah Valley, was so passionately fond of it that if foxes were scarce near his home he would go to a locality where they were plentiful, would establish himself at an inn and would keep open house and welcome every person of good character and respectable appearance who cared to join him.

The following are some typical entries from Washington’s Where & how my time is Spent:  “Jany. 1st. (1768) Fox huntg. in my own Neck with Mr. Robt.  Alexander and Mr. Colville—­catchd nothing—­Captn.  Posey with us.”  There were many similar failures and no successes in the next six weeks, but on February twelfth he records joyfully, “Catchd two foxes,” and on the thirteenth “catch 2 more foxes.”  March 2, 1768, “Hunting again, & catchd a fox with a bobd Tail & cut Ears, after 7 hours chase in wch. most of the dogs were worsted.”  March twenty-ninth, “Fox Hunting with Jacky Custis & Ld. [Lund] Washington—­Catchd a fox after 3 hrs. chase.”  November twenty-second, “Went a fox huntg. with Lord Fairfax & Colo.  Fairfax & my Br.  Catchd 2 Foxes.”  For two weeks thereafter they hunted almost every day with varying success.  September 30, 1769, he records:  “catchd a Rakoon.”

On January 27, 1770, the dogs ran a deer out of the Neck and some of them did not get home till next day.  The finding of a deer was no uncommon experience, but on no occasion does the chase seem to have been successful, as, when hard pressed, the fugitive would take to the water where the dogs could not follow.  January 4, 1772, the hunters “found both a Bear and a Fox but got neither.”

Bear and deer were still fairly plentiful in the region, and the fact serves to indicate that the country was not yet thickly settled, nor is it to this day.

In November, 1771, Washington and Jack Custis went to Colonel Mason’s at Gunston Hall, a few miles below Mount Vernon, to engage in a grand deer drive in which many men and dogs took part.  Mason had an estate of ten thousand acres which was favorably located for such a purpose, being nearly surrounded by water, with peninsulas on which the game could be cornered and forced to take to the river.  On the first day they killed two deer, but on the second they killed nothing.  No doubt they had a hilarious time of it, dogs baying, horsemen dashing here and there shouting at the top of their voices, and with plenty of fat venison and other good cheer at the Hall that night.

Washington’s most remarkable hunting experience occurred on the twenty-third of January, 1770, when he records:  “Went a hunting after breakfast & found a Fox at Muddy hole & killed her (it being a Bitch) after a chase of better than two hours & after treeing her twice the last of which times she fell dead out of the Tree after being therein sevl. minutes apparently well.”  Lest he may be accused of nature faking, it should be explained that the tree was a leaning tree.  Occasionally the foxes also took refuge in hollow trees, up which they could climb.