Friday Feby. 22. The Wind in the Night encreasd to a mere Storm and raind exceedg. hard; towards day it moderated and ceasd Raining but the whole day afterwards was Squally.
Laid in part the Worm of a fence round my Peach Orchard, & had it made. Waited on Lord Fairfax at Belvoir & engd. him to dine at Mt. Vernon on Monday next.
Upon my return found one of my best Waggon Horses (namely Jolly) with his right foreleg Mashd to pieces which I suppose happend in the Storm last Night by Means of a Limb of a tree or something of that sort falling upon him.
Did it up as well as I coud this Night.
This was GW’s birthday according to the Gregorian calendar (see entry for 11 Mar. 1748), but there is no indication that he took note of it either on this day or 11 Feb., the Old Style date on which he actually was born. In 1798 and 1799 the citizens of Alexandria celebrated his birthday on or near the old date.
WORM OF A FENCE: the bottom course of rails in a rail fence.